East Bay Times

Elite 2024 BMW

- James Raia, a syndicated automotive columnist in Sacramento, is the founder and senior editor of theweeklyd­river.com. It features a free newsletter and podcast. Email address: james@ jamesraia.com

One option, the reviewed black-red pattern, further individual­izes the vehicle. It has a distinctiv­e threedimen­sional headliner. The trim for the body pillars have black surfaces. Upper sections of the backrests and head restraints are diamond-shaped in red.

Red contrastin­g stitching is also used on the driver and front passenger and outer rear seats, instrument panel, center console, door trim and air vents. An “XM” badge below the control display and an interior trim strip carbon fiber in satin effect with red and blue accents further distinguis­h the limited edition.

As a top-line performanc­e SUV, BMW has loaded up the Label

Red with safety features. Standard equipment includes six-piston, fixedcalli­per brakes at the front and singlepist­on and floating-calliper units on the rear wheels. Two pedal feel settings and an adaptive suspension with controlled damper and active roll stabilizat­ion are featured.

The BMW XM Label Red also features a host of driving assistance — front collision warning, lane departure and evasion assistance, active cruise control and parking assistant.

Multifunct­ion seats, knee pads, a curved display panel, head-up display, a sports-styled selector lever and control panel are positioned on a center console. The M Hybrid button selects desired different driving modes. A setup button provides direct access to the configurat­ion of the powertrain, chassis, steering, braking system and M xDrive.

The leather steering wheel has trim elements in black chrome. Plus M buttons, gearshift paddles with carbon inlays with and a boost mode symbol on the left-hand shift paddle are all in red.

Nothing about the limited edition is subtle. A Bowers & Wilkins surround sound system with 1,475watt amplifier and four additional speakers in the roof area is a $3,400 option. Further technology: a cloud-based BMW Maps navigation system, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and a personaliz­ed BMW ID functional­ity.

The new beast is expensive, $191,895 as reviewed. It’s another all-toofamilia­r BMW trait.

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