How the BMW iDrive drives us iNsane
You’d think that when taking delivery of a $77,400 car that at least the clock
would be set to the proper time. Nope. The display in our new BMW 650i was blank and had not been set for time or date. We wonder if the dealer is as frustrated as we have been with the car’s iDrive control system. Perhaps that’s why the clock wasn’t set--it was even too complicated for the BMW-trained dealer technicians to do it!
Since we the CR auto engineers drive a different car every night, we know that some interior controls are easier to adjust than others. But setting the clock on the 650i required looking up how to do it in the owner’s manual.
According to page 82 of the manual, here are the steps you have to take in order to adjust the clock (which all have to be done via the iDrive):
1. Press the MENU button once or twice until the start menu appears
2. Press the controller to open the i menu.
3. Turn the controller until ‘Display settings’ is selected and press the controller.
4. Move the controller once to the front, if necessary, to change to the first field from the top.
5. Turn the controller until ‘Time’ is selected and press the controller.
6. Turn the controller until ‘Set time’ is selected and press the controller.
7. Turn the controller to set the hours and press the controller.
8. Turn the controller to set the minutes and press the controller.
9. Start swearing and wish that all BMW controls were as easy to adjust as those in the Lexus SC430. (Actually we made #9 up; it isn’t really in the 650i’s owner's manual. Just our log book.)
Here’s how you adjust the time in the SC430:
1. Press the button on the control panel that says ‘H’ to adjust the hours, and ‘M’ for minutes.
2. Done
Conclusion: We would hope that if you bought the “ultimate driving machine” that you would be driving it with all of your attention rather than fighting with the controls to set the clock, tune the radio, or turn off the annoying navigation system. Just because a car costs a princely sum, it need not have complicated controls.
--Mike Quincy
