Which 4 Series Should I Go For?

[cerb4.5lee]

silent ninja said:

I had an F Type over the weekend. That was a sports car. It was nimble, lively and sounded glorious.

I love the F Type shape and I think they sound nice but because of the weight of them and the fact that nearly all of them are an auto I see them more of a cruiser/GT type of car rather than a sports car.

[silent ninja]

cerb4.5lee said:

I love the F Type shape and I think they sound nice but because of the weight of them and the fact that nearly all of them are an auto I see them more of a cruiser/GT type of car rather than a sports car.

Can't argue, definitely soaks up bumps well compared to a lot of stiffened sport suspension cars out there. It's a sports car because of it's performance, handling and small yet wide stance. The V6 is absolutely perfect for real road usage, as opposed to most sports cars that are suited to a track and dont translate well to the road.

[cerb4.5lee]

silent ninja said:

cerb4.5lee said:

I love the F Type shape and I think they sound nice but because of the weight of them and the fact that nearly all of them are an auto I see them more of a cruiser/GT type of car rather than a sports car.

Can't argue, definitely soaks up bumps well compared to a lot of stiffened sport suspension cars out there. It's a sports car because of it's performance, handling and small yet wide stance. The V6 is absolutely perfect for real road usage, as opposed to most sports cars that are suited to a track and dont translate well to the road.

Yes and you make a very good point, yet I would always lean towards the V8 model over the V6 purely for it's added noise and performance but I totally get that for road use the V6 is the sweet spot for sure.

The F Type is such a gorgeous shape and its certainly in a different league in terms of looks when compared to a BMW certainly.

[Vroomer]

silent ninja said:

As a soon to be 420d Gran Coupe owner, I'd hardly say the badge pulled me. In fact, I had to overlook the stigma associated with the badge. BMW owners have a certain 'image' which I didn't think would suit me. The badge was a negative.

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[JNW1]

Vroomer said:

silent ninja said:

As a soon to be 420d Gran Coupe owner, I'd hardly say the badge pulled me. In fact, I had to overlook the stigma associated with the badge. BMW owners have a certain 'image' which I didn't think would suit me. The badge was a negative.

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Assume he means some people still think all BMW drivers are arrogant and aggressive and behave as if they own the road; however, the ones who were like that now tend to be found behind the wheel of an Audi in my experience!

[mr_fibuli]

apotts said:

Let me help:

The BMW 420d xDrive M Sport Coupe Automatic
Spritmonitor MPG = 44
Total Annual Fuel Cost = £2169
Amount I would pay, annually, to not drive a 20d = £1,500
Total: £3669

Excellent man maths!

Mine works like this - A 320d cost me £75 a fortnight to fill up. My 235i now costs me £45 a week.

So by ignoring the large drop in fuel prices, and rounding all the figures massively in favour of the petrol car, I've concluded that it is only costing me £30 a month extra to not drive a tractor!

[Audidodat]

I bought a 320d last year when I didn't know how many miles a new job would involve. As it turns out, it wasn't many! Looking at the lease deals available on the bigger engined 3s and 4s, there's no way I'd have settled for the 320 if I'd known then what I do now. Nothing wrong with it, drives very nicely, brilliant gearbox, no faults in 1 year and 17k miles. Just not quite peppy enough.

[silent ninja]

JNW1 said:

Vroomer said:

silent ninja said:

As a soon to be 420d Gran Coupe owner, I'd hardly say the badge pulled me. In fact, I had to overlook the stigma associated with the badge. BMW owners have a certain 'image' which I didn't think would suit me. The badge was a negative.

??????????????

Assume he means some people still think all BMW drivers are arrogant and aggressive and behave as if they own the road; however, the ones who were like that now tend to be found behind the wheel of an Audi in my experience!

Well sort of. Also boy racers. There is a stigma behind the BMW badge but I liked the 4GC so much I got it anyway. No regrets. I'll have my car in about 6 weeks

Edited by silent ninja on Monday 1st February 19:10

[nickfrog]

qwerty88 said:

Well, I have read the 0-62mph in the 4WD is quicker, not that this will be a major factor in everyday use! I also drive on country roads a fair bit and in the winter, the 4WD could prove handy, not that it snows a lot in the UK.

Good as 4wd is not going to help you much - if anything it may help you start (on the flat) but not stop then, sadly. Winter tyres on BMW RWD seems like a smarter solution - isn't there a 330d RWD that is quite aggressively priced either discounted or leased ? Could be a good bet in your situation.

[qwerty88]

nickfrog said:

Good as 4wd is not going to help you much - if anything it may help you start (on the flat) but not stop then, sadly. Winter tyres on BMW RWD seems like a smarter solution - isn't there a 330d RWD that is quite aggressively priced either discounted or leased ? Could be a good bet in your situation.

I have my heart set on a 4 Series! I'm not going to know for another 1-2 months if I will be getting a car allowance or not (annoyingly) so I have some time to decide which variant I want. I'm also hoping that in that time perhaps the prices will drop a little on certain variants in light of the 440i being released.

[JNW1]

qwerty88 said:

I have my heart set on a 4 Series! I'm not going to know for another 1-2 months if I will be getting a car allowance or not (annoyingly) so I have some time to decide which variant I want. I'm also hoping that in that time perhaps the prices will drop a little on certain variants in light of the 440i being released.

Still think a 440i is your car if budget permits; in reality it won't be much worse than a 435d in terms of fuel consumption (2 or 3 mpg would be my guess) but it will knock all the oil burners and 4-pot petrols into a cocked hat when it comes to noise and refinement....

[apotts]

JNW1 said:

Still think a 440i is your car if budget permits; in reality it won't be much worse than a 435d in terms of fuel consumption (2 or 3 mpg would be my guess)

Why not use the average data at Spritmonitor? Plenty of users, so a decent sample.

Model: Average / best (mpg)

335d: 38.9 / 43.0
435d: 35.2 / 40.9

340i: 31.5 / 35.0

335i: 28.3 / 33.1
435i: 28.1 / 35.5

In essence, I agree though. The 40i has to be a better bet than the 35d, especially in a "sportier" application. In a barge I much prefer the 35d to the 35i, but it will be interesting to see how the 540i will drive.

[JMBMWM5]

I have the LCI M3, but can't really us it to get any real driving pleasure were i am, to many plod hiding in lay-bys with cameras.
I have just specced up the 4GC XDrive 35D M Sport with individual , it will be a better all rounder IMO.

Edited by JMBMWM5 on Sunday 7th February 10:46

[silent ninja]

Is the adaptive m sport suspension worth it over the normal m sport suspension? My only experience of the M Sport suspension is in a 1 series and it's tiny bit too firm and crashy in my opinion. Does the 4 series fair any better?

[JNW1]

silent ninja said:

Is the adaptive m sport suspension worth it over the normal m sport suspension? My only experience of the M Sport suspension is in a 1 series and it's tiny bit too firm and crashy in my opinion. Does the 4 series fair any better?

Might seem an obvious response but I'd say try to get an extended test drive in the model you're looking to buy before placing an order. The reason I say that is it seems that BMW have been tinkering with the suspension settings and from what I understand post-LCI versions of the X-Drive 3-Series are now much less soft and floaty than was the case with the pre-LCI cars. I realise you're looking at a 4-Series but from what I read on F30 post it sounds like some of the same changes have quietly found their way onto the 4-Series as well; for example, a chap on there says the latest 435d's are much firmer than cars going back a year or 18 months. I suspect the changes might be less significant on the RWD drive cars but it seems clear that BMW have been altering things without necessarily publicising what they're doing so an extended test drive to make up your own mind would seem to be the way to go. If that's not possible in the model you're after then personally I'd play safe and spec adaptive suspension; not exactly an expensive option in the context of the total cost of the car and if you're worried about ride quality the comfort setting might be nice to have on poor roads!

[silent ninja]

JNW1 said:

Might seem an obvious response but I'd say try to get an extended test drive in the model you're looking to buy before placing an order. The reason I say that is it seems that BMW have been tinkering with the suspension settings and from what I understand post-LCI versions of the X-Drive 3-Series are now much less soft and floaty than was the case with the pre-LCI cars. I realise you're looking at a 4-Series but from what I read on F30 post it sounds like some of the same changes have quietly found their way onto the 4-Series as well; for example, a chap on there says the latest 435d's are much firmer than cars going back a year or 18 months. I suspect the changes might be less significant on the RWD drive cars but it seems clear that BMW have been altering things without necessarily publicising what they're doing so an extended test drive to make up your own mind would seem to be the way to go. If that's not possible in the model you're after then personally I'd play safe and spec adaptive suspension; not exactly an expensive option in the context of the total cost of the car and if you're worried about ride quality the comfort setting might be nice to have on poor roads!

Thanks for the detailed response.

[bad company]

I have 335d X-drive which is fantastic. I can't understand why anybody would consider a smaller engine for similar money.

[JNW1]

bad company said:

I have 335d X-drive which is fantastic. I can't understand why anybody would consider a smaller engine for similar money.

I'd have thought a 35d would be more expensive than (say) a 20d to buy or lease/PCP but happy to be proved wrong; however, little doubt that a 20d will give better mpg and a longer range and that may be a consideration for a high mileage driver? The 35d certainly offers more performance and superior refinement but if that's what you're after I think the N58 petrol (the 40i) is now the pick of the engine range (and I say that as the owner of an F31 335d!).

[JMBMWM5]

bad company said:

I have 335d X-drive which is fantastic. I can't understand why anybody would consider a smaller engine for similar money.

Hi whats the economy like?, I have the 4GT 35D M Sport on order with individual, should be here April time, thanks

[JNW1]

JMBMWM5 said:

i whats the economy like?, I have the 4GT 35D M Sport on order with individual, should be here April time, thanks

Measured the old fashioned way over 23k miles I've averaged just under 39mpg in my F31 335d; the trip computer says just over 41 but it's telling porkies!