Imminent order on 2010 xDrive 35d

Hi all… This forum has proved invaluable in researching our next vehicle purchase and we have settled on a 2010 xDrive 35d. The plan is to place the order tomorrow so we have to make up our minds on the rear climate package and iPod connectivity options. We downloaded the 2010 Owner’s Manual from the BMW USA website and reviewed it in detail. We would welcome your thoughts on this. Any assistance is greatly appreciated.

1) Rear Climate Package – We have two young children who typically occupy the rear seats. We ask them not to touch any buttons in the car (with limited success), and it does not appear that the rear ventilation settings can be controlled by the front seat passengers. Is this correct? To those without the rear climate package, do you have any issues with rear seat ventilation? We live in Southern California so if we do not order this package, one of the first upgrades will be to get a dark tint on the rear windows.

2) iPod Connectivity – With the iPod connectivity option, the owner’s manual indicates that iPod audio can be controlled via iDrive. The manual is silent as to whether video can also be controlled and displayed on the main navigation screen. Has anybody tried iPod video with the new CIC version of iDrive? Without video capability, we may not opt for the iPod connectivity option.

1) Rear climate package - on our 2009 35d w/ Rear Climate Package you can set the rear system to use the driver's settings via iDrive. This is an option that can be different with each key. BUT even when the rear is set to use the driver's settings, the rear seat passengers can override the driver's settings by simply touching ANY of the controls (e.g. fan speed, temp etc).

Funf Dreisig