[x1_owner_FL]

Dear forums,

As I prepare to take our X1 to its first regularly scheduled maintenance (10k miles) - I have two burning questions in my head that I hope you guys can advise. I'd like to bring these up with the shop if necessary.

1) Before this car, we had a lease 2015 X1 (rear-wheel drive). My other car is an all-wheel drive. So never in my life I've even heard the term "torque steering" until now. With this car, I've been noticing some significant torque steering (given that it's a front-wheel drive, some is expected, but I don't know if this much is normal). What are your thoughts on this - is this a common problem with new X1s, especially when hard accelerating from a full stop?

2) When the first maintenance warning popped up on the dash board, it said something like "2000 miles to maintenance" when I was only at around 7500 miles. I initially thought it was simply averaging but when I hit 9500 miles, it said "10000 miles maintenance - now". What can be the result of this 500 miles discrepancy? Is this normal - especially for a brand new car? Could the dealer we purchased the car from have done something to make the actual vehicle miles look less?

Anyway, I appreciate your time reading my post and I look forward to your comments.

Thank you !

[YellowCone]

Hi,

For the first question I’m afraid I can’t add much beyond saying that some torque steer on any car with a decent amount of HP going through the front wheels is to be expected. My X1 is an xDrive variant so I can’t say I’ve experienced any noticeable torque steer in it. At any point that I’ve been giving it enough revs that torque steer could occur it will just send power to the back and cancel it out. I’d imagine that 200hp through just the front wheels on a tall bodied car is always going to have that problem.
As for the second question, BMWs use something called condition based servicing, it will apply in this situation. The cars computer takes into account multiple factors and sensor readings as well as mileage so the actual notice you’re given may differ from what you’re expecting. How your car has been driven can affect the service notification in quite a significant way. If you’re only 500 miles out over ten thousand miles you’re actually doing quite well!

[Lucky13]

I have an E84 but we traded a 2009 Mini Clubman S to get it. I could not stand the torque steer from a start and it was a real problem because to get out of my neighborhood it is a hard right with pretty good power as cars come over a hill on a 2 lane road at 45-50. I can’t tell you how many times tires were spinning looking for traction. I will never buy a front drive car/SUV again but XDrive should stop that. Our X1 is a 2013 sdrive but I wouldn’t get a new X1 or X2 without all wheel drive.

[Beemerbuster]

Be intereted to know if x1_owner_FL's vehicle has run flat tyre tyres fitted.

Personally I think these add to the torque steer affect due to the stiffer side walls and the lesser compliance in the tyre.

[x1_owner_FL]

Hi Beemerbuster - yes the car does have run flat tires fitted. I guess when it's time to replace them I'll replace them with regular tires?

Thanks to all who replied - I feel a bit better now knowing that a major reason for steering is the fact that it's a powerful car.

[DMI]

I don’t agree with lucky13’s theory that xdrive would prevent torque steer. Torque steer can occur without wheel spin therefore the non permanent AWD would not necessarily kick in. Torque steer is a by product of high torque through different sized drive shafts due to the transverse engine lay out, combined with road camber which then loads the steering (front) wheels up. It can be controlled by a limited slip differential or differential braking system

[Lucky13]

That’s why were sticking with an E84, no torque steer in a rear wheel drive that I have ever seen.

[F48_Driver]

Originally Posted by Lucky13

That's why were sticking with an E84, no torque steer in a rear wheel drive that I have ever seen.

Yes we all agree that older X1 drives better but newer X1 is better at everything else

[ttimbo]

Originally Posted by Garmz

Yes we all agree that older X1 drives better but newer X1 is better at everything else

I don't agree the E84 drives better than the F48; neither are the sharpest knives in the drawer...but that's not their purpose, is it? Per above, in every other respect, I find the F48 better.

[bimmerdriver2]

Torque steer is not caused by tires. It's caused by unequal length driveshafts. The more torque the engine has, the more torque steer there will be. It will be somewhat reduced with AWD because torque is evenly distributed between both sides by the rear differential.

[Lucky13]

Originally Posted by ttimbo

I don't agree the E84 drives better than the F48; neither are the sharpest knives in the drawer...but that's not their purpose, is it? Per above, in every other respect, I find the F48 better.

This has been discussed in many threads but to quote Car and Driver the E84 vs F48 the E84 is the better handling car just like the E92 is better than the F30.

[The Beast]

You say that the F48 is a lot more powerful than your previous car. Have you tried adjusting the amount/ratio of accelerator input to try and mitigate the torque steer? Simply mashing the pedal out of a turn isn’t the best method for a front wheel drive car... try being more progressive with the input

[ttimbo]

Originally Posted by Lucky13

This has been discussed in many threads but to quote Car and Driver the E84 vs F48 the E84 is the better handling car just like the E92 is better than the F30.

Apologies for making a fine point, but "better handling" and "drives better" are not the same thing; the point I was making is neither are the sharpest handling vehicles (not their intended purpose) but the F48 is a better overall drive than the E84, in my experience. That's taking into account performance, ride, handling and overall cabin comfort.

[YellowCone]

Originally Posted by ttimbo

Apologies for making a fine point, but "better handling" and "drives better" are not the same thing; the point I was making is neither are the sharpest handling vehicles (not their intended purpose) but the F48 is a better overall drive than the E84, in my experience. That's taking into account performance, ride, handling and overall cabin comfort.

100% agree with all of this.

The E84 was renowned for being one of the very best SAVs to drive, and the newer F48 still is. That doesn’t mean to say that either are particularly thrilling, just that they’re better than their competitors.

[stevethegreatgolfer]

The E84 just looks wrong!

[Lucky13]

Originally Posted by DMI

I don’t agree with lucky13’s theory that xdrive would prevent torque steer. Torque steer can occur without wheel spin therefore the non permanent AWD would not necessarily kick in. Torque steer is a by product of high torque through different sized drive shafts due to the transverse engine lay out, combined with road camber which then loads the steering (front) wheels up. It can be controlled by a limited slip differential or differential braking system

Please call BMW and tell them that since the all wheel drive doesn’t work according to you, they shouldn’t quote 6.6 seconds 0-60 on s drive X2 vs 6.3 seconds for Xdrive. Obviously just a better driver and nothing to do with losing traction.

[DMI]

Originally Posted by Lucky13

Please call BMW and tell them that since the all wheel drive doesn’t work according to you, they shouldn’t quote 6.6 seconds 0-60 on s drive X2 vs 6.3 seconds for Xdrive. Obviously just a better driver and nothing to do with losing traction.

Didn’t see that coming...... especially as I didn’t mention driving styles in my original post.... and there’s me thinking this forum was a bunch of guys talking cars and offering opinions

[timmiii]

I have noticed torque steer in the F48 X1. The vehicle I was driving at the time was a 18MY low mileage loaner from a local BMW dealership. I first noticed this while driving on the HWY and accelerating with 50% throttle input in the peak torque region of the RPM range. Then I found it more noticeable when "accelerating quickly" from a stand-still.

It's the inharent nature of the vehicle or any time when you have a FWD-based drivetrain without some kind of electronic/mechanical torque vectoring system. There are certainly countermeasures that can prevent this within the steering system but due to the type of vehicle I would suspect BMW didn't want to spend the money on such features.

[Rotorblade]

The F48 will certainly drive differently than the e84 because of how it is built. Whether it drives better or not, it’s up to you decide. The f48 is front weight heavy so the car will have a loose rear, because it wants to rotate around the center of mass, you cannot do anything about that. If the traction is not symmetrical it will produce torque steering. Then because of the FWD or FWD bias it will understeer when accelerating out of the corner although it may me finely tuned to make it drive nicely. The 48 is not bad, it depends what you want. The E 84 is not so well refined but it is well balanced and has the RWD bias. Also it has a hydraulic steering which is supposed to offer more feedback but it’s not that good at that anyway.

[GenXer]

I have not experienced any torque steering with the Xdrive on public roads.

[MJE60]

I agree with timmiii and would imagine that anyone driving a relatively powerful front wheel drive car for the first time will notice torque steer to some degree or other. The simple fact is that with front wheel drive, the system is doing two jobs rather than one and it is therefore a compromise. Modern electronics, power steering and the fact that many F48 have xDrive and have auto-boxes will reduce the impact so in most driving conditions it is hardly noticeable but if you have only ever driven rear-wheel drive cars you are going to notice it. I also think driving style, terrain and familiarity with front wheel drive play a part. Years ago I had a European “hot hatch” and with a heavy foot you could almost wrench the steering wheel out of your hands if you applied too much power at the wrong steering angle (relative to speed, vector etc), I soon learnt to deliver power more smoothly and this is no bad thing for any driver. With my current F48 xDrive I rarely, if ever, notice torque steer on public roads but on dirt tracks or gravel it is there.