06-06-2012, 11:50 AM | #46 | |
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And as for materials quality, I've no reason to believe that BMW is using inferior grade plastics on the F30 versus the F10. Certainly, with the E60/E90, it was exactly the same stuff.
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06-06-2012, 01:15 PM | #47 |
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I have spent many many hours comparing rear passenger space between F10 & F30, & apart from headroom, there's really not a lot in it.
The first thing to do is to adjust the front driver's seat on both cars to my normal driving position, after that we sit 3 persons at the back. Wht we found is the legroom and kneeroom to be more or less the same between both cars - sitting with a normal posture I can fit 2 fist lengths longitudinally on both cars between my knee & the seatback of the front seat. There's virtually no difference between both cars save for abt 1cm. My rough measurements are corroborated by the measurements of front & rear legroom obtained by roadtest reports done by Autobild on both cars (available to download from bmw.de). Now comes the width of the rear bench. According to my tape measure, there's a difference of 3cm between the 2, but, the rear bench on the F30 is actually more comfortable to sit on than the F10 if there are 3 pax. The reason being the backrest on the F10 is heavily dished for the 2 outer pax (when nobody is sitting in the middle), so if there are 3 pax in the rear then the outer 2 pax are, due to the limited width, forced to sit at an uncomfortable angle as part of the torso is sitting on the outer "bolsters". There's no such problem on the F30 as the rear backrest is less dished so the outer 2 pax sits at a better posture. Of course there'll be no problem if there are only 2 pax, but the actual comfort of the seats between the 2 are very close. The lower waistline on the F30 also contributes to more comfort - it feels less claustrophobic. If u talk abt quality of the interior, then the F10 has higher perceived quality (tho not actual). It's mainly to do with the design rather than the materials itself (the plastics are identical between the 2). As an example, the F10 feels better cos part of the gear lever console is covered in leatherette - the rest is in wood/alu & leather on the armrest. For the F30 there's no leatherette but there are still the wood/alu & leather armrest. So the difference is different types of plastics. Another example is the door cards. The main difference between the 2 is the location of the wood/alu trims. The F10 has it running alongside the doors with a satinised chrome border, whereas the same trim without border is fitted on the door pulls on the F30. Apart from that the materials used are very similar, save for the lack of linings on the bottom of the door bins on the F30 (it's only on the side). Having said that cars such as X3 & X5 have no linings at all. If u talk abt penny pinching then a lot of flesh has been cut from the transition from E6x to F1x, much more so than the transition from E9x to F3x. As a previous poster said, they drastically cut down the amt of alu used in constructing the F1x, so much so the F10 gained abt 120kgs compared to a similar E60 (i.e. F10 N53 528i vs E60 N53 530i), all for a gain of 2cm in width & 6cm in length. On the other hand the F30 is abt 30kgs lighter than the equivalent E90 (i.e. F30 N55 335i vs E90 N55 335i), yet the F30 is abt 9cm longer than the E90. I have made a lot of comparisons between the 2 as both are priced the same with the same options in my market. The salesperson recommends the F30 over the F10 even tho the commission they earn on the F30 is less than the F10. |
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06-06-2012, 01:31 PM | #48 | |
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because the F10 is enormous !! I am ok with the F30 growth... it's as big as the old 5 series, which was a perfect size car !
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06-06-2012, 01:45 PM | #49 |
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Well BMW's whole lineup has gotten way too big to be honest.
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06-06-2012, 02:40 PM | #50 |
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Well BMW's whole lineup has gotten way too big to be honest.
============ It has, but but it has by design. You can see that as each generation has expanded they have grown to the size of MB cars as MB has always been the driver of competition for BMW. You can see this as the 3, 5, and 7 are now comparable in size to the C, E, and S Classes. And as the 3, 5 and 7 grew there was the opening to make the sub-series 3 Compact into a full series the 1 Series. Now that the 7 has grown to behemoth S Class size, the 5 to the old 7s size, and 3 to the old 5's we can see that there is plenty of room for a traditional e3X size sedan in the lineup. Remember that the 3 began as a coupe only model and since there are plans for a 2 Series Gran Coupe, it wouldn't surprise me in the least that BMW would badge that car here in the US as the 1 Series Sedan as the 1 Series hatch will never sell in the US.
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06-06-2012, 03:08 PM | #51 |
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Totally great cars, 3 Series always the best
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06-06-2012, 04:28 PM | #52 | |
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Makes it clear now! I dont regret having the F30 and doesn't make me miss not having the F10.
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06-06-2012, 04:41 PM | #53 |
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Not only that, even tho both cars share the same drivetrain (328i/528i & 335i/535i), the F30 is more satisfying to drive due to a more "direct" throttle & gearbox calibration. It just responds quicker to ur right foot, & I'm only talking abt throttle & gearbox response cos to be fair, the F10 is abt 165kgs heavier.
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06-06-2012, 11:43 PM | #54 |
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We're looking to upgrade our X5 and test drove the F30 and F10. The F30 has a fantastic interior for a 3, best one yet. But the F10 looks much better and has much more presence then the F30 in person. The F10 has that wow factor, while the F30 just seems forgettable.
And I really wanted to like the F30 |
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06-07-2012, 12:39 AM | #55 |
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there are no wrong choice here...
if you are hungry, get the sausage size 5 if you are not that hungry, get the sausage size 3 ...
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06-07-2012, 01:36 AM | #56 |
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Nice writeup Clarence.
I had a F10 535i for almost two years and now the F30. As already stated the F10 isn't much roomier but a tad wider(and it feels more luxurious, more rocksolid) But the F10 is way longer and just bigger as a whole car. And it drives like that too.Tell me about it, having had six 3 series before that F10.... The F30 is way more agile and just faster. The F10 is an elephant. In my example the difference is about 190kgs(F30 MT vs F10 8AT). The good old E34 5 series is still almost 10(!) cms longer than the F30(9.6cm) Just saying. Not exactly comparable in length imo. Cheers Robin |
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06-07-2012, 04:58 AM | #57 |
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By no mean i say the F30 interior is not nice, just I would have liked to be designed like the F10. It will have been more luxurious.
I've driven the F30 320D 184HP and F10 525D 218HP since I'm in Europe . I like allot the F30 for driving, allot. Nimble, agile, punchy and economic. The F10 I like it allot for design int and ext. I love that bonnet, front, lights, looks manly. But for driving pleasure is a liitle behind the F30. Is normal I believe. That why we must have them both |
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06-07-2012, 09:54 AM | #58 | |
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To be honest I think the interior quality and design is better in my well optioned E90 Msport than any F30 i've seen so far. It just looks/feels way more plasticy to me. When i get into a F30 i feel like i downgraded alittle or maybe a lateral move at best in terms of luxury feel. When i get into a F10 i feel like i just went up to an executive level automobile. You can't really compare these two cars though. There is no wrong choice and they are designed to fit different needs. F30 for Sport/handling F10 for Luxury/space Just my observation Alan
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06-07-2012, 10:53 AM | #60 |
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The F30 is not a Camry ;)
if you feel cramped in the F10...
... you are not going to feel any better in the F30 The F30 is not bigger than the F10.
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06-07-2012, 12:53 PM | #61 |
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The F10 interior is more conservative and refined, but To me the F30 is much sportier, especially with sport line trim.. Until this thread gets shut down I think we are just going to see F10 vs F30 endlessly debated.
You should get what you like, but at least for me it was partly about money.... My previous 528i only had premium package, xenon, and sat radio. For $50 less/mo, now I have an F30 with all of the above, plus Harmon Kardon, comfort access, and the sport line. If I absolutely needed the room, I would have leased another 5er, but just doesn't make sense, since to equip the same way I'm guessing the payment would have been a total of $100-$150 more. I also think that you are asking a lot of a 4 cylinder engine in a 5 series (hence the slower 0-60), so really then I almost need to compare a 328 to a 535 to be on par performance wise....
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06-07-2012, 01:57 PM | #62 |
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Can't wait for the forthcoming F30 M3 Sedan
The next-generation M3 sedan will have the ideal dimensions (not too big, not too small), perfect "drive-ability" factor, and a luxury interior equal to or greater than the F10 models. The forthcoming M3 will give new meaning to BMW's "ultimate driving machine" slogan. I want one NOW though!
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06-07-2012, 02:16 PM | #63 |
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06-10-2012, 03:16 PM | #66 |
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