[Joopster]

Don't get me wrong, I love my 335i. But I find the brakes in my F30 to be soft, spongy/mushy, and lacking in feel... not the most enjoyable experience at stop signs or traffic lights.

Just came back from Florida. Rented a Chevy Cruze while I was there. All I want to say is that brake feel in the Cruze puts the F30 to shame: I found the brake pedal in the Cruze to be firm, responsive, and not in the least bit spongy.

Anyway, just an observation I wanted to share.

(By the way, the Cruze is a great little car...handled quite well on Florida roads and it made for a very enjoyable ride throughout my trip. Second time I rent this car...very pleased!)

[Who?]

My friend has a cruze, not great

[Cyberdemon]

Personally I can't stand cars with a very firm pedal. I like it to be softer and easier to modulate, has very little do to with the actual braking capabilities. I test drove a co-workers brand new CTS-V a few weeks ago and even with the gargantuan brakes, the pedal was very soft.

Though I had a Cruze RS rental for a week and was pretty impressed with the little car overall, felt real peppy with the 1.4 Turbo.

[OC40]

Enterprise tried to put my fiancé in a cruze while her accord was in for service. We walked back in and traded it for a civic. We did not like the civic, but it was far better than the cruze.

[Frogman]

I happened to rent a Cruze (Avis) last week on a day trip to Phoenix.

At first I thought; hey, not too bad. The brakes were firm, but I didn't think they had much feel or feedback. Just normal Chevy sticky brakes.

OTOH, I love the brakes on my 328i. They modulate well and have a really good solid feel to them.

Your brakes shouldn't be soft or spongy. Maybe a little air in the lines? Have your dealer check them out.

[DarkTrigger]

The break feel doesn't have much to do with the actual breaking. If you notice, each brand has a particular break feel (I personally like the BMW break feel and hate the Infiniti). The f30 break feel doesn't feel as good as my z4, but it's certainly no slouch.

[wayman519]

Originally Posted by DarkTrigger

The break feel doesn't have much to do with the actual breaking. If you notice, each brand has a particular break feel (I personally like the BMW break feel and hate the Infiniti). The f30 break feel doesn't feel as good as my z4, but it's certainly no slouch.

+1

The f30 has the light brake feel for comfort and control like the steering. But its response is classic BMW immediacy like the throttle in sport mode.

[BMWforLife]

brake feel is a personal preference really, they are after all daily driver cars..come on.

its not an indy car. the “feel” of the pedal does not translate to the performance really. its 95% mental.

put a chevy cruze and an f30 next to each other and the f30 probably will stop sooner (and probably weighs more than the cruze)

[tdizzle]

Originally Posted by wayman519

+1

The f30 has the light brake feel for comfort and control like the steering. But its response is classic BMW immediacy like the throttle in sport mode.

Drive a 4 wheel drive Ford truck and compare the brakes... The F30 feels like a super car where you barely tap the brakes and the car haults in comparison.

[justinnum1]

The brake pedal feel sucks, e90 was much better. but the car will stop when you need it to.

[Mahzari]

Originally Posted by justinnum1

The brake pedal feel sucks, e90 was much better. but the car will stop when you need it to.

+1

/endthread

[CirrusSR22]

Originally Posted by BMWforLife

brake feel is a personal preference really, they are after all daily driver cars..come on.

its not an indy car. the “feel” of the pedal does not translate to the performance really. its 95% mental.

put a chevy cruze and an f30 next to each other and the f30 probably will stop sooner (and probably weighs more than the cruze)

Car and Driver's data says the Cruze stops shorter than the 328i. 172' vs 167'. Their 335i test was 164'

[batislav]

Using motortrend numbers found with google the f30 335i has a braking distance of about 10ft less than the cruze (60-0) and weighs about 400lbs more.

[DarkTrigger]

Not to mention braking in the cruze in the rain must suck. BMW has a patented water wicking action to make for a very strong wet breaking performance.

[MaX PL]

the cruze is not a bad car as i had one as a rental too.

visibility in the thing is horrendous though so i could never purchase one.

[Jamesons Viggen]

The MSport pads help with braking confidence though they are very dusty. F30 Sports and bases I drove felt like more pedal force was required before slowing down.

[Meeni]

I do not like on-off brake that are found on most econobox. They trick you into thinking they have good brake by overbraking at all times. I prefer to have more control.

[Michael Schott]

Originally Posted by CirrusSR22

Car and Driver's data says the Cruze stops shorter than the 328i. 172' vs 167'. Their 335i test was 164'

Strictly due to the choice of tires. I don't know what the Cruze wears but the 335i they tested used more aggressive tires while the 328 used low rolling resistance tires.

[Jamesons Viggen]

Originally Posted by Michael Schott

Strictly due to the choice of tires. I don't know what the Cruze wears but the 335i they tested used more aggressive tires while the 328 used low rolling resistance tires.

This.

Tires are often mis-looked as single handedly the most affecting aspect to braking performance. Often, more important than the braking hardware themselves.

[Vector Pilot]

Compared to other brands, F30 brakes are very soft.
Highest Regards

[wayman519]

Originally Posted by Meeni

I do not like on-off brake that are found on most econobox. They trick you into thinking they have good brake by overbraking at all times. I prefer to have more control.

I agree, and thats what is misunderstood here. For good brakes in a luxury car, they need to be both linear for comfort and exponential for safety. The f30 does both quite well based on pedal input. Control is the magic word here.

[BMWforLife]

Originally Posted by CirrusSR22

Car and Driver's data says the Cruze stops shorter than the 328i. 172' vs 167'. Their 335i test was 164'

well there ya go. 335i stops sooner.