550i now

I drove my wifes MDX a good deal this weekend and noticed immediately that I seemed to need more turns to get where I needed. After a few minutes of wondering what was different BINGO, I realized that there was no Active Steering. Not a big deal, but today when I drove my 545i for the first time since saturday morning, I really noticed what I was missing.

I wasnt sure that I would like the effect of Active Steering on driving dynamics at either parking lot or highway speed, but now after a month and 1450 miles, I can definitively say I love it. I did do a few soft curb touches the first few days, but now really appreciate the way BMW has advanced steering technology.

Any of you considering this option, I recommend it.

Evenflow545

I disliked it at first, but now it MAY be a must have. Although, as a rather expensive option in 2005 and 2006, I might pass.

rodybmw

Yeah, you definately notice the presence of Active Steering the very first time you drive a car with it, however, the significance of it does not register until you go back and drive a "regular" car after a few days with AS. That is when you really feel the difference and appreciate having AS. The very first time that I went back to my old M3 after driving the 545i for a few days it felt like I was driving a bus. That's when I knew that I would always get the Active Steering option as long as it is available on the model that I am interested in. I will however make an exception for the M5 if I were to win the BMWCCA raffle

newbie

Just curious. I heard that the M5's dont have active steering.
Do u know if it has an equivalen technology that varies the
amount of power steering based on the speed ?

-nar

ZinMe

I agree-- the active steering is good. It really gives just enough of a ratio change to make the steering feel more crisp and precise. I never understood what all the fuss was about in the press about this feature.

ipp

I'm I stupid? But what's MDX?

my530i

MDX is an Acura (Honday) SUV 5 doors with 3rd row.
http://www.acura.com/models/model_index.asp?module=mdx

550i now

Acura MDX SUV

rodybmw

There was a rumored hardware change after the first few months of production and a couple of software updates for A.S. since then. Appearently the original version of A.S. was not as good as the latter ones (according to reports), but I have only driven post 9/04 produced ones and they are great.

Bubblehead

I had active steering on my previous E60 and when I upgraded to my 2006 530i I did not realize that it was not part of the sports package as it was before until it was too late. I miss that feature and will be looking for it in the future.