[454697819]

So I collected My new 335d XD Shadow Edition yesterday morning -

Spec - Mineral Grey with Oyster leather

- Interior Comfort Package
- Media Package Professional
- Adaptive M-Sport Suspension
- Comfort Access
- Towbar
- Reversing Camera
- Exterior Mirrors - Folding
- Electric Front seats - Memory
- Lumbar Support
- Brushed Ali Trim with black gloss
- Digital Cockpit
- Icon Adaptive Headlights
- Headlight Wash
- Advanced Bluetooth

I asked for no prep to the outside of the car as I had a day of apply gtechniq products lined up and thats what I got, I new car that looked terrible, covered in dust, sticker residue and the odd stuck on leaf -

Still the car is lovely a completely different beast from the last 2009 3 series I had and i'm looking forward to years with it.

The Gtechniq products are very good, expensive but they did exactly what they said they would and look great.

The purpose of this thread is to update it over the lifespan of me with the car with costs etc associated so those interested have a point of reference.

So on with the pics - this is after 7 hours of Gtechniq :-)













looking forward to adding more miles and updating this in due course - in the mean time any questions just ask.

Cheers


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

100 Mile Update

Things I like -

The engine, what a flexible beast, pootles when you need it but goes like stink when you want to.
Headlights - Iconic Adapative - Very very clever but why you need to press a button to activate the active part I don't understand
Interior - No gripes from me - very pleasant place to sit, glad I went with oyster as all black would have been too much.
Electric seats - A must albeit I am still trying to get comfy but I blame my huge feet for this.
H&K - Just right for me, not too much not too little
Towbar - not used it but its electric and good for a giggle.
Comfort access - works very well, even if the boot swipe pedal is a little bit of a gimmick.
Gtechniq - Worth the effort at this moment in time - as long as it lasts.

Things not so sure about

I misunderstood the Cruise with Brake function, expecting it to have forward radar and brake for me, that's not the case, its a limiting brake function to slow you to your speed set, why the hell i didn't order ACC I do not know, as I spend all my commuting time in irritating A12 traffic. *wonders off to google ACC retrofit*

Bluetooth functionality with amazon music is hit and miss - more miss than hit but hey, small problems at the moment.

cant get comfy but this is always a common theme for me and new cars and will sort itself - its usually linked to my large feet and whatever clogs I am wearing that day.

The BMW LTE hotspot that comes with the Extended bluetooth goes to sleep with the car and is therefore FA use to keep the dash cam connected to!

people think I now earn too much.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

682 (ish) Mile update

So far so good, things to report are

1.) Engine remains the star of the show closely followed by the car as an overall package.
2.) It is fitting in well to my lifestyle and the car it replaces, even taking a 8x4 sheet of ply on the roof bars over the weekend
3.) Currently as or more efficient that expected, indicating an average 43mpg on the Lie o meter - this includes regular hard blasts on the way home.
4.) Eco Plus mode is good for a giggle and works well on the commute allow for easy driving and some efficiency to boot.
5.) Comfort - I am finding the seats excellent, the heated seats and steering wheel are spot on.
6.) adaptive headlights are fantastic, I am very very glad I added these to the order even if there merry dance takes a little getting used to.

still not to sure about ....

1.) idrive - its a bit well basic, less set up options than I had hoped for and some idiosyncrasies about how it works with online entertainment and apple integration etc but I'm content with the set up for now.

2.) The LTE thing pissed me off but I got over it and for £45 I made the problem go away using an 4G LTE box and a 3 simcard, this is wired in with the battery protector for the dash cam and works well at the moment keeping me in touch with the dash cam and acting as a hotspot for the phone if I run close on data usage.

3.) Still kicking myself re adaptive cruise, efforts have found someone that can do it, but the parts are prohibitive so on the back burner it goes.

I still think BM are missing a trick with the set up options for the car, why I cant have Eco plus with slightly better steering and suspension is beyond me? I guess this is what drives other users down the ACS route.

Overall I am very pleased with the car, and would recommend it as a package to anyone, do I regret not getting the 340i, not really I don't think, yes the noise and delivery would be fun but id be looking at the fuel to much to enjoy it, I think at least with this machine I can give ti a good boot every now and then and not have to worry too much about feeding those horses.

Ill add some more pictures tonight.


Still - On to more mileage

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1000 Mile Update (1326 to be precise)

To be honest, this car had a lot to live up to, (from a Skoda superb I hear you cry) but frankly yes.

Im a practical sort of chap you see and my cars have to cover a lot of mileage, and get used for everything from ferrying me about to the children to building materials the whole lot, and the Superb was just excellent and doing that.

I was so close to buying the new Superb but the figures actually worked out cheaper for the BMW –
I like many however feel miffed at ticking boxes for kit which is standard across so many more entry level cars these days that I made a point of winding the salesman up every time we ticked a box I told him it was standard on my Superb, he got a bit more and more sheepish as the deal went on.

Ok so the superb was missing a 150bhp but still, the new car had big reliable comfortable shoes to fill.

I’m please to say its doing it very well indeed.

The engine is loosening up well, its beginning to rev quite freely so come play time its stunningly quick and flexible, I have yet to get myself into trouble with it but the risk is quite real on these roads with the grit and slime about to land thanks to the time of year.

For my weekly drive (including the odd bit of looning about) I am averaging 43.6 mpg on the lie o meter, checking this out on the latest fill shows it to be only 2% out which is more than reasonable and again, brilliant considering what a lump is sitting upfront.

The comfort levels are improving as the seat beds in and I find the correct driving position – the heated steering wheel is a lovely little feature but why put the button there?

We all fit in some comfort with plenty of space around us and in the boot, the balance is currently just right.

My recent trip to Wickes for a 8x4 sheet of ply demonstrated the BMW roof bars work as hoped and despite the strange looks, it all went rather well.

I think as a standard car it looks brilliant, yes it’s a bit high and yes its grey like so many cars, but it works with the shadow edition tweaks and the leather offsets the dark exterior stance nicely.

I have added the BMW specific full boot liner, for the £100 I think it will be well worth it, not the tidiest of installs but a bit of stick on Velcro should sort that out.

I have now hardwired the Blackvue and my own 4g router for the car and this is working well as a package and gives me some comfort when it gets left.

Now the moany bits.

I can’t understand why this car costs so damn much? I am putting this down to me being tight (previous maximum car spend was £16k) and ok I added £7.5ks worth of options but still, as a package is it really worth that much? Time will tell, but the DD isn’t insignificant and the novelty will soon wear off if it doesn’t behave.

Its booked in already for the squeaky brake syndrome – I have also written to BMW to inform them that given the early warning nature of this issue, I will never accept fair wear and tear as an excuse not to investigate if it returns – I await their response.

The tank is a gallon to small to last me a week – Blame the x drive this means 5 -6 visits to the fuel station a month not 4 and a bit (sheesh these really are first world problems)

The Idrive system whilst good, is flawed and connectivity with the iphone is hit and miss – I can call anyone via voice recognition which is good, however I can’t send nave tracking or ETA to everyone in my phone book – go figure.

The petrol head inside me is not satisfied, speed and handling aside, I need some good noise – So back on the list of aspirations goes the Tuono V4.

All told though I can’t recommend the car enough to date – I’ll see if BMW can sort the squeaking brakes and take it from there.

thanks again for all the help and advice so far and look forward to harassing you all more in due course.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3000 Mile update

I thought I would give a full and proper update to everyone after 3000 miles in and 5 and a bit weeks as my previous ramblings where perhaps not too concise and thought out.

This is my first brand new car I have purchased and so a lot of grief and man maths went into the entire process, thanks to all who responded to my queries prior to purchase.

I appreciate a lot of this has been discussed before but as the purpose of this thread is to act as a record and perhaps help others out in decision making, I hope you find the below useful / informative.

I have broken the review down by component parts for ease.

Engine 335D XD –

I wanted an engine with some punch, I considered both the 340I and the M140 (keeping the Skoda as a work horse) and the 335D fitted the bill for my considerable mileage and the balance of economy.

The engine itself is a peach, its now running in nicely with a smooth consistent power across the rev range. When using the paddles it becomes a different beast letting it rev right around to the 5500rpm mark where there is still power.
When being sensible it is just so smooth, and pretty damn efficient, too, Im getting a consistent 44 and a bit mpg indicated since I collected it, with in excess of 46 when shorter journerys are measured, this is with some varied and spiritied driving being considered.
I wasn’t that bothered about the Xdrive to be honest, and if it was an option, I may not have ticked it but I do have to say I like it, it feels planted and sturdy – No gripes from me here.

Touring Shadow Edition

The actual trim designation of the car is a nice touch, the black extras work well with the grey and set the car off well. The extras included with this model trim I would have been specifying under the old LCI anyway so it fitted well with my needs.

Mineral Grey

This colour comes in for a bit of stick, I accept its not the most exciting but it’s a personal thing and although I initially wanted black, I knew with my lack fo routine maintenance it would look bad quickly.
The Gtechniq brought the colour well and in a sea of grey cars it does pop nicely but as ever, each to their own.
I did want the individual blue but at £950 it was a no no give the already extensive list of options specified.

Oyster interior

The cream leather offsets the dark elements of the car well, and despite the criticism of ostyer the seats are bedding in nicely and currently faring up well to dye transfer, but I am keeping on top of looking out for any early signs of stains.
The Dakota comes in for some stick and I can see why, but it also appears hard wearing which is key for me.
I did also want the black lower dash but again this was only available with the individual leather and I couldn’t put the price up any more, so next time perhaps.

Interior Comfort Package
This includes the storage nets behind the seats, boot storage, heated steering wheel and I think heated front seats and the wallet cubby on the RHS of the wheel.

Conclusion: - 5/5 - VFM. Heat steering wheel is lovely, heats seats essential and the other bits are good nice to haves

Media Package Professional
This is good, I like the features, nav can be a bit daft if you follow its proposed diversions blindly, the connected drive works well and I am using a lot if not all of the features at some point each week.

Conclusion – 4/5 – I think it’s a good system but feels steep at a £900 premium

Adaptive M-Sport Suspension
This system seems to come in for a lot of stick, and I can see why but I also think for a mass produced car it deals with 99% of what I need it too no fuss. The difference between the settings is noticeable, and only when really giving it some stick do the floors discussed elsewhere begin to show and I feel the need for different springs. Occasionally on bumpy roads it can get jittery in comfort as if it cant make up its mind so putting it in sport (ironically) resolves this.

Conclusion 4/5 – For this model its worth it, can I see the need for ACS – on occasion, will I fit them? Probably not but time will tell.

Comfort Access
Very pleased with this, works well, boot pedal is a bit of a gimic but does what it should. There is the additional security risk, but if that event occurs “so be it” and ill let the insurance worry about it then.

Conclusion 5/5 – Won’t be without it on any care going forward.

Towbar
Errr… not used it yet but it’s a smart bit of kit, looks like the car is getting an errection though which is a little awkward – still worth fitting in the factory given the cost of retrofit of any towbar to these cars.

Conclusion 4/5 – Not tested but providing it does what it says – Happy days.

Reversing Camera
Excellent, even in the dark and low light you can see a lot thanks to two LED reversing lights, trailer hook up zoom will also be helpful but again untested. Feels a little expensive given so many other marques this is now a standard fit but at the cost of one paint touch up I feel it is GVFM.

Conclusion 4/5 – Wont not have one now on future cars.

Exterior Mirrors – Folding
Sheeesh talk about taking the biscuit BMW – A pricey option for again something that was standard on the skoda and my wife’s 308, why they don’t fold in on lock as standard is anyone’s guess.

Conclusion 3/5 – Expensive but worth it given the cost of a replacement mirror.

Electric Front seats – Memory
Again mr BMW think your clutching at straws here, I know the 3 series spans so many price ranges but seriously, £900! I opted for it because of my problems getting comfortable in any car, and the size difference between my wife and I having such different driving positions. the product is excellent the cost no so much.

Conclusion 3.5/5 - again I wouldn’t want to be without it but I think the cost is not competitive in today’s market. The cost reduces the score the actual product is excellent

Lumbar Support
Cant remember the cost but with my wife and I having early aging backs and long drive this was important – Loads of adjustment and easy to adjust – But again in this day and age, I shouldn’t have to be shelling out in addition to electric seats for this.

Conclusion 4/5 – Worth it but feel aggrieved at needing to spec it..

Brushed Ali Trim with black gloss
This was spec’d as I couldn’t get any decent information from the dealer on how the carbon smoke trim looked, and I didn’t think it suited the cream leather in the system images they had. I was miffed that it became a cost option between the LCI 1 and the shadow edition but it was effectively discounted out through early negotiation - that said I thinkit lifts the cabin from a sporty effect to a classy little number, OCD of stainless grain alignment not being parallel with the dash I really like it.

Conclusion 5/5 For me it was needed, others may well see it as a waste of cash.

Digital Cockpit
I have conflicted feelings about this, initially I was very excited about this extra, it wasn’t a lot of money and lifts the feeling of the car into the current era, but its not as intelligent as I was expecting, and find myself at odds with the controls for the idrive not linked to the dash as it were. Whilst directions appear on the dash, no map does, so compared to the audi dash BMW have a long way to go.
I turned the display change off so I have the same comfort dash display for all settings now, as I didn’t like the sport display going all red and angry looking, as this is at odds with the cars demeanour even when pressing on
In this day and age it should come as part of the upgraded nav option and have more integration with the Idrive, i.e mirror the idrive screen if desired.

Conclusion 3/5 I like it, and it was worth the £250 (ish) but lags behind the competition available

Icon Adaptive Headlights
These were a late addition to my order and I am so glad I added these, I live rurally and spend 6 months of the year driving in the dark each way, and liked the old Skoda Xenons which were adaptive. These are very clever and really demonstrate the kind of innovation BMW are capable of when they want to.
I get the odd flash from drivers coming the way when the system takes .5 of a second to dip the lights, but I strongly belive these drivers are the kind that flash in advance and so would have flashed me if I was manually dipping the lights.

Conclusion 5/5 Probably one of the best options on the car tbh – well worth the money.

- Headlight Wash
Again living rurally, crap roads, farmers muck – kind off essential.
However – only operating on the 5th pull not the 1st and fifth is annoying, as this can leave long intervals between getting a clean.

Conclusion 3/5 – Not cheap, should be included with the adaptive lights programming could be better.

Advanced Bluetooth & LTE prep
Honestly I specc’d this for the LTE wirelss connection in the car, believing I could put my own simcard in like the old version of LTE from BMW – You cant, it’s a fixed sim which links to a TMobile – at £11 per month for 1gb – Not happy but my mistake for not checking this out properly. This was to connect my dashcam to it to enable cloud services.
The Bluetooth quality is excellent, and the two mics is a bonus, but I would have to consider if jus this was worth £400 next time?
I resolved my in car data problem with a LTE 4g router powered by the same battery guard system and a 4g sim from Three – so far this is working well and is all hidden in the boot.

Conclusion 2.5 / 5 -Nice option, but didn’t work as I expected – Bluetooth quality is excellent though, with people not realising I’m in the car.

Extras

Roof Bars –
Official BMW roof bars – discounted to £110
They fit nicely and do what they say they should, tested early with a sheet of 8x4 ply, could do with hold down strap points but mainly for accessories such as roof box.

Conclusion 5/5

Boot space liner
Discounted to £100, Bespoke boot space full liner and extension kit to cover the interior for grot, again well thought out apparent quality piece of kit, fit is a little loose and I might improve the fit with some Velcro pads but it is stopping the boot getting caked in crap so well worth it.

Conclusion 3.5/5 Fit not perfect, cost feels a lot – does restrict access to fuse box and under boot storage but does what essentially I bought it for.

Blackvue 650 2 CH Dashcam

I purchased this because of the number of times my car has been damaged in car parks in the last year or two. I hardwired the install which generally went well with the split screen boot proving the most conflicted and compromised positon for the camera, see the pictures below. I ended up pulling the cable through the roof liner at the rear of the car and then making a small hole in the cable way to the boot screen there was no other route but to surface fix for a small way but as you cant see it I can live with it.
The cloud service works well now I have resolved the in car data problem as above in the LTE section.
Quality is good, as is the interface, there are better cameras out there for the money I guess but I got it at a very good price so again – this makes the score slightly better.

Conclusion 4/5 – might be lower if I had paid the nearly £320 they RRP for. I paid about £210









Gtechniq CSL & Exo v3 – including glass and leather protection.
I am historically terrible at looking after my cars, they don’t get washed for 6-8 months at a time letting summer dust get layered over by winter mud and the results after a couple of years sadly speak for themselves.
Whilst this is a long term car for me, I still want it to look good, therefore I researched and opted for this ceramic option.
I had the dealer do no prep and took it home dirty much to his dismay and spent the day cleaning and applying this system, the results were worth the effort
It has brought out the paint work and made cleaning a doddle so far and I have made a promise to try and stay on top of keeping it looking good.
As I applied it, it saved me about £600 in labour but I shelled out over £300 in products to complete the application, most of which I have 90% left over so they will last a while and be cost effective over a long period.

Conclusion 4/5
Longevity is the key here, if it wares of before 3 years I’ll be less happy but I’ll put this on all new cars from now on.




So any gripes:

Not really to be honest,I have now found a comfortable enough driving position, ( I have size 15 feet) but cant drive in hard inflexible soled shoes.

The rear brakes squeak and its booked in for this in November as this was the earliest available courtesy car.

The tank I feel is 1 gallon too small, allowing for only just 500 miles between fill ups of 470 if I have had a heavy right foot.

This car has fitted well into the lifestyle and suits my needs at this time and the foreseeable future.

I will be changing the oil at 10k miles as I am on 3k and its still saying 18k miles until oil change; this is £140 from my independent dealer. Ill also check out BMW’s cost closer to the time.

I hope this is of use and if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Hope this was of interest and a few more photos below -


















-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Just a couple of Musings re The Black fuel -

there is a fair amount of discussion on the forum on the subject of fuel, and in particular the impact of different fuels on economy and range.

I now have over 4k miles on my car and confirm the following.

Supermarket Fuel:
Including Tesco, Morrisons & Asda all provided the same ish MPG and mileage, however it is my humble opinion the engine was not as smooth as the following fuels.

Shell Standard Diesel:
Produced same mileage per tank as the above fuels but low load clatter (if you can say that about a 6cy diesel) was diminished.

Shell Super expensive have your pants down diesel:

This produced a whopping additional 2mpg, However..... This may be down more to my driving style that week due to long motorway journeys each day and minimal town driving, as 3-4 trips into a town can wipe up to 50 miles of range from the tank if its snarled up.
Clatter was also improved over the supermarket fuels but not any better than the Shell normal diesel.

So my conclusion is this :

Ill be damned if I know - pay your monies take your choice.

The v power diesel is not worth the extra FOR ECONOMY AND RANGE alone based on perhaps my more normal usage, the cleanliness it could bring I cant establish until 85k time but I wont be running it full time on this.

The supermarket fuel is cheap and cheerful I had one bad tank from Tesco which it noticeably ran rougher, however the newly refurbished asda fuel station near me has new clean tanks and new pumps so will be using this going forward.

If there was a shell garage more en-route for me I would prefer to use this as a regular fill up just due to the reduced "clatter" alone -

Next test will be when I purchase some millers next week and try that, worked well on my previous cars, but these were older and slightly higher mileage.

Musings over -

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

10 000 mile update

So last night the car rolled over 10 000 miles,

That’s 10k in just 4 months and 25 days, its about 1000miles down on where I estimated, due to a week off with sickness and a bit more use of the wife's car at weekends to keep muddy wellies of the cream leather at this time of year.

I took it to my local independent this AM for an oil and filter change, I was pleased to see on arrival that he had procured even the genuine oil to use – total for the oil and filter change is circa £140 – BMW wanted £240

His opinion on the oil was it was it was dirty but well within acceptable limits, i.e worth a change for sure but the engine isn’t being overly sooty and depositing too much in the engine and oil which was reassuring. But my car spends at least 2 hours a day sat on fast ish A roads being nice and hot.

I trust this man a lot when it comes to my cars, he always gives sound advice and never BS, whilst a family friend by association the garage is very well thought off generally across the local area, and I didn’t even mind the hour round trip back to my old home town to use him.

So thoughts on the car after 10 000 miles.

Its good, it’s very good. It has bedded in nicely with the engine feeling strong and smooth. I have run it on a mixture of fuels (see above musings) and have decided to try the next 10k using millers with my normal fuel. I started yesterday so will update soon, any effect may be pseudo because of the fresh oil.

I queried the mechanic on the use of premium fuels and additives, expecting the retort of “don’t waste your money” or “snake oil” but he surprised me to state that he strongly supports the use of premium fuel or additive every once in a while, they, as a business have witnessed many instances of resolution of minor problems in diesel cars and prolonged life by the use of premiums fuels and additives –

He advised against supermarket fuel but this has always been the case from him anyway – I avoid part fill so I don’t get to use shell often as I would like as they are few or far between in my area.

Economy has remained in the early 40’s with the odd dip below when town journeys have been the norm, but that’s rare.

Tyre wear is excellent, I'm estimating about 30k before the fronts are shot, and more before the rears, but I don’t like these tyres, they are unforgiving and there is no decent feedback.

The brakes squeaked from 30 miles old to 8000 miles, when the day before it was booked in itself resolved and has been fine since.

I have had two instances of the digi dash turning off as I drive a long for it to come back to life a second later – I have put this down to a glitch and ignored it for now – it’s not happened in the last 3000 miles.

The car is calling for its first service at 22000 miles – supporting the use of intermediate oil changes but I may have this car for 6 years and 150k miles so it’s in my interest to look after it.

The interior has held up well but does need a bit of maintenance, I’m not a small bloke and although I am now in a comfortable position the seat has bedded in well, will it last 150k as supportive is now? Time will tell. The heated seats are excellent btw. Autoglym cleaner and leather treatment is working very well.

The issue with BMW and the dimming mirror was resolved in my favour and is now resolved fully with the help of a forum member - so thanks for that
Gtechniq has been great, I have washed this car more times in the last 6 months than my last one had in 3 years and even after the truly crap winter it seems to be holding up well.

Niggles

The digi dash and idrive are not well coordinated, expecting steering wheel controls to control the idrive doesn’t work – forgetting to use the I drive wheel. Note – this is a user error.

I stand my all my other scores on the extras, the one that needs a coding tweak is the headlight washers, in this weather, they should come on more often than they do.

Favourite Bit

How it feels inside – I know there is big debate over which is class leading but IMHO it’s a lovely place to sit and I have no complaints after the 10k miles and it steel feels special to get into.

Heated steering wheel – I broke both my thumbs a while ago, and on cold mornings, this keeps the pain away from my hands and that’s great.

The engine – it’s just huge fun, I don’t think I’ll get tired of booting away from a que of cars behind me whilst I wait for the lorry in front to pull over.

I had the misfortune to need to use a lot of the cars speed to try and get to hospital at high speed before a family member passed away, it was a reassuring place to be knowing how stable and sure footed this thing is with huge brakes which pull your face off if you need too, shame to use it under these circumstances but that aside it was a good place to be.

Final words

I keep querying if I should have been pushier and gone for the 340I – (No slot was available and dealer threatened to pull the discount) and I conclude each time that I have made the right decision. The 4wd is proving invaluable in the wet, cold snowy shitty weather, not that a 340I wouldn’t have done well, but I can’t fault it to date.

We don’t know the future of diesels, granted, I can but roll with the punches now.

Running costs are well within expectations so far – I have taken Coopers up on their 4 year service plan, it’s not cheap but does bring some discount on services.

I expected to enjoy the car more: I mean by this I was hoping I would want to go silly in it, but for that, it is my humble opinion it could do with ACS but that’s a well-versed conversation, the adaptive does a great job, but to make this a truly drivers it could do with something better in the suspension dept, but hey that's hardly news.

So there we go – 10k trouble free miles so far, with the car fitting in perfectly with my needs and family lifestyle and here’s to the rest.

Any questions do ask –

All the best

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

20 685 miles.

So a bit of an update - 9 (ish) Months in and the first service was due at 21k according to the computer, bear in mind it has already had one oil service at just over 10k but this wasn't put on the Idrive.

Booked into Cooper Colchester who other than being unable to offer me a courtesy car at short notice due to me changing the booking were pretty good to be honest.

Other things to be looked at

Loose gear stick - (just felt a bit floppy) - Agreed to replace under warranty.
Squeak door seals - Agreed to apply tape if I want it - Return visit booked for these two items.
Brake Squeal - Only very occasionally in reverse & Couldn't replicate - so ignored
Steering Knock - Sounded the same as the one in the showroom so I have left it for now.


Dropped of early with strict instructions not to wash, do not do any emissions updates (if any are due, which I don't think there are) and was all done by when I needed to collect it.

Other positives from my first 21k miles (ish) are the MPG on average is reading 45.4 MPG - this is real world about 41 which is pretty impressive but I do a lot of straightforward A road journeys.

The tyres are measuring just over half worn on the rears and less than half worn on the front, giving circa 35k for the rears estimated and 60k on the fronts - shame as these tyres are not the best, but when they are done on the rear i'll swap the whole set.

Other than that a pretty uneventful but pleasant 21k.

I still like the car and now I understand it a bit more as a super fast family wagon it makes more sense, it hasn't itched the scratch for a really fast car as there is not enough drama but by eck its a good motor and has bedded in really well in the last 5k.

I now have Bimmercode and an adaptor and have tweaked a few annoying things which have made me even happier with the interior and functionality.

Still a happy customer and would rate the car as an 8/10.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

One Year On

So its been 12 months and a few days since collecting the car -

Nothing major to report but list some musings below.

25638 Miles, slightly less than planned but this is owing to greater use of the wifes car and my motorbike.

The car has been excellent and has cost nothing above usual routine servicing (note I am still getting the oil changed every 10k)

Tyre wear of the bridgerocks is very good and it looks like it will be high 30’s before they need replacing on the rear and nearly 60k on the front, but I do hate these tyres and feel they don't flatter the cars true ability.

Warranty work has extended to a new gear selector only, nothing else to date.

Best feature(s) on the car –
Digi Dash and heated steering wheel huge power and the electric towbar

Mods
Bespoke Coding using VGate
Car Play Added
Sunglasses Holder

Worse Feature –
Some cheaper plastics are becoming more noticeable as I spend forever in the cabin the shiny steering wheel seems to be a permanent feature despite however hard I try to shake it.

It has averaged 41mpg real world, which equates to 625 gallons of fuel or about £3650 on fuel which is perfectly reasonable.

At an average of 44 mph over the total, this has meant I have spent 24 and a quarter days sat in the car driving – that’s a depressing figure.


So a fairly uneventful year, the Gtechniq was and is still worth it as it allows me to be slack with taking care of the car as per the norm for me.

It has suffered a small dint, a minor gouge to a wheel and now a windscreen, but I cant grumble that's just life.

Now I have re positioned this car in my mind as a very fast competent dad motor, not a fun toy it is fulfilling my expectations 100% with holidays and towing sorted its a really excellent car.

here's to the next 5 years with it!

----------------------------------------------
Jan 2019 Update

Well time flies when you are having "fun"

Since my last update the car now sits on 32500 miles (in 16 months and 4 days and has just had its third oil change at my reputable independent, once again all genuine BMW parts and it feels a lot better for it.

Tyres still have life in them at this mileage but not too much (maybe another 3k)

The car was damaged in September but is all back together and as good as new- They did do a good job.

More interestingly I had some "spare money" and so fitted the ACS springs at the weekend and adjusted the headlights etc.

It has genuinely transformed the car, I am so very pleased I did this,

So 16 months in, the car is still great, It continues to excel at everything I throw at it and still very much enjoy it.

Any questions please ask.

All the best

Alex

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Second Service and 42 267 mile update

So as is the norm now, a bit of an update -

The car went in the week before last for its second service at 42 267 miles in about 19 and a half months, which comprised all filters and a vehicle inspection - Pleased to report that all was ok (mostly) the bill - Over £600 if you paid on the day but I have a dealership service pack (not the BMW one) which reduced the actual cost to nearer £350 and was pre paid for.

This was its 4th oil service since purchase and combined with running millers is as smooth as a smooth thing with extra smooth.

Things I asked them to check on were the steering wheel heating and leather as the leather looked like it had odd wear on the top (not where you hold it) and the heating was uneven - Result was brand new steering wheel fitted FOC as there was a fault on the heating circuit.

I also was getting battery discharge notices regardless of the dashcam being plugged in or not - Result was a dead cell in the batter so a new battery fitted and coded FOC.

Happy customer.

As a result of the warranty work they had to keep the car over night and they lent me a 340I saloon in bog spec - it lacked the nice bits on my car (all of them it would appear) but that engine is a PEACH! if I only did half the mileage I would have had the 340I in an instant, so smooth and super super fast, I reckon it was about 40% less efficient than my 335 over the same journeys for a day and a bit but was good for a giggle - Very pleased to have my car back though.

So there we go, good dealer service as usual from cooper Colchester and no real problems to report at 42k in

Any questions - Do shout

on to the next million miles.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oil Change 51k miles

Did this one myself, cost of £95 for genuine oil and filter. Possibly the easiest oil change done ever took about 25 minutes!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Steering rack repair 52k

Odd noises from the front - Suspected usual adaptive shock issue, but BMW identify Steering rack fault, and do the new Thrust EPS repair. So far so good :-)

I had a new G31 estate as a courtesy car in 320d XD format as a courtesy car, it was excellent i do have to say, couple of niggles but a very worthy upgrade.

next service due in 7k at 64k!

This car continues to grow on me, I have a steinbauer box to fit in the next few months when time allows :-)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So, 60 000 mile update.

Just before CV19 halted everything the car had reached 60K miles, and really had begun to feel bedded in.

I have had one front shock replaced under warranty and discussions are ongoing with doing the other side given how close to the cut off I am with the 62k mile minimum to replace both.

It doesn't need its 3rd BMW service until 63000 miles which is consistent with me getting 21k miles between BMW services, but the oil is still changed about every 10-11k.

Now it reached the 60k mile mark I decided to also change the gerbox oil, I do not subscribe to leaving gearbox oil for life and 60k miles is about right when you look at the ZF Guidance.

I procured the ZF genuine kit and oil from Autodoc for £166 which was a good price and it took me, without a lift or very tall axle stands about 2 hours of messing about but the results are pleasing.

No photos of doing the work as that's detailed in many youtube videos but some photos of the aftermath so to speak and equipment needed.

Note i got 4.5 litres out (ish) and struggle to get the same back in but managed in the end by tipping the car away from the fill side to allow it to fill up and by running through the gears a few times.

The Box with the sump and 7 litres of oil, new bolts and fill plug.



Tools you need (impact driver not required and ONLY FOR UNDOING THE SUMP BOLTS) New bolts are only 12nm as its a plastic sump.





New 500ml syringe - Worked well to be fair and only £10



Old 5l screen wash bottle for confirming volume removed from gearbox.



New ZF Fluid is green



Old oil was not completley toast but toast enough for sure.



Sludge traps had worked well, slight silvery paste on both but nothing to be too concerned about, I have to remember this is a hard working gear box



Yes I ran out of gloves and no I cant get any on amazon...



Remember to tip up the sump into your pan as the filter is filled with oil too, and here you can see the film on the larger filters too - looking like silver paste!



And down here is the filter element, I might when I can be bothered, cut it open and inspect the filter as it looks like it is post fitted into the sump, but today was not the day to be arsed...



Always helpful to have a big old barrel to keep old oil in.



I stuck to to the instructions most of the way but as I cant get a 100% level drive, I focused on getting back in 4.5l as a priority, and it seems good.

I acknowledge this is best done on a proper lift but it is a straight forward job for a competent DIYer (helps if your skinnier to get under the car or can stick it on 4 tall jack stands.

Note - The under tray comes of easy, also best to remove the bracket on the side of the gear box but I didn't bother as my 8mm allen key could get in a ok and with an extender bar on it worked well.

Outcome... Nice smooth shifts again and a peace of mind, it's probably psychosomatic but it feels like its no longer spinning in porridge, but nice new fluid. its similar to the feeling after the old DSG was changed every 40k miles.

Ill do it again at 100k but might pay someone else to do it who has a lift. especially as in September its getting the Steinbauer box

Total cost - £166 kit - + £10 syringe and some skin of my knuckles!

Any questions please ask.


------------------------------------

July 2020 - 62k miles -

New conti Sport contact 6 fitted - Cost £627 - Very impressive.

-------------------------------------
July 2020 - 3rd BMW Service

6th oil change in total now.

Been in for Minor Service - Oil, and cabin filter plus brake fluid

Reported front disks and pads low - Wanted no change from £800 I have politely declined and ordered the bits from Autodoc for £380.

All still going very well, this engine is nicely bedded in now and goes like a bloody rocket.

Hope everyone is keeping well.

-------------------------------------------

Three year update - MOT and End of Warranty Check

So, late update but still thought I would post a 3 year end of warranty update.

63K miles or there abouts, circa 10k less than planned mostly because of 3 months of working from home.

3 years old 2nd September, MOT - Nothing to report except it was free because either they really like me or, it was free on my service plan, either way bit of a result.

Secondly the end of warranty check picked up a minor battery fault explained by my dashcam.

The car on the whole has been excellent over the three years, I have another three to go with it. I have chosen not to take on the BMW warranty as over 60k miles it gets silly expensive.

So warranty claims over the three years extend to

1 - Steering wheel (leather failure)
2 - Gear stick (got a bit floppy) but honestly I think they all do that.
3 - Drop links and roll bars (to aid diagnosis of knocking front)
4 - Steering rack fix - (Also to aid diagnosis of knocking front)
5 - Two front adaptive shocks due to knocking (I had over 60k on the car when claimed so both were eventually replaced.)
6 - Battery - Again to try and fix a low battery warning but it was my dash cam draining it!
7 - Rear wheel replaced due to minor corrosion.

Honestly other than the shocks, the others whilst irritating are me being super super fussy and BMW being willing to stick most things through warranty.

Does this detract from the ownership, not really, all have been dealt with free courtesy cars, and mostly whilst in for servicing etc etc so cant really complain.

Well on to another 70k miles (CV19) dependant of course!

Stay safe and well all.

[dopper99]

Very nice, congrats on your new car.

[isleaiw1]

Congrats on new car. I fetched my car prepped and spent the day driving it ����

[RoShambolt]

Congrats on the car, looks very nice, I slightly regret getting an F30 rather than a F31, the boot seems to be pretty useless. Whats the digital cockpit like? Looks modern now in the cluster.

I went to town with the Gtechniq stuff too after I collected it. Wanted something that would last a long time with minimal maintenance. I went Crystal Serum light with EXO v3 over the top. I must say after years with carnuba wax it is my new favourite. It outperforms wax in quite a few areas. Although it was very laborious to apply, with a few risks attached. Three days start to finish for the complete detail for the combo I chose, that included a full decontamination and finishing polish prior. I have been blown away by the results on the tanzanite.

The beading is insane. I use a dewalt leaf blower to dry it now!

The gtechniq is very very good, but I have had a few weird issues with it. Its not infallible. Plus their tyre dressing disappears at the slightest damp breeze.

[454697819]

Originally Posted by RoShambolt

Congrats on the car, looks very nice, I slightly regret getting an F30 rather than a F31, the boot seems to be pretty useless. Whats the digital cockpit like? Looks modern now in the cluster.

I went to town with the Gtechniq stuff too after I collected it. Wanted something that would last a long time with minimal maintenance. I went Crystal Serum light with EXO v3 over the top. I must say after years with carnuba wax it is my new favourite. It outperforms wax in quite a few areas. Although it was very laborious to apply, with a few risks attached. Three days start to finish for the complete detail for the combo I chose, that included a full decontamination and finishing polish prior. I have been blown away by the results on the tanzanite.

The beading is insane. I use a dewalt leaf blower to dry it now!

The gtechniq is very very good, but I have had a few weird issues with it. Its not infallible. Plus their tyre dressing disappears at the slightest damp breeze.

The Digital Dash is very comfortable to look at and worth the extra dosh, why it ins't standard I don't know, The OH's 2015 308 has a digi dash. Not sure about the orange hue at night but not driven it that much yet to compare.

the boot on this F31 is pretty good actually, I could fit in it when wiring in the dash can yesterday and Im not a small bloke.

I'm very pleased this morning with the Gtechniq products, beading nicely in the light rain.

[454697819]

Added 100 mile update

[225]

Cracking car. I had serum light and exo on mine and have just used gwash on it since, stillnlooks great although I do use sonax or other water repealnt every now and then as well.

Shadowline looks great but that means every bugger will now have black grilles!

[simon.]

Headlights - Iconic Adapative - Very very clever but why you need to press a button to activate the active part I don't understand

You can't use them if driving abroad hence the need for a switch.

Nice car btw

[RoShambolt]

Originally Posted by 454697819

The Digital Dash is very comfortable to look at and worth the extra dosh, why it ins't standard I don't know, The OH's 2015 308 has a digi dash. Not sure about the orange hue at night but not driven it that much yet to compare.

the boot on this F31 is pretty good actually, I could fit in it when wiring in the dash can yesterday and Im not a small bloke.

I'm very pleased this morning with the Gtechniq products, beading nicely in the light rain.

All sounds good, Saving grace is I have HUD so don't have to look at the dated cluster!, would definitely had added the LCD dash had it been an option when I ordered.

What dash cam you go for? I hard wired a D650s 2ch with cellink B battery. It was very easy with the BMW fuse board being so easy to access in the boot.

I read your update about the LTE being switched by ignition, would be handy for the cloud functionality of a dash cam. Maybe it's something that could be bypassed/coded?.

[454697819]

Originally Posted by RoShambolt

All sounds good, Saving grace is I have HUD so don't have to look at the dated cluster!, would definitely had added the LCD dash had it been an option when I ordered.

What dash cam you go for? I hard wired a D650s 2ch with cellink B battery. It was very easy with the BMW fuse board being so easy to access in the boot.

I read your update about the LTE being switched by ignition, would be handy for the cloud functionality of a dash cam. Maybe it's something that could be bypassed/coded?.

Not a fan of HUD, I find my contact lenses go funny when looking through something like the screen.
I have the DR650 2ch also, albeit just one channel is up and running at the moment.

Its possible to perhaps code it to be on all the time but depends which live its fed from on the circuits. Instead i have bought a 12gb 3 simcard and a 4g 12v Router for the car that will be wired into the same multisafer unit - ergo it will be on all the time the camera is - this should allow cloud access when needed.

The onward subscription of LTE is a tad cheeky too, at £11 a month for 1gb!

Tempted to open the box and see if the sim card really is "fixed" or not.

still nice first world problems to have.

[B58_Touring]

Lovely looking car you have there, gives me a good idea of what mine will look like when I eventually get the thing!

Originally Posted by RoShambolt

Congrats on the car, looks very nice, I slightly regret getting an F30 rather than a F31, the boot seems to be pretty useless.

I had this same issue, was a month away from collecting my f30 but was informed there was a production delay. I took the opportunity to change it to an f31 as I had concerns about the boot but Ive now got the longest wait for an order in the history of car orders! Hoping to keep this one a while though so worth the wait

[RoShambolt]

Originally Posted by 454697819

Not a fan of HUD, I find my contact lenses go funny when looking through something like the screen.
I have the DR650 2ch also, albeit just one channel is up and running at the moment.

Its possible to perhaps code it to be on all the time but depends which live its fed from on the circuits. Instead i have bought a 12gb 3 simcard and a 4g 12v Router for the car that will be wired into the same multisafer unit - ergo it will be on all the time the camera is - this should allow cloud access when needed.

The onward subscription of LTE is a tad cheeky too, at £11 a month for 1gb!

Tempted to open the box and see if the sim card really is "fixed" or not.

still nice first world problems to have.

I totally know what you mean, I don't wear glasses and if a car with DRL LEDs approaches it gives a halo effect around the lights like double vision. It's minor and just down to the screen coating for the HUD I guess, it by no means puts me off it.

£11 a month for a data only 1 Gb plan?Is that with BMW?They have us over a barrel with some of this stuff.

[RoShambolt]

Originally Posted by JonBk

Lovely looking car you have there, gives me a good idea of what mine will look like when I eventually get the thing!



I had this same issue, was a month away from collecting my f30 but was informed there was a production delay. I took the opportunity to change it to an f31 as I had concerns about the boot but Ive now got the longest wait for an order in the history of car orders! Hoping to keep this one a while though so worth the wait

I should have got a F31 because of the sports I do, but I went for style over practicality, one last time. When/if the kids happen I might not have much choice! As wagons go they still look pretty slick.

[454697819]

500 ish mile update added.

[goodbyalfa]

Interesting comments re the lim function. I regularly drive in areas controlled by av speed cameras with a fair bit of traffic and I find this to be one of the most useful functions in the car. Set the limiter to 73 and you can largely ignore the speedo and concentrate on the traffic. If the speed varies to say 60, two firm clicks on the down wheel and you are set again. Great feature once you are used to it. Makes driving in those conditions far more relaxing.

[454697819]

Originally Posted by goodbyalfa

Interesting comments re the lim function. I regularly drive in areas controlled by av speed cameras with a fair bit of traffic and I find this to be one of the most useful functions in the car. Set the limiter to 73 and you can largely ignore the speedo and concentrate on the traffic. If the speed varies to say 60, two firm clicks on the down wheel and you are set again. Great feature once you are used to it. Makes driving in those conditions far more relaxing.

To be honest, now I have had it a bit longer, I'm getting used to the cruise now and the need for adaptive is diminishing - ill still tick the box next time though :-)

[454697819]

1300 mile update added to original thread.

[454697819]

3000 mile update added -

[Ti Rich]

If yours is like mine you may find the actual mpg is about 10% less than the on board computers says. mine was saying 45mpg average but when i worked it out it is 40mpg.

Corrected this via the hidden menu.............now reads accurate.

Re other comments I totally agree the adaptive lights are stunning.

[creepy coupe]

Perfect colour combo IMO. Can't make out the shadow option apart from the black mirror caps?

[McBeemer]

Originally Posted by Ti Rich

If yours is like mine you may find the actual mpg is about 10% less than the on board computers says. mine was saying 45mpg average but when i worked it out it is 40mpg.

Corrected this via the hidden menu.............now reads accurate.

Re other comments I totally agree the adaptive lights are stunning.

How do you do this adjustment please?

I have a similar vehicle too, which has now done 1400 miles & would like the computer to read more accurately.

[JustChris]

Originally Posted by McBeemer

How do you do this adjustment please?

I have a similar vehicle too, which has now done 1400 miles & would like the computer to read more accurately.

I don't think you can but I'm keen to see the solution too.

Cracking write up thread OP. Good work.