[Orpo]

Hi guys,
First, some car context:
I've owned a few cars over the last few years. Subaru STI (Hatch!), Audi S5 (V8), Audi A4 Wagon/Avant 6MT, BMW N55 135 (loved it), Audi Mk2 TTRS (OMG!) and now I have the F30...
I came back to BMW because of my love for the N55 135. It was the best "drivers" car that I owned, even better than the TTRS.

Most were manual cars

I need some help. I have some fundamental issues with the car, which could use your collective help with. I enjoy driving, and want to make it a car that I look forward to driving. At the moment, its rather meh to me.

My 2014 335 ix is fully loaded. M Sport, 8 Speed ZF, Exec Pkg, HUD, Adaptive suspension, etc...

Issues that I need your help with:

- Elastic-band acceleration (Tip-in)
The cars accel from a stop or low speed is a nightmare! The initial tip-in is absolutely terrible. Im not talking about WOT, but rather suburban driving, stop signs, etc. The tip-in starts with next to no power, then as you continue to ask for a little more power, it suddenly realizes you want to accel and jerks the car forward. The only way I've been able to get around it, is manual mode. I suspect the transmition is avoiding 1st gear. Even from a dead stop.
Ways that I might be able to address it:
1. JB4?
2. petal box type product?
3. Tune?

-Suspension
Far too soft for me. The car is smooth and comfortable, but far too flowty for my taste, in comfort mode. Sport mode seems to be "ok" but feels far from a sporty setup.
Ways to address it:
-H&R Sport Springs
-Dinan springs and bump stops
-Dinan springs and bump stops and Shockwave (software)

-Brakes
The brakes are the polar opposite of the acceleration.
The initial bite is far too aggressive and the braking is non-linear. Meaning, I apply very little brake pressure at first, the car brakes hard, then when modulating the brake pressure, I need to provide significantly more effort and get less braking response in return. It just seems wrong to me and was not present in my 135i or other cars. Almost seems counter intuitive, if that makes sense.
Ways to address it:
-No clue! New pads?
NB: Brakes are brand new with approx 2k KM on them and have been bedded in properly.


Please dont ask why I changed to the F30 or buy an M3/M4 or go back to Audi RS models... Life happens to all of us and priorities and budgets change. I'm just looking to make my car more to my taste by "fixing" these issues. I love driving and love cars, but I am not in a position to sell it at this point.

Thank you for your help.

[uncleruckus]

My thoughts below:

- Elastic-band acceleration (Tip-in)
Try performing Transmission Adaptation as per this thread: http://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sho....php?t=1182679

- Suspension
Depending on your budget, I think coilovers would be a better fit for your needs, as it would change the dynamics much more than lowering springs. Check out KW Street comforts or Bilstein PSS10 (or KW V1)

- Brakes
Sounds like a pad change might help with your issue. I know the Euro BMWs get a different pad than NA.... maybe try using the NA one, which is supposed to be more street and less performance oriented (or go with aftermarket pad like Hawk or EBS).


Personally, I have no issues with my brakes, I like them quite a bit. I agree the suspension is a bit soft, but I actually like that, as it rides better on shitty roads (I daily commute with my car and do about 90% city driving). If I was upgrading my suspension though, I would probably spend the extra and go for full coilover setup over just lowering springs (or shockware for that matter)

[otay]

My thoughts:

Tip in: This is the single most annoying thing about my '14. I'm the guy who started the transmission adaptation thread. I had another issue back then...delays when upshifting...where I had the complete tranny replaced (finally). The @!#%! sensitive pedal tip in was the same after tranny was replaced. Bottom line is that neither the transmission adaptation reset nor the throttle adaptation reset (do a search) have helped this at all. I've learned to live with it, and more carefully apply pedal pressure when pulling away from a stop. Have seen a few threads where people have installed a throttle re-mapper and have claimed improvement. Have had the same thought about if a tune would make it better, but have not done it.

Suspension: I've heard the base suspension is very soft on the AWD models, but you have Adaptive. Can't help here as I have RWD and non-adaptive M Sport suspension.

Brakes: my brakes (base, don't have the Track package) are a bit grabby, but not too bad. Firm and stops well. I only seem to have occasional trouble modulating them when I drive something else for a bit, then get back in my car.

[jjhebigscreen]

Hi,
I have a 2014 435ix. I thought driving in comfort mode was awful. Non linear throttle response and very poor throttle response. I had the mppk kit installed and the difference is very noticeable. I can now drive in comfort mode and enjoy. Throttle response the majority of the time is good and more linear. Sport mode throttle response from a start can be too sensitive at times. The car pulls much harder across the entire rev range but especially from 60-100mph on the highway. The exhaust is quieter than I was hoping for but overall I am very happy I did the upgrade. My car came with Pierelli rft tires and I thought it was not as floaty as every body says. Although the ride was very hard and rough. I put on non rft pierelli zero and the car is way smoother and better in the city but definitely more floaty on the highway.

[nickf30]

I feel the same non linear/sleepy throttle tip in / laggy transmission response with my 14 335xi 8AT. It is all fixed after MPPK installed you can feel the difference right away. Now the throttle is very linear and transmission is always ready to play comfort or sport mode.

[anotheran]

throttle tip in - used to complain about it a lot when i first got it. but after driving for a while and some mods, I don't notice it as much now. It's either I compensated for the tip in (very likely) or mods helped a bit. But i think the pedal box is what my shop recommended.

suspension - Dinan springs and bump stops and Shockware (software). You can try shockware first to see if it's enough then do the springs

I have no problems with brakes. I wish mine bite more.

[Orpo]

Thank you everyone for your input. Due to budget constraints, I will likely do the following:
-Brakes:
Change pads. I ran both Red-Stuff and Akebono pads on my Audis and was very pleased with both. So, I'll give those a try.

-Suspension:
Unfortunately, I cannot go with coils due to budget. So, I'll first try the Shockwave (name?) and then try spings if I need more improvement.
I had put Coilovers on my 135i and that helped at lot. I know that its the ultimate answer, but no $$$

-Tip-in:
I'll look into the Transmition adaptation first, Thanks uncleruckus!
Seems to be a larger problem and unfortunately, its the one that bothers me the most. The BMW tune seems to partially address it, but thats expensive and cant be "undone" if it doesnt fix it to my satisfaction. Same goes for a tune.
Has anyone gone the Cobb AccessPort route? I had one on my STI and loved it. But cant remember if it remaped throttle.
Thoughts?

Again, thank you all for your input.

[Facin]

Just another vote for MPPK regarding throttle tip in.

[Orpo]

Originally Posted by uncleruckus

My thoughts below:

- Elastic-band acceleration (Tip-in)
Try performing Transmission Adaptation as per this thread: http://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sho....php?t=1182679

- Suspension
Depending on your budget, I think coilovers would be a better fit for your needs, as it would change the dynamics much more than lowering springs. Check out KW Street comforts or Bilstein PSS10 (or KW V1)

- Brakes
Sounds like a pad change might help with your issue. I know the Euro BMWs get a different pad than NA.... maybe try using the NA one, which is supposed to be more street and less performance oriented (or go with aftermarket pad like Hawk or EBS).


Personally, I have no issues with my brakes, I like them quite a bit. I agree the suspension is a bit soft, but I actually like that, as it rides better on shitty roads (I daily commute with my car and do about 90% city driving). If I was upgrading my suspension though, I would probably spend the extra and go for full coilover setup over just lowering springs (or shockware for that matter)

Well I performed the Reset of the transmission and I'm here to report that there is improvement. It does remove a certain portion of the tip-in lag and makes the acceleration more consistent throughout the pedal movement.

Thank you for your help on this. While it is not perfect, it is something I can live with.