Some unfortunate news about chip shortages has just come out for those in the market for a new BMW. Certain models will lose their touchscreen functionality to conserve silicon and allow BMW to maintain its current production levels. The news broke on the Bimmerfest forum, but BMW has since confirmed it to both Edmunds and us.
The following models come without touchscreen functionality.
It wasn’t that long ago that iDrive equipped BMWs had no touchscreen functionality at all, as all infotainment screen control was done via the iDrive controller. We’re now taking a trip back to the past with the above models, because again, the only way to control them is via the iDrive controller on the center console. We asked BMW what additional information it could provide on the matter and received the following statement from a spokesperson.
“As you know, the global chip shortage is ongoing and impacting automakers around the world. We are actively managing the situation and are in close contact with our suppliers. We have no further details to share at this time.”
The original Bimmerfest forum report stated that customers who take delivery of a car without the touchscreen will be given a $500 credit on the monroney listed as “Touchscreen Removal.” BMW confirmed this to us, so expect $500 off the price of your BMW if it doesn’t come with touch functionality.
In addition to losing the touchscreen, the Bimmerfest post says those cars will also lose the BMW Backup Assistant if equipped with the optional Parking Assistant package. The Backup Assistant is BMW’s automatic backup feature that automatically reverses your vehicle along the same path you used to get to a place. It can be useful in very narrow parking spaces or in areas with poor visibility.
Vehicles without touchscreen functionality should be arriving at BMW dealerships soon, and then it’s up to customers to decide if $500 is enough to still drive their brand new car home without a touchscreen.
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