BMW 330e ordered...

[Soov330e]

Mine has just piped up asking for an oil service at 5400 miles!!



Any ideas?!

[redrum_g]

bigphil47 said:

Sarge5 said:

I have a 120 mile round trip and charge twice daily, home and work, indicated battery range seems to be dropping all the time but distance driven on electric in terms of miles remains constant as far as I can tell. 5000 miles completed since March now and doors creak like crazy!

Hi Sarge, my drivers door creaks like mad, much earlier in this thread there was a fix - simply apply olive oil to the rubber door seal around the window. It worked for me for a reasonable period of time - I know it is not ideal in a car costing almost £40k. Dropping the window a tiny bit in mine also fixes it confirming that the problem is between the glass and the door seal. Hope this helps. As yet I've not been back to BMW, would be interested to hear from anyone else with this problem.

On the squeaking/creaking door issue. I think i only affects the Msport models with the black trim. Its a know issue. I brough mine back to BMW (Arden BMW in Kent) and the applied a black tape on top of the black door trim where the door seal rubs against the trim when the door is closed. Its a bit of a bodge solution but its not really noticable and you cant see it all all when the door is shut if it is lined up correctly. Speak to BMW to get it sorted.

[Konig]

Ive had my 330e Msport for 9 months now nd covered 29k miles in it. Whilst its a good car, I'm having a few frustrations that others have had on here........
1. the rattly back doors
2. I went to charge it the other day for the first time and found only a 3 pin mains cable is supplied!? I had a Merc c350e before and it had both as standard
3. It sound terrible when first started, rattly from under the car near the exhaust area. Its been in for service and after a few days it was back to the same sound.

[BMW330enut]

jsp56 said:

I like silence. :-)

I think it's the silence of the engine which is making other noises appear more apparent. The 18 or 19" wheels shouldn't make much difference and I have to say mine is very refined having now hit 7000 miles since March.

I have come from a diesel tho so I guess it's what you are used to ?

[Konig]

Jonny2400 said:

Hi Guys, can I ask about the preformace from anyone that has changed from a 520d or 320d. I am due to change my company car 520d and had been planning on the new 530e, but for some reason they don't offer it ... they do offer the 530d thou !!

Anyway my choice is the new 520d or the 330e, obviously the BIK on the 330e is a lot better, however what's putting me off is I had the current 3 series when it was first released, and its due a upgrade soon ... however I do like my power ... so what would u go for the all new 520d M sport or the 330e and is the performance really noticeable, plus does the enhanced performance drop of as your speed increased i.e. 50-70 etc ?

Any advice welcome

Have you looked at the whole life BIK implication of them both? The 330e tax benefit goes significantly in year 2 and 3

[DragonflyTrumpeter]

Konig said:

Have you looked at the whole life BIK implication of them both? The 330e tax benefit goes significantly in year 2 and 3

9% (this year) then 13 & 16% bik. Cheap as chips and if you happen to get fuel as well, a total no brainer.

Now if diesel bik was going the opposite way and creeping down to that level as well?

But no, a 330d is 28% (this year) then 30 & 33% and a slightly higher list price, disregarding grant.

[Konig]

DragonflyTrumpeter said:

9% (this year) then 13 & 16% bik. Cheap as chips and if you happen to get fuel as well, a total no brainer.

Now if diesel bik was going the opposite way and creeping down to that level as well?

But no, a 330d is 28% (this year) then 30 & 33% and a slightly higher list price, disregarding grant.

I thought BMW may have tried to bring the CO2's down on the new model but looking at the 520d its pretty poor to be honest. Still a good saving, but as usual the tax man is doing his best to claw back as much as possible with 78% increase over 3 years!

[jsp56]

I dropped the car back to the dealer and picked up my diesel car and it's really noticeable that the diesel has a nice soothing deep voice, whereas the hybrid has a higher note. I think I'll try and test drive a petrol non-hybrid to see if it sounds the same, and a smaller wheeled one to see how that works out. Thanks!

[DragonflyTrumpeter]

Konig said:

I thought BMW may have tried to bring the CO2's down on the new model but looking at the 520d its pretty poor to be honest. Still a good saving, but as usual the tax man is doing his best to claw back as much as possible with 78% increase over 3 years!

I look at it not as a large increase over 3 years but rather as 3 years of ridiculously cheap motoring, then simply becoming cheap motoring.

Fact is, @ 16% it is still a great deal for what you are driving.

[Robbo17]

Jonny2400 said:

Hi Guys, can I ask about the preformace from anyone that has changed from a 520d or 320d. I am due to change my company car 520d and had been planning on the new 530e, but for some reason they don't offer it ... they do offer the 530d thou !!

Anyway my choice is the new 520d or the 330e, obviously the BIK on the 330e is a lot better, however what's putting me off is I had the current 3 series when it was first released, and its due a upgrade soon ... however I do like my power ... so what would u go for the all new 520d M sport or the 330e and is the performance really noticeable, plus does the enhanced performance drop of as your speed increased i.e. 50-70 etc ?

Any advice welcome

I have just changed from a 320d Msport to the 330e Msport which arrived at the end of April.

Overall the 330e is a far better car and is faster, quieter and just as economical. I have covered 2700 miles so far and averaging 47mpg with 1 charge per day.

Really given the bik advantage and the fact that it's a superior car makes the decision to go for the 330e an easy one to make

[Somebody]

I wonder if this could be fitted retrospectively? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqSzyearbXg

Edited by Somebody on Saturday 13th May 16:08

[Dorsetfella]

Konig said:

Ive had my 330e Msport for 9 months now nd covered 29k miles in it. Whilst its a good car, I'm having a few frustrations that others have had on here........
1. the rattly back doors
2. I went to charge it the other day for the first time and found only a 3 pin mains cable is supplied!? I had a Merc c350e before and it had both as standard
3. It sound terrible when first started, rattly from under the car near the exhaust area. Its been in for service and after a few days it was back to the same sound.

Yes we've got the same problem with our 330e sometimes sounding terrible on start-up. It's an intermittent problem, however now getting more frequent (had the car for over a year & this wasn't an issue for the first six months at least). It sounds as if it is in higher revs, but does them settle down to normal idling. Funnily enough it does it even when it is fully charged - when it would normally start on electric not ICE.

[MaxOverdrive]

Nightine said:

I'm 7500 miles/4 months in now and really enjoy driving the BMW.

I'm averaging over 50mpg and charge overnight when at home. Most of my journeys are 100+ miles one way and finding somewhere to charge at the other end does make a huge difference - best I've done so far is 216 miles at 58mpg starting with a full battery, recharging at the other end and using save mode on way back to get me from motorway to home on battery.

I can just about get through the average speed on M6 Sandbach>Knutsford in full electric which is good.

Brings a whole new challenge to driving but sometimes it is nice just to forget about it all and plant the right foot down!

I recommend zap-map for charging points, polar card free trial (was 6 months but now 3 months and handy for asda charging points) plenty of patience for getting any charging app to work first time and a nice boss that's lets you put type 2 charging cables on expenses!

On a separate note, I spotted at least 3 other 330e's on the M6 today so the club is getting bigger.

That stretch of motorway is great for electric because of stop start traffic and the absurdity long stretch of 50 mph speed limit

So can you charge for free with your Polar card trial? If so it might be worth me looking at when the car finally arrives.

I've not seen many 330e's on the road yet but I'm sure I will as there's plenty of guys here with them and the company I work for, most peeps seem to be going for either Outlanders or 330e's.....can't imagine why

[MaxOverdrive]

jsp56 said:

Hi,

Thanks for your thoughts. I just drove it again and did some more tests.

There is this deep dull rumble all the time. It's there with the gear stick on the left and on the right, and even if I put it in battery save mode. The rumble is there at 20mph and 30mph and at 50 or 60mph, but interestingly it is completely gone when I am reversing into my drive. So it is not a rumble of the engine operating.

I do wonder if it is the sound of the tyres on the road. The 19" wheels are very large and the rubber tyres very thin, so that might explain it. I should mention though - I do have sensitive hearing. I am the person who walks past those "silent" cat scarers in people's gardens with my hands over my ears. So I may well be noticing things that other would not.

It's great to hear different people's experiences of the different wheel sizes. That helps a lot.

Thanks!

Unless you're reversing at speed like in an 80s episode of the Professionals the possible reason for the rumble to not be perceptible is the speed you're then travelling at.

As has been mentioned by others, the wheels and tyres do make a significant difference and lower profile the tyre the more road noise you'll hear. I'd recommend you go with the 17s if choosing the SE model or going with just 18s if going with the M Sport (as this is the minimum size they come with).

Don't let a little road noise put you off what is (in my opinion and possibly yours too) a lovely car to drive. Max E drive all the way for silent electric driving and no ICE scream

[MaxOverdrive]

Konig said:

Ive had my 330e Msport for 9 months now nd covered 29k miles in it. Whilst its a good car, I'm having a few frustrations that others have had on here........
1. the rattly back doors
2. I went to charge it the other day for the first time and found only a 3 pin mains cable is supplied!? I had a Merc c350e before and it had both as standard
3. It sound terrible when first started, rattly from under the car near the exhaust area. Its been in for service and after a few days it was back to the same sound.

If you've only now come to try and charge it after 9 months then I wouldn't worry about buying the type 2 cable - the 330e doesn't charge quick enough to make it that worthwhile charging at charge stations - never mind the sometimes crazy charge fees for up to 16 miles of electric drive.

A mains charge cable is far more useful. I envisage mine getting plenty of use either when at home or at friends / relatives.

Out of interest, what fuel economy have you been getting on average considering you haven't been charging the car?.

[Trabi601]

BMW330enut said:

Robv1 said:

Everyone seems to mention spilt rear folding seats as a must, but why? What do you guys carry in the boot? The only time I can think of where the reduced luggage space might be an issue is if we're traveling on holiday with the kids, and then the split rear folding seats won't be of much use anyway.

I have to fold mine down to get the golf clubs in!

I sometimes work in London, so book a hotel on the outskirts and cycle in. Split role seats a save me using the bike rack.

[Trabi601]

Konig said:

Have you looked at the whole life BIK implication of them both? The 330e tax benefit goes significantly in year 2 and 3

But a 5 is a massive jump in quality and refinement over a 3, so it may be a prove worth paying.

[JonnyVTEC]

Konig said:

I thought BMW may have tried to bring the CO2's down on the new model but looking at the 520d its pretty poor to be honest. Still a good saving, but as usual the tax man is doing his best to claw back as much as possible with 78% increase over 3 years!

They probably didn't have much headroom whilst ensuring'safe' Euro 6 compliance.

[BMW330enut]

Trabi601 said:

But a 5 is a massive jump in quality and refinement over a 3, so it may be a prove worth paying.

Having had both I would disagree. The 5 is no better just bigger. I'm not sure I like the styling of the latest one either, it looks bloated.

[chris56]

BMW330enut said:

Having had both I would disagree. The 5 is no better just bigger. I'm not sure I like the styling of the latest one either, it looks bloated.

Hmm so you have had a G30 5 series - how long did you have it for? Given that they only arrived in the UK in Feb/March this year then you did not keep it long.