[N55Nick]

WARNING:

This review is not for everyone. This is a very biased, non-objective review filled with rationalization! This review is for a very specific audience: It is for those of you who have already ordered your F30/F32 and are trying to devour every bit of information about your car as you impatiently wait for it to arrive at the dealership (I’m convinced I’m not alone!) For those of you who are reading every thread and online review, wondering if the ride will be too soft, if the steering will be terrible, if the N55 will be slowly than the N54, if the xDrive was a mistaken, if you should have gotten that extra option. This is the review that I wish I had read while waiting for my car to arrive so prevent me from going insane.


If you can write a long list of BMWs, M cars or other fancy german saloons that you’ve previously owned, there is nothing useful in this thread for you. Move along


WARNING #2:

I’m a fairly terrible writer, car detailer and photographer (as you will notice from my pictures). Its also winter here and the roads are slushy so by the time the car was back in the parkade, it was filthy again.


My Car Background

My first car was a Mazda mx-3 precidia. It was not a very cool car but I saved my money and I bought it with 172,000kms (that’s approx. 120K miles) at the age of 17. I then spent every paycheck I made that summer buying an amp, subwoofers and a kenwood deck. As can be expected, I crashed it 6 months later. I then decided to buy a GSX-R 600 (because as a senior in high school this seemed like a very good idea at the time). Of coursed I totalled the bike a month later and couldn’t afford to drive for the next 4 years. I was then fortunate to be handed down a 1996 BMW 318i. The car was slow but I loved the feeling of driving it. This is what made me passionate about BMWs. Since then I’ve owned a Yaris, a Mazda3 and most recently an Acura TSX.


The Order

I knew I wanted a 4 series after I saw the concept car. I placed my order on the first week of September. Until my pickup day December 11, I had never seen a 4 series in person nor driven one. All I had to go on that my $61K purchase was not a huge mistake was countless threads and reviews, which unfortunately didn’t always bring me peace of mind.


The Pickup

Pickup day felt surreal after waiting for so long. The car was waiting in the showroom and it was amazing to see it in person. People are absolutely right when they say that pictures don’t do the 4 series justice. The car is low and beefy, and the interior just blew me away. I think anyone that doesn’t just feel privileged sitting in a F30/F32 has been spoiled with too many nice cars for too long!


So I finished the paperwork, they gave me my keys, I started the engine and drove away from the dealership towards an icy highway at night for 300kms. I quickly realized that the car felt alien to me, as if someone gave you a Lamborghini and simply said “enjoy your new car, try not to crash it”. Before everyone loses their sh*t saying that a 435 isn’t a Lambo, keep in mind of the list of cars I’ve owned before this. To me, the gap felt huge and almost daunting. The seating position is very low, the interior felt like a cockpit and the acceleration is immense.


Driving Around

I’ve had the car for 5 days now and I’ve had the chance to get more familiar with it. First I love the cabin. I feel like a kid who is somehow giving the chance to fly a jet. The interior and sitting position feels like you are in a cockpit molded for you. Most importantly I absolutely love driving it! Any previous car that I’ve owned now feel like they were just a white-good that were used to get me from point A to point B. The car is so connected to the road, the interior and controls are intuitive, the transmission (8AT) never gets in your way and the engine just nails you to your seat. Switching between Comfort and Sport really brings the car alive, and zipping through traffic makes you realize that you are in a machine that was truly designed with performance in mind compared to most things on the road.


In no way am I trying to say that what others have purchased is a mistake. The 3 series is probably a smarter buy with a very similar feel but the convenience of more doors. I’m sure the RWD handles better, that the N20 has plenty of power to get you in trouble, that the MPPK wakes up the engine, that the NAV screen fits the interior better, that the e90 had better steering and that the M3/M4 is in a class of its own. The point that I’m making is that all the things that I questioned after placing my order disappeared once I got into the car. BMW still makes some very special cars that you have to experience to appreciate and that no journalist or amateur like me can describe with words.


In Conclusion

My advice to anyone waiting for their deliveries is don’t let yourself drown in the details of your purchase. Once you get your car everything goes out the window. No matter what model, engine or options you bought I’m convinced that your BMW will bring a smile to your face and will be a pleasure to drive. It is the first time since my first car 13 years ago that I truly get excited every time I turn on the engine and go out for a drive.

-Nic

[N55Nick]

one more bad picture

[seamasters]

very nice write up, thanks. I'm waiting on my 435i as well, 2 more months to go :-(

I'm getting the MG as well, how do u like MG ?

[Agamemnon]

Very nice ride! Congrats. And you are right on the money. When you come from mundane cars, a 435 is special. If I don't feel that my 335 ix is special, I get into my old Taurus beater. Then I really appreciate my new car when I drive it. BMWs are great driving cars and quite a bit of the whinging on the forum is somewhat pedantic.

[Math]

Thanks for your review! I think its writte quite well
Also, nice car!!
Enjoy it every time and try to be more safe than your first car&bike...

[Falafel Combo]

Congrats!

[300hp]

I came from a G37 and that car is very good, even beating the E9X in a few reviews although most reviews had the E9X ahead.

I can say without any doubt the F30/32 are special. You don't need to come from a "mundane" car to be able to tell how good the car is.

Nice write up and glad you did not let some of the vitriol that goes around here get to you

[GOLFFRR]

congrats on the new car!

[435iaffair]

I love my 435i, it is excellent at what it's designed to do and the perfect daily driver IMHO

Thanks for the detailed review!

[.BMW.]

Congrats, looks great with black wheels!

[N55Nick]

Originally Posted by seamasters

very nice write up, thanks. I'm waiting on my 435i as well, 2 more months to go :-(

I'm getting the MG as well, how do u like MG ?

I love the MG. I was worried it was gonna be too light like the previous gen space gray but its nice and dark and the color changes quite a bit depanding on the lighting. The blue would have been nice but i was scared it would get old after a bit

[N55Nick]

Originally Posted by ss0803

Congrats, looks great with black wheels!

Winter setup although I'm starting to like them more than the stock 19s! Winter lasts 7 months here so I can enjoy them for a while..

[N55Nick]

Originally Posted by Math

Thanks for your review! I think its writte quite well
Also, nice car!!
Enjoy it every time and try to be more safe than your first car&bike...

I think you have to crash your first car in order to learn a lesson in life. On the bike i hit a deer so that was his fault

[Math]

Originally Posted by NicB

I think you have to crash your first car in order to learn a lesson in life. On the bike i hit a deer so that was his fault

Hehe, you might be right there.
I crashed my first bike too and had a slider in my first BMW a couple years back. So long as you get out unharmed it does teach you something

[mike@x-ph.com]

LOL nice review

[Alamat]

Congrats! I guess we belong in the same club, 4xers,though this is my first BMW so I'm in different segment.
On another side note, I ordered mine also on the first week of Sept but got it Nov. 21st on top of doing an ED. Wonder why it takes longer for you.

[zarehs27]

Excellent review!...thx for that.
I'm torn between a 428i EB2 or MG, can't make up my mind before ordering...and theres definitely not enough MG m sport photos...heeelp

[N55Nick]

Originally Posted by Alamat

Congrats! I guess we belong in the same club, 4xers,though this is my first BMW so I'm in different segment.
On another side note, I ordered mine also on the first week of Sept but got it Nov. 21st on top of doing an ED. Wonder why it takes longer for you.

Canadian deliveries are slow, the car has to get on a train and travel 4,000kms

Originally Posted by zarehs27

Excellent review!...thx for that.
I'm torn between a 428i EB2 or MG, can't make up my mind before ordering...and theres definitely not enough MG m sport photos...heeelp

They are both great colors so you can't go wrong. EB2 is classic BMW, MG looks more luxury. If you had to put up a poster of the 4 series on your wall and it had to be there for 3 years, which color would you choose?

I went with MG because I was crazy over the concept car which was gray/silver. Below are some more pictures of the MG Msport, I wish I had better pictures for you.

[N55Nick]

This one is not my car

[seamasters]

Originally Posted by zarehs27

Excellent review!...thx for that.
I'm torn between a 428i EB2 or MG, can't make up my mind before ordering...and theres definitely not enough MG m sport photos...heeelp

u can't go wrong with MG,. EB2 is love or hate. i went through the same and i ordered MG.

[AstonKarim]

congrats! love the unique msport bumper on the f32

[warmtoes]

Congratulations. I'm debating so many different vehicles right now with the 435i xDrive near the top of the list. I drove one at a BMW event in an x-cross like environment and thought it drove nicely. Much better than a 3 Series xDrive coupe I drove from the previous generation.