BMW 328i (F30) driving report

[Deckhook]

That's the thing with the F30 I didn't get the feeling that it's engineering was all that superior, not in the same way I got with the E90 or with the F10. Maybe that was BMW's intent to keep it raw and more mechanical feeling.

 

[Zafiro]

You make it sound like the engine is terrible which I dont agree with. I have 4-cylinder BMW myself and it aint worse than anything else. Yes , a 4-cylinder engine isnt smooth as 6-cylinder engine and a 4-cylinder have more vibrations in higher reevs than I6. But I dont think its a bad engine and its going to sell a lot more than 335i.

 

[Deckhook]

If sure will and no it isn't a bad engine because it's got plenty of go and great economy but I still didn't get the feeling it was as good as the wife's GTI in the way it travelled up the rev range, not nearly as smooth or as linear in my opinion.

 

[Tarek]

So guys which u'd go for..a mint conditioned E90 FL 272hp I6 330i or new F30 245hp 328i?..a friend of mine shopping for a new car asked me this.

What do guys think?

 

[-=Hot|Ice=-]

F30 isnt a luxury car. Luxury line is just a name, like sportline and modern line. F30 is just like e90 but more refined and modern. But e90 owner will feel at home.

Nwoah hold your horses their partner. The 3 is a luxury vehicle. It just has sporty aspirations.

 

[Zafiro]

Nwoah hold your horses their partner. The 3 is a luxury vehicle. It just has sporty aspirations.

Maybe in USA but not here. Its a premium car but certainly not a luxury.

 

[Deckhook]

Maybe in USA but not here. Its a premium car but certainly not a luxury.

I beg to differ, only the M/Sport and M versions could seriously be considered as sporty in the truest sense of the word, the rest are mainly bottom run of the ladder premium luxury and in my opinion the 328i Luxury should fall squarely into that category but it didn't for me.

 

[Mr Robert]

So, you who have actually driven the thing; do you agree with Swedish AMS's following findings:

1. In sports mode, the steering feel is like that of a Kia.
2. Diesel character of the 28i engine.

 

[Human]

EVO' review states that the engine is noisy. As far as the rest goes it's: EVO's Full Review of F30 328i and 320d better and more that perfect.

Or as they review ends: "All of which bodes well for the next M3."

 

[Deckhook]

So, you who have actually driven the thing; do you agree with Swedish AMS's following findings:

1. In sports mode, the steering feel is like that of a Kia.
2. Diesel character of the 28i engine.

I forgot to ask whether the car I drove had the dynamic steering package though it was exceedingly well specced with park assist, adaptive cruise control and some other useless goodies but when you pressed the Sport button the whole character of the car seemed to change, the hesitation on turn-in was replaced with a subtle willingness to go with the turn of the wheel and the engine finally grew a set of balls and felt like a proper 250hp unit it claimed to have. My real concern centered around two things; firstly the floaty nature of it's ride which IMO effected the handling in bump roads and wasn't present of the smooth fast flowing bends and secondly the refinement of the overall experience, the engine doesn't sound refined enough for this calibre of car though it's a willing preformer and the wind and road noise surprised me somewhat because all pass BMWs I've owned or driven suppress noises exceedingly well and better than most, with this car I didn't get that impression at all and you could close your eyes and easily notice the difference in the grade of tarmac used at any one point.

One undeniable fact that I really did notice driving the 328i was how much lighter it felt when compared to the F10 or even an A4, I got the feeling that with the right engine and suspension it could be something quite special to drive.

 

[Human]

^
I will drive it soon, yet reading your review it's as if (as you said before) the car has a more mechanical feeling to it. This may have been deliberately done to create a more 'involved' drive.

floaty nature of it's ride

As in floaty to 'soft' ?

 

[Deckhook]

^
I will drive it soon, yet reading your review it's as if (as you said before) the car has a more mechanical feeling to it. This may have been deliberately done to create a more 'involved' drive.

As in floaty to 'soft' ?

Yeah the suspension feel too soft for the roads I drive which I might add are piss poor at best. On normal roads the ride is exceptional, normal imperfections go by relatively unnoticed but giving it this soft sprung nature has a negative side of floaty with big undulations. For me I would have prefer a bit more rebound on the shocks but I bet most who drive it on good roads will wonder what the heck I'm talking about, don't get me wrong here the car rides well 90% of the time but it was only when I pushed did these failings show up.

I read a review from an America guy who sounded like his a journalist and he remarked that in his opinion the adaptive suspension is a must tick on the option box so maybe it would make all the difference, I believe most if not all the 'first drive' reviews were doing on adaptive suspension so maybe it's the ticket to transform the car for me.

 

[Human]

^
Just goes to show how difficult suspension engineering and in this case damping can be. If you read a Panamera Turbo review the testers all agree that the Air springs can be floaty in comfort mode. Here we have a BMW 3er (normally griped about a ride that's too firm - E90) now maybe too soft, with coils. In the end the best ride for 3er generations has to be the E46 and probably the best 3er ever made IMO (sounds if I am living in the past)

In the end- bottom line, this the F30 + the derivatives that follow will as with all past generations sell like hotcakes. The X1 will be replaced by a F32 coupe, that decision is final

 

[Zafiro]

Ive been driving 5er and 1er with adaptive chassi and for swedish roads its not worth it. The differences isnt that huge and I rather spend the money on something else.

And I don't see F30 as a luxury car, it is just wrong. 7er is a luxury car but f30 is far from it. Its premium but nothing else.

 

[Deckhook]

Ive been driving 5er and 1er with adaptive chassi and for swedish roads its not worth it. The differences isnt that huge and I rather spend the money on something else.

That's my point, different roads will throw up different opinions and on good roads I would probably agree with you on this.

And I don't see F30 as a luxury car, it is just wrong. 7er is a luxury car but f30 is far from it. Its premium but nothing else.

Can't agree, the 7 is at the upper end of the luxury scale where as the 3 is at the bottom but that doesn't mean it should feel refined. I do blame the engine for most of this opinion because it's not a sweet a unit as the 3 deserves. Also I felt it power wasn't delivered as smooth or linear as it should have, maybe the newness of the engine might have something to do with this and when run in things would improve but this isn't BMW's finest hour in my opinion.

 

[Zafiro]

No no no, F30 isnt a luxury car. I simply cant agree with it. F30 is called Compact executive. F10 named Executive car. I would hate if F30 drove like a F10. F10 is heavy, lousy steering and more focus towards comfort while F30 is more sport, driving and with a superior steering.

The car I drove had linear power between 1200 rpm to 4500 rpm and when I drove 100km/h and lower you didnt need to reev much becuase of all the torque at lower rpm. The car did the best between 1200 rpm to 4500 rpm. When you reached around 4500 rpm you definitely felt a powerboost.

 

[Deckhook]

^ The 328i that I drove has a ever so slight hesitation that felt to be somewhere just beyond 2k and there you has the boost just over the 4.5k mark, because of this hesitation and then boost it didn't feel as linear as my GTI does, in fact it felt closer in character to that of the TTS. Since you didn't notice any of this my example might have been an isolated case or the combination of the engine and auto box made it felt more.

I ask this morning about the 3.0d engine and it's availability but was told not this year, anyone heard anything different?

 

[Betty Swollocks]

I ask this morning about the 3.0d engine and it's availability but was told not this year, anyone heard anything different?

Dealers know absolutely nothing. I wouldn't waste my time asking them.

 

[LaArtist]

So i went to the dealer today and checked the 3er out TWICE..
Sat in all lines ..
My verdict:

Front is crap..seriously it looks squashed.
Went there with 3 other guys..
person 1 said: hmm looked better in pictures..but its still hot.
person 2: Looks nice but why the extra glass that connects to the grill..looks like you have something caught in the corner of your eye.
And person 3..outright started laughing when he saw it.

Rear..is nice.. very 5er like..all 4 agreed, but its not as tight as the 5er..

Interior: 2 of the guys loved it, they thought it felt very snug and focused, 3rd guy thought it was nothing to write home about. And me personally would say.. Nice..but not to much better than nearly out of production rivals.

All in all i would give it a pass, but it sure as hell isn't miles ahead of the competition in any way.. and that damn front is just plain weird!!!

PS
Was offered a drive,but the weather was so pissy today so i said no thank you. Maybe ile go back and drive one if im even bothered, I don't like to waste dealers times when im not even interested!

PPS
Went to MB and sat in the C class, in no way was the interior any better, but it was to close for comfort.. when you think that the C is 5 year old, and the 3er is brand new!

 

[Tarek]

Watch out Kashif..Klier is coming for you haha.