| When software updates are released for PC and Mac, the new features are quickly reviewed by every computing magazine. Today, however, the software that runs my 2004 545i was upgraded and here is a mini review of that upgrade.
Background:
As I left my driveway yesterday morning heading to the office, I received a dire warning on iDrive: "Insufficient steering and/or hydraulic fluid, discontinue driving and contact the nearest BMW dealer." I pulled to the side and called a service advisor who asked a couple of questions then instructed me to drive the car to the dealership right away. A loaner was provided and the car was expected to be ready the same afternoon.
At 5pm, bad news. BMW had recently ordered a "soft" recall that required replacement of the oxygen sensor and an upgrade to the entire system software. The software upgrade procedure was under way at 5pm but was taking an unusually long time. The car was held for another day.
At 5pm today everything was ready. A minor dent on the side door had been repaired at the same time. After driving about 40 minutes I found some noticeable improvements! I did not expect the software upgrade to actually be noticeable...
Observations: Here's a list of some changes I noticed quickly:
1. Feel of Active Steering is improved! I prefer a slightly tighter feel similar to my previous E39, and the software update seems to have accomplished just that. A tighter steering leads to significantly less driving fatigue over long distances because the wheel remains stable and requires fewer "course corrections."
2. Voice Recognition has been greatly improved! Prior to the upgrade the following voice commands NEVER worked properly:
"Frequency one zero two point five." --> Set radio to 102.5.
"Scale half mile."
"Scale 800 feet."
"Scale 5 miles." --> In fact none of the "scale" options worked for the navigation map.
All of these bugs have been fixed.
3. The navigation voice prompt now uses better English. For example, the voice used to say:
"Take the second on the right."
Now it says:
"Take the second road on the right."
Minor change, but welcome nevertheless.
Finally, in addition to the software upgrade I also noticed that BMW replaced the headlight switch knob with a larger unit! Owners often complained that the headlight switch located on the left side of the instrument panel was too small for anyone with adult size hands. Glad to see that BMW paid attention and replaced the switch with a "full size" version.
Maybe there are other Easter eggs to be discovered...but overall I am quite pleased with this update. | 
