[bavarianride]

Originally Posted by tturedraider

If you decide on an F30 definitely go for an M Sport 340i.

How is your experience with F30 B58? Do u feel the suspension a bit sport compared to your previous bimmer? How about lift/bounce from road imperfection?

And have u compared F30 B58 vs G20 B58? If so what are your thoughts of the differences between those 2?

[tturedraider]

Originally Posted by bavarianride

How is your experience with F30 B58? Do u feel the suspension a bit sport compared to your previous bimmer? How about lift/bounce from road imperfection?

And have u compared F30 B58 vs G20 B58? If so what are your thoughts of the differences between those 2?

I have the static 704 M Sport suspension and I like it just fine. Maybe I’m not as hardcore of an enthusiast as some, but I haven’t felt the suspension is bouncy or soft at all. My E90 330i had the sport suspension and the LCI F30 sport suspension seems quite comparable to me.

Not surprisingly the B58 feels boosted compared to my naturally aspirated N52, but I like it. However, the M340i B58 is in another league. I kind of like the “old school” simplicity of the F30 and I really wanted to own one, but I’ll eventually have an M340i.

[bavarianride]

Originally Posted by tturedraider

I kind of like the “old school” simplicity of the F30 and I really wanted to own one, but I’ll eventually have an M340i.

Yeah F30 340i is pretty cool, but G20 M340i is really something different.

I am in a G20 330i right now but won't mind getting into a LCI M340i.

[shoman24v]

Originally Posted by JoeyBananaz18

I think for me it's a matter of seeing if I can get away with just a sedan. And if I can I'd like to try for a 340. And if I can do that, I'd love to see if I can get a manual. But if the wife isn't on board, I'd still be happy with an F31, even if that means it's an auto.

Have you driven a BMW lately with the ZF 8 speed transmission? They are not like the old autos. I've been driving manual BMW's all my life (E36, E39 Touring, E46) and my F30 is my first auto car. These transmissions are the best in the industry. If you put the car in sport and the transmission in sport, the shifts are pretty impressive. Mimics a manual car very well too. I don't miss the manual transmission at all, and my wife can drive it. Not to mention, the manual cars kind of don't get the best reviews in terms of feel. These autos aren't slower than manuals like they used to be in the generations you owned. At this point, you're buying a manual because you like physically shifting the gears, not because it's actually better.

[JoeyBananaz18]

Originally Posted by shoman24v

Have you driven a BMW lately with the ZF 8 speed transmission? They are not like the old autos. I've been driving manual BMW's all my life (E36, E39 Touring, E46) and my F30 is my first auto car. These transmissions are the best in the industry. If you put the car in sport and the transmission in sport, the shifts are pretty impressive. Mimics a manual car very well too. I don't miss the manual transmission at all, and my wife can drive it. Not to mention, the manual cars kind of don't get the best reviews in terms of feel. These autos aren't slower than manuals like they used to be in the generations you owned. At this point, you're buying a manual because you like physically shifting the gears, not because it's actually better.

Yes but not in a bmw form. Well sorta. I currently have a 2017 clubman S All4, so similar power (I think) to a 328 xdrive. It's great but I don't have paddles on mine so I feel like I don't get the full experience. Was going to retrofit them but I decided not to put any money into it when I realized it was getting to be too snug for the four of us.

[bavarianride]

Originally Posted by shoman24v

Have you driven a BMW lately with the ZF 8 speed transmission? They are not like the old autos. I've been driving manual BMW's all my life (E36, E39 Touring, E46) and my F30 is my first auto car. These transmissions are the best in the industry. If you put the car in sport and the transmission in sport, the shifts are pretty impressive. Mimics a manual car very well too. I don't miss the manual transmission at all, and my wife can drive it. Not to mention, the manual cars kind of don't get the best reviews in terms of feel. These autos aren't slower than manuals like they used to be in the generations you owned. At this point, you're buying a manual because you like physically shifting the gears, not because it's actually better.

Correct! I was also MT only till F30 ZF 8AT, and now the same AT in current G20.

The BMW's programming of ZF 8AT enables awesome 0-60 and mpg that MT just cannot match.

[aardate]

Originally Posted by shoman24v

Have you driven a BMW lately with the ZF 8 speed transmission? They are not like the old autos. I've been driving manual BMW's all my life (E36, E39 Touring, E46) and my F30 is my first auto car. These transmissions are the best in the industry. If you put the car in sport and the transmission in sport, the shifts are pretty impressive. Mimics a manual car very well too. I don't miss the manual transmission at all, and my wife can drive it. Not to mention, the manual cars kind of don't get the best reviews in terms of feel. These autos aren't slower than manuals like they used to be in the generations you owned. At this point, you're buying a manual because you like physically shifting the gears, not because it's actually better.

100% agree with your assessment. The 8speed ZF transmission is amazing, I've wanted a manual car but this transmission is much better in every way. I can still manually shift gears in manual mode and its super responsive and dare I say FUN?

[auburnf30x]

+1 for the perfect nature of the 8 speed ZF. My last two cars had manual modes (including a fake one on a CVT ) that I liked to play around with. I got to where I pretty much used the manual mode on the CVT exclusively, otherwise it felt like a snowmobile. I have tried the shift paddles a couple of times in this car and, for the first time ever, found my performance to be seriously lacking compared to the car's own programming.

I remember my slapstick days with fondness, but the car does a better job at 'fun' than I do.

[bavarianride]

Originally Posted by auburnf30x

I remember my slapstick days with fondness, but the car does a better job at 'fun' than I do.

I think MT makes sense when the car does not have enough power and manual shifting can improve performance and fuel efficiency, but those days are long gone.