[jwickers]

Today, July 13 2012, the F30 is finally officially release in mainland China.

http://www.bmw.com.cn/cn/en/newvehic...oom/index.html

Normal wheelbase:

320i Lifestyle* RMB 339,000 (~ 53,100 USD)
320i Sport Line RMB 379,000 (~ 59,400 USD)
328i Sport Line RMB 426,600 (~ 66,900 USD)

Long wheelbase:

320Li Lifestyle* RMB 354,600 (~ 55,600 USD)
320Li Luxury Line RMB 399,000 (~ 62,500 USD)
320Li Modern Line RMB 405,000 (~ 63,500 USD)
328Li Luxury Line RMB 449,000 (~ 70,400 USD)
328Li Modern Line RMB 473,000 (~ 74,100 USD)
335Li Modern Line RMB 599,600 (~ 94,000 USD)

note: * Lifestyle means no line. USD prices for reference as today ex rate (google).

So bad news:

* first no Sport Li version yet ?
* second, the Modern trim is the higher trim ?
* third, the 335 only in Modern trim ?


Regarding equipment the 328Li Luxury Line has (I am only quoting the non basic options) :

* Alarm
* Headlight washing system
* PDC front / rear
* Xenon headlights
* 8-speed Sport automatic transmission
* Variable sport steering incl. servotronic
* Automatic air conditioning
* BMW professional navigation system
* Cruise control with braking function (Ps: no mention of other CC options)
* Moon-roof
* Interior and exterior mirrors, with automatic anti-dazzle function
* HiFi loudspeaker system (there is no mention of the HK system, but that's un upgrade of the base system from the 320 Lux Line)
* Dakota leather seats (Sensatec synthetic leather aka i think Leatherette is only on the base 320 Lifestyle)
* Seat adjustment, electric, with memory function, Lumbar support, and Seat heating for driver and front passenger
* Multi-Function-Leather sports steering wheel
* Roller sunblind for the rear window, electric (Std. across all models, not sure if that's std in US)
* Roller sunblind for rear side windows, mechanical (Std. across all models, not sure if that's std in US)
* Mobile with bluetooth interface (this seems to be an upgrade from "Bluetooth incl. USB interface" that's on the base 320 Lifestyle)

Available from the 328Li Modern Line:

* Rear View Camera
* Top view camera incl. side view
* Parking Assistant
* BMW APP
* Extended connectivity of the music player in the mobile phone
* Comfort access system

Available from the 335Li Modern Line:

* Adaptive Headlight
* TV function

Note on the lower 320Li, drops the following
* sport AT -> normal AT for the 320Li Lux and Lifestyle
* no Variable sport steering
* no Automatic air conditioning and BMW professional navigation system for the 320Li Lifestyle
* no Cruise control with braking function for the 320Li Lifestyle and Lux
* no exterior mirrors, with automatic anti-dazzle function for the 320Li Lifestyle
* no HiFi loudspeaker system for the 320Li Lifestyle and Lux
* no driver Lumbar support for the 320Li Lifestyle and Lux
* no heated seats for the 320Li Lifestyle
* no Sport steering for the 320Li Lifestyle
* leather -> leatherette for the 320Li Lifestyle
* Mobile with bluetooth interface -> Bluetooth incl. USB interface for the 320Li Lifestyle

So yes the sport line is only for the short wheelbase, which kinda make sense as you would say the short wheelbase is the perfect balance, the LWB is more suited for a family / luxury car. But why oh why, no 335i ?

It is speced like the 328Li luxury but with the obvious addition of:

* Sports seat
* And the glorious Chinese typo : "Sprot line" exterior (yes BMW like all other international companies do not care to proof read their English marketing materials, and their Chinese employees faithfully copy paste the typos).

Other:
* in pure chinese tradition the only thing listed as "optional" is the non metallic paint
* wheels are 17" for all but the base 320 lifestyle (Li/i)
* just like on HK website, they did not bother updating their online configurator
* the big missing thing here is the HUD, no official mention of it so far. Perhaps on the top of the line 335 Modern or as an option.
* likewise no suspension options, where is the M adaptive suspension ?

Performance:

model / hp / torque / 0-100km/h / L/100km urban / extra-urban / combined

320i / 184hp / 270Nm (4500rpm) / 7.6s / 8.4L / 5.3L / 6.5L
328i / 245hp / 350Nm (4800rpm) / 6.1s / 8.6L / 5.4L / 6.6L

320Li / * / * / 7.9s / 9L / 5.7L / 6.9L
328Li / * / * / 6.3s / 9.6L / 5.9L / 7.2L
335Li / * / * / 5.7s / 12L / 6.2L / 8.3L

[jwickers]

Putting thing in perspective, one the main competitor of the F30 is .. the F10:

520Li Prestige RMB 428,600
523Li Vantage RMB 459,600
523Li Luxury RMB 494,600
530Li Vantage RMB 559,600
530Li Luxury RMB 629,600
535Li Vantage RMB 639,600
535Li Luxury RMB 703,600
535Li Executive RMB 797,600

The 3er to 5er jump is just about a 5% difference in price, a though sell on a market were the image is a big concern for buyers. Looks like the 3er will be a car for enthusiasts and rational people.


Another big competitor is the A4L, in it's pre-face-lift form it benefits from discounts, the top of the line 2.0T (211hp) that is officially at 464,500 can be have at 410,000 just at the 320i level.

After the face-lift it would be priced to compete with the 328Li, it will be interesting to see where and how BMW will respond.


The C-class with the current discounts of between 15-20% from sticker price is with the 320i for the C200/C260 and the C300 can be have for a bit less than a 328i.

[clarence]

Are the SWB cars imported?

[jwickers]

No it was not mentioned as imported, also the price is lower than the LWB so it cannot be an import.

[jwickers]

Apparently confirmed, no HUD or HK available on any model at the moment.

According to some chinese forums, it is quite difficult to find a shop that will agree to take custom orders. Also there are rumors that HUD and HK will be available for custom orders at some point in the future.

Seems for now better wait and see ...

[mayuslicer]

believe it or not, normal wheel base version 3-series are actually import.

But eventually all 3 series including NWB and LWB sold in china will be locally manufactured~

[Roki_014]

wow the prices are so high, i am willing to sell mine to anyone over there for 70% of thise prices. anyone interested? Car is arriving first week of October

2013 M Sport EBII, 19", HK, Tech Package, Heated Seats, PCD, Rear View Camera

[gerbs]

I'm assuming these will be built in China, w/ parts sourced globally. Cannot wait to hear more about it. Has BMW operated plants in China previously??

Trying to find the difference in wheelbase/length between the SWB and LWB..

[gerbs]

Originally Posted by gerbs

Trying to find the difference in wheelbase/length between the SWB and LWB..

328i:
wheel-to-wheel: 9.2 ft
bumper-to-bumper: 15.17 ft
weight: 3439 lbs

328Li:
wheel-to-wheel: 9.6 ft
bumper-to-bumper: 15.53 ft
weight: 3505 lbs


Funny that the Li can technically hold less weight (less load permitted). Makes sense, but a bit ironic. 0-60 & 0-100 times are impacted as well.

[clarence]

Originally Posted by gerbs

I'm assuming these will be built in China, w/ parts sourced globally. Cannot wait to hear more about it. Has BMW operated plants in China previously??

They are built in China, with quite a high % of local content. BMW has been building cars in China with it's JV partner since 2003, so they're not new to the PRC market.

[jwickers]

Originally Posted by mayuslicer

believe it or not, normal wheel base version 3-series are actually import.

But eventually all 3 series including NWB and LWB sold in china will be locally manufactured~

Yes they are apparently, i saw it on the site too.
The price does not seem impacted though, which is weird.

[clarence]

Originally Posted by jwickers

Yes they are apparently, i saw it on the site too.
The price does not seem impacted though, which is weird.

BMW does not have a uniform profit margin for all cars in all markets. They can adjust the pre-tax pricing so that after tax it'll still cost less than LWB version. I think it costs BMW more to make cars in China than in Germany or South Africa.

[jwickers]

Originally Posted by clarence

BMW does not have a uniform profit margin for all cars in all markets. They can adjust the pre-tax pricing so that after tax it'll still cost less than LWB version. I think it costs BMW more to make cars in China than in Germany or South Africa.

Would be interesting to see the details, iirc the import tax is around 25% but I think it applies to auto parts as well. I am not exactly sure what parts are imported to build the F30 here.

I read that more than 40% of parts are local, and the N20 is also made in China (the 6 is still imported). So I would think most of the car value is produced in China.

When you say it costs more to build in China than elsewhere I would think this includes taxed parts more than pure manufacturing costs.

[clarence]

Originally Posted by jwickers

When you say it costs more to build in China than elsewhere I would think this includes taxed parts more than pure manufacturing costs.

Yes, but pure manufacturing cost is not that different country by country as it isn't labour intensive. There are other costs apart from parts taxation, for example cost of business, staff training etc. These additional costs also exist on the downstream of their oem components partners for the same reason.