Easy to operate iDrive

Then there's the iDrive.

After testing a series of BMW's this year, I am starting to take a more German approach to the iDrive. Americans are just stupid.

Please don't be offended by that if you are not the brightest LED in the headlamp, but there's an owner's manual in the glove box and not everything good in life needs to be figured out in three minutes with the lights off. The iDrive provides lots of function. It's easy to operate and lets you keep your hand on the wheel while you're doing it.

If you get stumped, look it up. BMW writes one in English.

There are, of course, all of the premium features you'd expect on the X6 M: The standard glass roof, the dual climate zones in front -- and you can get dual climate zones in the second row too.

There's a heads-up display that includes navigation guidance, cruise control settings and, of course, your speed. There are automatic high beams that adjust to oncoming traffic.

Then there is the back-up camera system. This provides a bird's eye view of the vehicle and everything around it. It comes on automatically when you put the vehicle in reverse and can be turned on when you select the parking distance control button. It's excellent for seeing what's right in front of you as well, such as pulling into a tight space or a garage.

    See also:

    Front ventilation
    Thumbwheels for adjusting the temperature, arrows 1. Toward blue: colder. Toward red: warmer. Lever for changing the air flow direction, arrow 2. Thumbwheels for opening and closing ...

    When the vehicle is parked
    If you still want to view the time, external temperature and odometer reading briefly after the remote control has been taken out of the ignition lock: Press button 1 in the instrument cluster. ...

    BMW Info
    Starting destination guidance 1. Select the desired message. 2. "Start guidance" or "Add as another destination" Dialing the number in the message Up to 4 phone numbers c ...