[DrSeuss99]

I've been considering a move to the F30 and wanted to get some opinions from those who came from an E9X. Would you do it again? Pros/Cons?

[CurlyFatAngry]

I'm coming from two E92 cars, picking up my F30 next week. I'm not really excited about it I really like the coupe, but with the family growing I just need a sedan.

[antidentite]

I currently drive a 6MT e92, but with a 10 month old at home I'm getting really tired of the physical gymnastics required to get him into the car seat in the back.

Therefore, I'm also considering moving to an F30.

I drove one last night at the Drive USA Olympics event (or whatever it's called), as well as an F10, and am seriously considering an F30.

So while I'm sorry that I cannot productively contribute to this thread, I'll definitely be watching it closely since I'm in this exact boat...

[S_M]

Came from an e92 328xi. Would never look back, the F30 is a much better car IMO. Honestly can't think of any cons, aside from my color choice of black/black during this hot summer.

[TheBimmerFiend]

Theres no comparison! Get the F30!

[cavm335i]

Came from an 07 e93 and very happy.
-MPG is much improved saving $$$ (I like the auto start/stop & various driving modes
-Driving modes can be changed based on my mood, the car is very Jekyll & Hyde between eco/comfort & Sport mode
-Suspension is MUCH more forgiving than my e93 Sport on rough roads
-Upgraded iDrive is 1000x better than pre-LCI e9xs
-Runflats on the new 19s are very good compared to the old 18s (even on non-runflats)
-The car feels bigger inside but still drives like it's small
-Top and rear view cameras are really useful
-The 8 speed transmission is very good (this is my first Automatic car, ever)

My only complaint so far is the looseness of the steering but most of that is in my head from reading these boards. In reality it drives great, I do not have m-sport suspension.

[verbs]

Originally Posted by DrSeuss99

I've been considering a move to the F30 and wanted to get some opinions from those who came from an E9X. Would you do it again? Pros/Cons?

Depends on the car. e90 to f30 are you going from a 328i to a 328i? Or a 335i to a 335i? The F30 328i feels much faster than the e90 328i, and that you'll notice more than anything else. Not much of a difference between 335i cars.

That said, I had a 2007 E92 335i, went to a 2008 M5, and went back to a 2013 335i. I don't have it yet, but will soon. My thoughts:

A ton more options standard and available on the new 335i vs my old one. A few thousand dollars in value there. A ton of very cool features on the new 335i including heads up display, all kinds of parking/collision/speed limit sensors, etc.

More room in the rear. If you ever put people in the back seat the new 3 series is better.

Car looks newer in every way.

Better gas mileage and an awesome 8 speed sport auto.

That said, what I miss about the old car was that I felt it was more connected to the road, i.e. it had a better steering feel.

I miss the better mod-ability and overall top end power of the N54 engines which I had.

I miss the shorter length car. I feel like BMW's car just getting too long.

[Just a 3]

Originally Posted by ronnyb29

Came from an 07 e93 and very happy.
-MPG is much improved saving $$$ (I like the auto start/stop & various driving modes
-Driving modes can be changed based on my mood, the car is very Jekyll & Hyde between eco/comfort & Sport mode
-Suspension is MUCH more forgiving than my e93 Sport on rough roads
-Upgraded iDrive is 1000x better than pre-LCI e9xs
-Runflats on the new 19s are very good compared to the old 18s (even on non-runflats)
-The car feels bigger inside but still drives like it's small
-Top and rear view cameras are really useful
-The 8 speed transmission is very good (this is my first Automatic car, ever)

My only complaint so far is the looseness of the steering but most of that is in my head from reading these boards. In reality it drives great, I do not have m-sport suspension.

Loose steering is not in your head. I have driven a couple of F30s, and I had the same exact feeling.

[dawgnut01]

I came from a 2006 E90 and now have a 335i F30 and it's a big difference. There are things that I like better on the E90 but the F30 is a better car. I wanted something more compliant on rough roads and I got that. I have the Adaptive Suspension and love that I can change the characteristics of the car on the fly and tweak engine/transmission performance and comfort separately. The tech is better, love the look, and coming from the 330i to the 335i is night and day in the power department. Little things like HUD and satellite radio time shifting are great and make the car more fun while commuting.

I swore I wouldn't buy first model year again but couldn't resist and while I don't regret it, I have issues with start/stop (disabled now) that are well known and supposedly fixed with software. Otherwise no other problems. Even with ASS disabled and aggresive acceleration (too much fun!) I still get 3+MPG than before.

The steering is not as connected as the E90 but pretty close in sport mode and I like the lightness at lower speeds so it's a win for the F30 IMHO. My biggest complaint in the F30 is the brakes - they are no where near as responsive in the F30 as my E90. It may be me needing to get used to it but I don't have a lot of confidence in them like I did with the E90. I have had a couple of emergency stops and have run drills in the BMWCCA car control clinic and feel confident in my assessment. Tires may play a part with the Goodyear low resistence RFTs but pedal feel is definitely softer and grabbing is more gradual. I'm leasing otherwise I'd look at upgrading the brakes.

Oh, and first automatic for me and it's great. My wife's cars have always been autos so it's not like they're new to me it's that the 8AT is AWESOME! It shifts so fast, love the sound when it does at high revs and it shifts so FAST! I use the paddle shifters a lot more than I thought I would and I don't miss my manual trans at all. I can't believe I said that last statement but the 8AT is that good.

[Jadar]

Yes, I came from an e90 328i manual trans. I would definetly do it again. While the e90 felt like it handled a bit better and you can toss it around easier, I feel the f30 is a better car. IMO it looks better, feels better. Interior is lightyears ahead of the e90.

And I cant stress enough about the power of the 335i vs 328 e90. Even though I chose the 8 speed auto, its just so much more fun. I definetly need a sedan, plan on a family soon so Im not trying to crawl around a coupe and stuff. Its my DD. If I get a coupe ill pick up a e46 m3 or a newer mustang 5.0 as a weekend toy.

I havent spoken to anyone on here thats regretted the transittion. Good Luck.

[Mako]

Originally Posted by verbs

I miss the shorter length car. I feel like BMW's car just getting too long.

My current C63 is still 3.5 inches longer than the new 3 series and the Audi 4 series is 3.2 inches longer.

what is really interesting about that is that my C63 leg room in the rear is 1.7 inches LESS than the new 3 series and 0.3 less in the front! the Audi matches BMW for rear leg room but is 0.7 less in the front. So BMW did a nice job give the new 3 series the best leg room in its class.

They had to grow the car a little to make room for the new 2 series gran coupe and 1 series sedan (assuming those are made to compete with the Audi A3 Sedan and Mercedes CLA). Its now the same size as a 5 series from 1-2 generations ago. Just like the 5 is the size of the old 7s... Its not all BMWs fault either, they are just trying to keep the interior volume the same while keeping up with all the new safety laws.

[batislav]

went from a 2009 e90 335i to a f30 335i due to a geo metro totaling my e90 with an illegal left turn.

i'm very happy with the f30, no real complaints.

[RPM90]

Originally Posted by Just a 3

Loose steering is not in your head. I have driven a couple of F30s, and I had the same exact feeling.

Well now that's a new one, "loose steering".

We've had "light", "no feel", "lifeless", etc...
"Loose" is not a word I would use to describe the F30 steering at all.
It's far from loose.

Yes, the 'effort' to turn the wheel is light, too light, when set in eco or comfort mode. But in sport mode the effort increases nicely and is very much like my E46 was and how my 135i is.
The effort is not as heavy, but it's very nice.

Those of you who keep harping on the steering, do you not know to switch to "sport' mode?
That's the only explanation I can see.
Personally, I don't know why BMW did this ridiculous 'drive mode' thing, where the steering effort is affected. All it's done is create and add fuel this steering debate.
Perhaps someone wants less throttle response, why I have not idea, and a trans that shifts are very low rpm to save fuel.
But why lighten the steering effort?
Electric steering already saves a wee bit of fuel, making the effort lighter means the electric steering assist is working more often, which means it uses more power. Counter intuitive really.

The F30 steering is direct, precise, with excellent on-center feel, and in sport mode it's weighted nicely.
How that can be "bad" I don't know. People are really making a mountain out of mole hill.
Yes, it's not the same as the previous hydraulic setup. It's different.
But, it don't suck either.

[CurlyFatAngry]

Originally Posted by RPM90

Well now that's a new one, "loose steering".

We've had "light", "no feel", "lifeless", etc...
"Loose" is not a word I would use to describe the F30 steering at all.
It's far from loose.

Yes, the 'effort' to turn the wheel is light, too light, when set in eco or comfort mode. But in sport mode the effort increases nicely and is very much like my E46 was and how my 135i is.
The effort is not as heavy, but it's very nice.

Those of you who keep harping on the steering, do you not know to switch to "sport' mode?
That's the only explanation I can see.
Personally, I don't know why BMW did this ridiculous 'drive mode' thing, where the steering effort is affected. All it's done is create and add fuel this steering debate.
Perhaps someone wants less throttle response, why I have not idea, and a trans that shifts are very low rpm to save fuel.
But why lighten the steering effort?
Electric steering already saves a wee bit of fuel, making the effort lighter means the electric steering assist is working more often, which means it uses more power. Counter intuitive really.

The F30 steering is direct, precise, with excellent on-center feel, and in sport mode it's weighted nicely.
How that can be "bad" I don't know. People are really making a mountain out of mole hill.
Yes, it's not the same as the previous hydraulic setup. It's different.
But, it don't suck either.

But the steering stiffness or firmness is what makes BMW have that feeling that you're one with the car, i don't know but at least during the test drive it felt more like the Xbox wheel with feedback in Forza. All this for a bit of fuel economy isn't really worth it in my opinion.

[cavm335i]

Originally Posted by RPM90

Well now that's a new one, "loose steering".

We've had "light", "no feel", "lifeless", etc...
"Loose" is not a word I would use to describe the F30 steering at all.
It's far from loose.

Yes, the 'effort' to turn the wheel is light, too light, when set in eco or comfort mode. But in sport mode the effort increases nicely and is very much like my E46 was and how my 135i is.
The effort is not as heavy, but it's very nice.

Those of you who keep harping on the steering, do you not know to switch to "sport' mode?
That's the only explanation I can see.
Personally, I don't know why BMW did this ridiculous 'drive mode' thing, where the steering effort is affected. All it's done is create and add fuel this steering debate.
Perhaps someone wants less throttle response, why I have not idea, and a trans that shifts are very low rpm to save fuel.
But why lighten the steering effort?
Electric steering already saves a wee bit of fuel, making the effort lighter means the electric steering assist is working more often, which means it uses more power. Counter intuitive really.

The F30 steering is direct, precise, with excellent on-center feel, and in sport mode it's weighted nicely.
How that can be "bad" I don't know. People are really making a mountain out of mole hill.
Yes, it's not the same as the previous hydraulic setup. It's different.
But, it don't suck either.

I do not think that steering is affected with sport mode in mine because i do not have m sport suspention or VSS. And I want to stress that it's not a bad thing in real life, but after reading so many complaints on these forums about it....

[DrSeuss99]

I guess a test drive will be in the near future, thanks!

[bugsandry]

I drove e90 330i up until 2 years ago before I switched to E60 and then back to F30 now. I love how the throtle response is much better in lower speed (eventhough my car is 320 - the bottom-feeder of the 3s). I also got compliment from rear passengers about the space back there and bigger trunk capacity...

Yes, the steering is much more lighter and felt more like Benz but then I still feel the stability & agility when going through corners and twisty roads...I can also still feel the road (something that I cannot really feel with my friend's C-class non-sport package car)

In conclusion, I love every minute in it

[dmontic71]

Originally Posted by bugsandry

I drove e90 330i up until 2 years ago before I switched to E60 and then back to F30 now. I love how the throtle response is much better in lower speed (eventhough my car is 320 - the bottom-feeder of the 3s). I also got compliment from rear passengers about the space back there and bigger trunk capacity...

I love every minute in it

I pretty much did the same. Had an E90, then went to an E60, and back to an F30. The F30 is superior to both. To be fair my E90 was a first model year 2006 325i. They had lower horsepower than post LCI facelift, the run flats were horrible, and some of the tech like Bluetooth wasn't quite perfected... The F30 isn't perfect, but it is the most inspired BMW I have driven since my E46 coupe....

[bugsandry]

to this!!

Funny how I went from 255hp to 215hp and now to 181hp and felt happier from change to change

Originally Posted by dmontic71

I pretty much did the same. Had an E90, then went to an E60, and back to an F30. The F30 is superior to both. To be fair my E90 was a first model year 2006 325i. They had lower horsepower than post LCI facelift, the run flats were horrible, and some of the tech like Bluetooth wasn't quite perfected... The F30 isn't perfect, but it is the most inspired BMW I have driven since my E46 coupe....

[mocohead]

I have a 2011 E90 328i automatic non-sport (wife's car) and just picked up a 2012 F30 328i stick sport. The F30 is a better car no doubt but there are some things I like better about the E90.

Power and fuel efficiency are much better in the F30. No comparison. BUT the sound and refinement of the N52 in the E90 is so superior! There is nothing like a BMW straight 6 and I miss that in my F30.

That aside the interior of the F30 is nicer and more spacious. Ride quality on the F30 seems better, but I will reserve judgement until the F30 arrives state-side from the euro delivery. Fuel efficiency is also much better on the F30.

The E90 has less cabin noise on the highway than the F30 does. I was a little surprised about the amount of wind noise in the F30. Still I was able to hear my wife bitching at me when I did the top speed run in the F30 so I guess there is not THAT much wind noise...

Finally the paint on my E90 is better than on the F30. While waxing the F30 at the BMW Welt I did notice some paint blemishes. I had never experienced that on any of my previous BMW's so I was surprised. Maybe the imperial blue just showed the paint's sins more.

Regarding the steering that is the subject of much debate my PERSONAL OPINION is that the E90 just feels stiff and heavy but not necessarily more connected or direct. The F30 steering feels just right to me. With EVERY generation of BMW starting with the E36, people complained that the prior generation felt better. Then BMW releases the new generation and it becomes the benchmark BMW steering. Having owned many E36, E46 and multiple E9x cars, I can safely say that the F30 steering feels just right to me.

Like others mention the variable driving modes, along with the M adaptive suspension, really make a huge difference in how the car feels. That is a huge advantage for the F30 IMHO.

I would not hesitate to move from an E90 to F30. You will find everything you like in the E90 and new things you didn't know you wanted in the F30. Good luck!

[Just a 3]

Originally Posted by RPM90

Well now that's a new one, "loose steering".

We've had "light", "no feel", "lifeless", etc...
"Loose" is not a word I would use to describe the F30 steering at all.
It's far from loose.

Yes, the 'effort' to turn the wheel is light, too light, when set in eco or comfort mode. But in sport mode the effort increases nicely and is very much like my E46 was and how my 135i is.
The effort is not as heavy, but it's very nice.

Those of you who keep harping on the steering, do you not know to switch to "sport' mode?
That's the only explanation I can see.
Personally, I don't know why BMW did this ridiculous 'drive mode' thing, where the steering effort is affected. All it's done is create and add fuel this steering debate.
Perhaps someone wants less throttle response, why I have not idea, and a trans that shifts are very low rpm to save fuel.
But why lighten the steering effort?
Electric steering already saves a wee bit of fuel, making the effort lighter means the electric steering assist is working more often, which means it uses more power. Counter intuitive really.

The F30 steering is direct, precise, with excellent on-center feel, and in sport mode it's weighted nicely.
How that can be "bad" I don't know. People are really making a mountain out of mole hill.
Yes, it's not the same as the previous hydraulic setup. It's different.
But, it don't suck either.

By loose I was referring to it being light, which it is, especially compared to E46 and E90. Given that you are the resident BMW apologist, not surprised that people not liking anything about BMW are 'harping' in your opinion. And yes, I do know how to turn on Sport mode - even with Sport mode, the steering seemed too light to me. I, like a lot of others on this site, am a hard core BMW enthusiast - but not a blind one.

The new light steering may not bother you, but it does others, so don't try to attack those that don't like it, and do not foist your opinion as if it is fact - some of us just don't like the lightness (and it can also be inferred as loose - because a light, unweighted steering does feel loose). This is an enthusiast forum, for BMW enthusiasts, which all those that post here are, and a lot of us will buy the F30 - but yes, we will criticize things that we don't like - and for an enthusiast, the legendary BMW steering has been diluted. Want to bet there will be an update on the steering S/W soon? Porsche builds amazing EPS, and I have no doubt that BMW can as well - they just need to hear from their enthusiasts, and that is exactly what we are doing. If you don't like us posting about it, ignore it rather than getting into personal attacks.

[Just a 3]

Originally Posted by CurlyFatAngry

But the steering stiffness or firmness is what makes BMW have that feeling that you're one with the car, i don't know but at least during the test drive it felt more like the Xbox wheel with feedback in Forza. All this for a bit of fuel economy isn't really worth it in my opinion.

+1