|
You mention a few well known shortcomings of the F30, but some of your observations are a bit surprising.
1. The car should accelerate strongly. The sport tranny combined with the n20 produces acceleration times almost that of the 335i up to around 60mph. It feels less powerful at freeway speeds, and even with stage 1 tuning runs out of breath up top. Never would I describe the car as a dog though. I've never driven an XDrive but the RWD is quick, borderline fast.
2. The suspension/tires on the XDrive sport package is the base suspension. The tires on the x-drive sport package are all seasons and not summer performance. The car wallows and feels numb in base form. Replacing the tires will help with handling greatly, but even with sport suspension/tires the steering still pales compared to the past hydraulic system. There is a software update that you can get which will update the steering profile. It helps improve on center precision, but the artificial feel will always be present. People claim they get used to it and don't notice it after a while. I've merely come to accept it.
3. Fuel economy: I average 21.2 mpg of mixed driving. I have a heavy foot though and on the freeway with cruise set at 75mph, the consumption drops to an impressive ~35mpg.
4. N20 engine sounds like crap. It's one of the biggest detractors of the car. Strangely if you get a N20 equipped loaner that's 2015 or newer, the motor sounds a lot quieter. The Start Stop is also a lot smoother on the newer cars. Not sure what BMW changed but it's significant and unfortunate for the owners of the older models.
5. Booming noise: Not sure what this is attributable to. May be the tires. The F30 suffers from bad wind noise. It's my biggest gripe with the car. I couldn't and still can't believe this is a German car. Came from an 02 Benz E55. With 5x the miles, the car felt both more solid and so much quieter! Have driven both the new 4 and 5 series and it's not an issue on those. New F30s still suffer from this however, and the going theory is that it's due to the mirror design. I think it's also due to the thinner windows, door panels, insulating materials.
Overall the car has shortcomings that are both frustrating and surprising. Some of them only become evident after extended seat time. Wind noise, engine sound, steering feel, and paint chipping, are my biggest grievances.
Things I like are the styling, the m-sport package equipment, the chassis feel, folding seats, big trunk, spacious rear seats. The tranny/motor combination work really well for every day driving. I'm also a huge fan of the HUD and the adaptive headlights.
Sorry you don't like your new car. Part of that seems like it's a function of the spec'd equipment, the other part is that it's an early model year which is a bit unpolished. If you really have bad wind noise, I'd go to the dealer and have them replace your seals. There is an updated window seal which helps make it at least tolerable.
|