[Billfitz]

If I had been in the market for a new car the 640GT would have been at the top of my list, but by the time I'm ready for another car it will likely be an i series.

[erickonphoenix]

Not an issue for me but apparently the lady that had the car before me had issues connecting her iPhone to the radio using bluetooth. I just bought a aux cable and it works fine for me.

[Billfitz]

My bluetooth phone connection has a habit of disconnecting after a day or two of not using the phone in the car, and it doesn't want to reconnect. Considering how seldom I use my phone, because I actually have a life, it's no big deal. If I'm heading out and expecting a call I turn the phone off, then turn it on again, and then it will pair up.

[KCee]

Originally Posted by Machinebuilder

For people looking at this thread I thought I would add this. I had a 2014 BMW 328GT which was getting up in miles and age which I loved. I looked to replace it with another 3 series GT but could not find one which was suitable. By chance I found a 2018 BMW 640 GT with low miles for only a little more. It is similar to the 3 series GT but a cross between a 5 series and 7 series. It uses 7 series wheel and tire sizes. It is a little bigger but not much. I highly recommend the 640GT as it is like the 3 series GT older more luxurious brother. There are even fewer 6 series GT's than 3 series but worth keeping an eye out for them.

I didn't even realize that car existed! From my Googling it looks like a great car. I initially test drove a 535GT on a whim while looking at something else and liked it, but it seemed ungainly with this ginormous back seat, but a small trunk....huge area if you fold down the seats. The 6GT looks much, much more appealing although I think the 3GT is more than large enough. My boss has an X6 which is kind of an interesting car/suv.

[Machinebuilder]

Here is a good video by savagegeese

It gives you a good review. There are not many of these cars around but really nice. The engine is powerful, the air suspension in the back is smooth and the big comfy seats are really wonderful. I actually prefer it to the 7 series which I also owned. A hatch is better for skiing and loading stuff in general.

[VictorCog]

A couple of things I wish I knew...
- Much more fun to drive compared to my previous Acura TLX.
- Base radio is disappointing. Few others touched on that.
- Make sure you fully understand what options the car has. Mine has everything but blind spot warning. Weird and a bit of a bummer. Seems like a lot of options are al a cart.
- I will never buy a car without thigh supports again. So comfy on long drives.
- 2018 models have wireless car play. Which was a pleasant surprise.
- It's super customizable via BimmerCode or other coding software. Have fun!

[VictorCog]

Originally Posted by Machinebuilder

Here is a good video by savagegeese

It gives you a good review. There are not many of these cars around but really nice. The engine is powerful, the air suspension in the back is smooth and the big comfy seats are really wonderful. I actually prefer it to the 7 series which I also owned. A hatch is better for skiing and loading stuff in general.

You can make a good night watching all their BMW videos. Those guys crack me up!

[cxmplex]

Originally Posted by Billfitz

I have no major issues with the radio, and I've been in the music and professional sound business since 1965. I did add tweeters in the rear doors, and improved the crossovers between the midranges and tweeters, but that's all. It won't crank out bass like the typical teenager with a $10,000 system in a $1000 car, but I long ago grew out of the perceived need to be heard three counties away. If you don't think it's loud enough you either need a hearing aid now or you will in the future. The base system does suck, but the base system isn't sold in the US.

I find the overall design of the sound system to be a little flawed. The loudest / most noticeable speakers are IN FRONT of you when driving on the dash, instead of being around you.

The side and rear speakers don't like to get going until you really crank it up. It does hurt a little for the overall "atmosphere" when listening to music, but in terms of actual sound quality, they are fine.

I'm also really experienced in the audio world, and I honestly can't complain for a car stereo system. BMW even lets you EQ it, which a lot of cars don't. I've bumped the mid range freq up a bit and that's done really well for improving the quality. Low freq performance leaves a lot to desire, but I'm also not interested in being one of those kids with 5 grand in subwoofers, so they do the job.

[Billfitz]

Originally Posted by cxmplex

I find the overall design of the sound system to be a little flawed. The loudest / most noticeable speakers are IN FRONT of you when driving on the dash, instead of being around you.

I don't find that to be the case, although putting tweeters in my rear doors made it better. You said you have EQ, which means the H-K system, which should already have rear tweeters. The EQ is better than no EQ, but it has only half what I'd consider the minimum number of bands. If there was a plug and play 31 band DSP EQ I'd grab one in a heart beat, but there isn't, and you can only get one by laying out a grand for a Match Up 7 amp. You might want to look into the coding options you can employ with the H-K.

[Machinebuilder]

I put in a entire much touted Bav sound speaker system. This includes 7 much larger speakers with heavy magnets. They did a good job and everything fit pretty well but its alot of work as you need to take apart every door panel and the front dash apart. The sound is excellent but after doing that I realized no one in my family noticed it. They couldn't tell the difference and thought it was the original system After a while I felt the same. I would not bother doing it again. The stock BMW system is cleverly engineered and even the base level 328 system in adequate.

[KCee]

I had a hard time finding a car with some of the options I wanted. I guess that's understandable as I think a brand new BMW with multiple options is overpriced. When I initially started looking around my requirements were pretty basic, but then I realized there were a fair amount of late model used cars with a couple options I really liked such as blind spot monitoring and a heated steering wheel. A lot of 3 year old BMWs didn't even have backup cameras let alone blind spot monitoring. I was ready to give up on a 3GT when mine popped off of lease.

[Billfitz]

Those heavy magnets don't do anything to improve the sound, they're just heavy. Their size is impressive compared to those on the stock drivers, if you're not familiar with the advantages of neodymium magnets. They're 1/10 the size of an equivalent ceramic magnet. They're also twice the price, so the stock drivers aren't cheap by any means. I had to laugh when I saw an installation video from one of the aftermarket driver retailers, when the installer said that the small magnets on the OEM drivers couldn't deliver the performance of the large magnets on his replacements. The best drivers made don't have big ceramic magnets, they have small neodymium magnets.

They couldn't tell the difference and thought it was the original system After a while I felt the same.

They initially sounded better due to confirmation bias. The family didn't expect them to sound better, so they didn't. Once you got past the initial confirmation bias period they didn't sound better to you either. You're not alone in this, even trained experts are subject to it. For example: http://seanolive.blogspot.com/2009/0...o-product.html

[Call me the breeze]

I added all 3 Bavsound stages separately and could hear an improvement with each. The best bang for the buck is the upgraded amp. The BimmerTech amp with the programmable DSP also seems appealing. Because of the GT trunk configuration, the amp install is 15 minutes tops. Super easy and well worth it.

[ntx.f34]

Originally Posted by R BMW

I wish I would of known how fun it is to drive, along with how comfortable.

I completely agree.

[Torquey]

Originally Posted by R BMW

I wish I would of known how fun it is to drive, along with how comfortable.

After having a loaner G20 330i for a few four days (stock charge pipe unsurprisingly cracked at 51k)... I cannot agree more with this sentiment, especially the comfort part! GTs long wheelbase compared to other 3-series makes a big difference IMO when it comes to driving over bumps and uneven surfaces.

Not to mention the rear leg room that I now take for granted, when putting kids and their backpacks during school drops. With the loaner, things were MUCH tighter in the back, with them pretty much resting their feet on top of the backpacks.

[-KingJames-]

Originally Posted by cxmplex

Aftermarket parts are less available for F34. A lot of these parts are other F model designed that happen to fit on F34. You'll see this with things like the agency power intake (doesn't fit properly on F34 needs a little DIY), and more limited exhaust options.

Does that include the front bumper? As in will an F30 front bumper fit in an F34? They look very similar when comparing them. The reason I'm asking is because I need a new front bumper and the GT being a very limited car, its hard to find one that came from an F34.

[Gran_Turismo]

Originally Posted by -KingJames-

Does that include the front bumper? As in will an F30 front bumper fit in an F34? They look very similar when comparing them. The reason I'm asking is because I need a new front bumper and the GT being a very limited car, its hard to find one that came from an F34.

No it won't fit. Completely different bumper/headlights. Make sure you look for f34 specific parts when it comes to lips/bumpers.

[logicslo]

I wish I would of known that i will have problems with egr system

[TIMMY12]

Originally Posted by Call me the breeze

I wish I had known how crappy the Hifi sound system is. If I had to do it over again I would have looked for a HK-equipped car. Aftermarket stereo (Bavsound) has helped.

The crappy Hi Fi system is terrible! I updated the speakers to Bav Sound which helps, but BMW should put high end systems in these cars!

[Markoff Chaney]

Originally Posted by Machinebuilder

Here is a good video by savagegeese

It gives you a good review. There are not many of these cars around but really nice. The engine is powerful, the air suspension in the back is smooth and the big comfy seats are really wonderful. I actually prefer it to the 7 series which I also owned. A hatch is better for skiing and loading stuff in general.

When someone opens their negatives portion of the review with "the stuff is maybe too shiny", you know that it is a good car otherwise.

[wilbur_the_goose]

Originally Posted by TIMMY12

The crappy Hi Fi system is terrible! I updated the speakers to Bav Sound which helps, but BMW should put high end systems in these cars!

You need a better amp, not better speakers.

[Markoff Chaney]

I wish I would have known how many idiots would try to get me to drive stupid with them all over town and the hills all the time.
I wish I would have known that if the passenger door isn't fully shut and you go in a car wash, you're going to have an interesting panic when water starts pouring in from parts unknown on that side.

I wish I would have known how clueless the dudes at the local BMW dealership would be when trying to get stretch bolts for the strut tower brace just to do the spark plugs myself.

I wish I would have known BMW ownership wasn't the mystical pedestal of jerkiness that everyone makes it out to be, and it is mostly just "I have enough money to show the world I don't drive a Civic" split with enthusiasts and the usual .05% of just total dingus blasters that any enthusiast group will inevitably have.

I effing love the thing, will do a deep dive review on here soon now that I am approaching 8 or so months of ownership.

I wish I would have known how damn heavy that back door/trunk is, I would have definitely got out and popped it by hand way more often so that it wasn't up next on the replacement block.
Works great in cold to warm weather, does the whizzclick whomp in hot weather now.