[trpt]

This thread has turned into leather vs. fake leather, which is not quite what the OP was ranting about.

I agree with the OP- I custom ordered my 4GC and would have been fine with sensatec to save a few $. But I had to have the heated steering wheel; I loved it on my 2012 328i- it was a stand alone option then. No longer! In the US the heated steering wheel only comes with the entire cold weather package, which also mandates leather.

So in reality if you just want the heated steering wheel it really requires quite an investment on the purchaser's part. And in my view that's worth a rant.

I've noticed that option choices are way more unbundled and a-la-carte over in Europe...

[bahasad]

The sensatec on my E90 feels the same to me as the leather on my F30. That is probably saying something about the (imo) crappy leather quality on my F30 (Dakota Black, perhaps some of the other colors are better?). Most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

Still, I can't imagine buying a 50K BMW and not having leather on it. Something wrong with that in my mind.

[ska///235i]

I order the leather as a Stand Alone Option

No way I'll get leatherette ever again...it gets to hot in the summer


This is like saying...you use real condum or sheep skin (in the opposite way)

[Tommy_hf]

Factory Dakota feels like plastic, not worth it. Get a custom made higher quality interior or order the Individual interior. Truly worth a couple of extra k's as you enjoy the much higher quality each and every time you step into the car. You can get whatever color you want, in whatever quality level you want and what stitching you want as well. In the Netherlands you can order the custom interiors right at the dealership.

[Chowbow]

We purposely ordered my wife's car without leather. The pleather lasts forever, and unless you're very good about conditioning leather, more than likely it will start deteriorating faster than the pleather. As we're planning to keep this car for a long time, and I doubt my wife will condition the leather, it's perfect.

[CalCarNut]

Originally Posted by S4NoMore

I would have ordered leather if I ordered my car. Happily it has premium package anyway.

Before ending up with my F30 I actually put in an offer on a '11 E90 M Sport 335i with most options I needed, though it had leatherette. I thought hard about it and figured I could sacrifice given the rarity of 4-door 6-speed BMWs. I'm glad things worked out the way they did though, the new 328i makes great sense for me personally.

My opinion is that the leatherette is okay, but I'm the type to immediately notice the way it feels - more grippy, rubbery, less breathable. I don't hate it but I would absolutely spend the money on leather. Plus I notice the stitching accents are not there with leatherette.

My '15 GC Sport Line has the red stitching accents........on Sensatec.

To do it over again, knowing what I know now and if I were to order my car, I'd do a few things differently. I'd probably spring for the Dakota leather. There is more red piping on the seats on the Dakota than on the Sensatec on the seat back if thats what you are referring to. Best bang for the buck would to do the Comfort pkg rather than just stand alone leather ($1450 vs 2200 that gets you more stuff...lumbar support, satellite radio,etc). I'd also do MPerf brakes for sure.

[rolltidef32]

Originally Posted by Chowbow

We purposely ordered my wife's car without leather. The pleather lasts forever, and unless you're very good about conditioning leather, more than likely it will start deteriorating faster than the pleather. As we're planning to keep this car for a long time, and I doubt my wife will condition the leather, it's perfect.

Conditioning the leather is not your wife's job, that's man shit, so it's your responsibility.

Stuff like car care is why she got a husband. Otherwise, what's our value?

I just cleaned and conditioned the leather on my wife's X3 on yesterday. Also cleaned some gunk off of her wheels after hitting some mud puddles.

[Chowbow]

Originally Posted by rolltidef32

Conditioning the leather is not your wife's job, that's man shit, so it's your responsibility.

Stuff like car care is why she got a husband. Otherwise, what's our value?

I just cleaned and conditioned the leather on my wife's X3 on yesterday. Also cleaned some gunk off of her wheels after hitting some mud puddles.

I put coilovers on it the other day, that's my responsibility.

[CalCarNut]

Originally Posted by rolltidef32

Conditioning the leather is not your wife's job, that's man shit, so it's your responsibility.

Stuff like car care is why she got a husband. Otherwise, what's our value?

I just cleaned and conditioned the leather on my wife's X3 on yesterday. Also cleaned some gunk off of her wheels after hitting some mud puddles.

I loaned my GC to wife.com yesterday. Get a text message back a few hours later: "We need to shampoo the hatch carpet. A wine cooler spilled".

Guess that's part of the job too, although I think my first mistake was telling her she could take the car

[S4NoMore]

Originally Posted by SoCalDave

My '15 GC Sport Line has the red stitching accents........on Sensatec.

To do it over again, knowing what I know now and if I were to order my car, I'd do a few things differently. I'd probably spring for the Dakota leather. There is more red piping on the seats on the Dakota than on the Sensatec on the seat back if thats what you are referring to. Best bang for the buck would to do the Comfort pkg rather than just stand alone leather ($1450 vs 2200 that gets you more stuff...lumbar support, satellite radio,etc). I'd also do MPerf brakes for sure.

Right, I'm referring to the door panels mainly. On sensatec cars there's no stitch on the upholstery there and it always catches my eye. Same as with the E90.