In recent years, BMW sort of changed the way its drive modes work. Now, in addition to its normal “Sport”, “Comfort”, and “Eco Pro” modes, there are now “M Modes” and there’s been some confusion as to what exactly they are and how they work. The BMW XM also has it’s own specific “M Hybrid” modes. So we put together this new video to explain what they are and what each mode does in the new XM.
The BMW XM is the first M car to have the M Hybrid modes, being that it’s the first plug-in hybrid M car ever. When you press that button, the iDrive screen displays three different options: Hybrid, Electric, and eControl. They’re mostly self-explanatory but we’ll go through what they do anyway.
In Hybrid mode, the XM will decided when and how to use the gas engine an electric motor, to get the most efficiency out of both. In Electric mode, the XM will drive purely under electric power up to speeds of 150 km/h (93 mph) and can get a maximum of about 85 km (53 miles) of range. The last one, eControl mode, is a bit less self-explanatory. That mode tries to use the gas engine as much as possible to save the battery charge. If you’re going to be driving to a city in which gas engines are either forbidden or taxed, you can save up your battery juice to use all of it while in that city.
Like all M cars, the BMW XM also has traditional drive mode settings for the powertrain, chassis, steering, and brakes. However, it does have an additional setting: energy recovery. That’s the regenerative braking system and it can be adjusted between “min” and “max” to allow for lesser or greater break regen deceleration. That’s not only helpful in the real world, where you might want stronger regen braking for added range or just because you prefer it, but it’s also helpful on track, as it slows down the car more without having to use the friction brakes as much. Another interesting new setting is for the all-wheel drive system. In addition to just the usual “4WD” and “4WD Sport,” the XM also has “4WD Sand,” in case you want to channel your inner Walter Rohrl.
For the most part, the BMW XM works like a normal M car. However, the hybrid system does add a few wrinkles that owners will have to learn. Hopefully this video helps.
