BMW M3 Touring
Discussion
Following my previous thread https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&... we’ve been planning a relocation from Dubai back to the UK since last year after nearly 13 years away. Naturally, the "what car?" question was the most important part of the logistics.
The Search During a few scouting trips back to the UK, I started test-driving. I knew I wanted a 3 Series Touring. I’d originally set my heart on an Alpina B3, but they were few and far between and, frankly, very expensive. I eventually test-drove a lovely M340i and was totally smitten, it felt like all the car I could ever need.
Then the dealership asked if I wanted to take the M3 Touring out... and that was my critical mistake.
I’ll go on record: I loved the idea of the M3 Touring, but like many, I wasn't sold on the front end. While it looks better in person, light colours make it a bit too obvious for my taste. The interior is a bit marmite, too; I appreciate the carbon buckets, but I just couldn't see myself living with them daily. However, unlike some, I don’t the big infotainment screen.
Anyway, I figured I had nothing to lose by test-driving it. Big mistake. The car was epic. It warmed me up to the idea immediately, man maths kicked in, and I realized I could about justify the jump over the M340i. The B3, while perfect, just wasn’t going to happen.
The Spec I narrowed it down: I wanted an M3 Touring in a dark colour with the standard M-Sport seats. While still in Dubai, I was busy coordinating the purchase of my wife’s Mini Countryman S All4. Once that was boxed off, I decided to live dangerously and find my own car remotely, too.
After several phone calls, videos, and CarVertical checks, I landed on the one. It was in Lincoln, and I was still in Dubai, moving to North Yorks. It was a low mile, early '24 plate with a great spec, well cared for and PPF. The only downside…..black wheels.
Like many old farts, I like my wheels to be metal-coloured so you can actually see the design and shape. When the dealership mentioned they were refurbing some minor marks, I jumped at the chance and asked, "Would you mind painting them silver?" They were happy to help, and the car went off to a local BMW specialist for a satin silver finish. The sneaky photos they sent looked incredible.
Back to our Dubai exit, we were scheduled for a one-way flight on March 5th. Then, things got interesting thanks to Donald Trump. Between geopolitical tensions and frequent missile alerts, our flight was cancelled. Interceptions, drones and fighter jets became the norm for a few days.
A week later, things calmed down, and we re-booked. At the airport, everything looked smooth until we were halfway through boarding. Suddenly, the process stopped. I checked Flight Radar to see a wall of planes holding over Oman, clearly something afoot.
We eventually pushed back 50 minutes late, only to sit on the taxiway for two hours while missile alerts blared on everyone's phones. We were sweating over the crew's flying hours, convinced the captain would head back to the gate. He actually announced we were likely heading back to disembark... until 10 minutes later, when he said we had one tiny gap to get out. We took it.
We arrived safe and sound in Newcastle and I picked up a VW Multivan hire car (we had a sh*t tonne of luggage!). I purposely booked the drop-off in Lincoln so I could kill two birds with one stone, head over the next day to collect the M3. As expected, I didn’t get a lot of sleep as I dwelled on our departure from Dubai (probably in good time) and the excitement of the new car. Morning broke on March 11th and off I went on a 2hr road trip to Lincoln to collect my new motor. The drive over was pleasant, not too much traffic but ironically the 2 podcasts I chose to listen to were both banging on about potholes – something I became acutely aware of since my relocation (they’re bloody everywhere).
The dealership went out of their way to come and collect me from Lincoln City Centre, took me to their wonderful base (within fantastic surroundings I may add) and to top it off, made me a nice cup of tea! The car was proudly parked right out front along with a nice-looking Defender.
Well, I have waffled on for long enough now, here are some pictures.
I know it’s a massive cliché but it always makes me smile when I see similar cars put to good use right away with a tip run and well, I am no different. With our shipping stuck (probably for eternity) in Jebel Ali port, Dubai – I had a load of shopping to do and subsequently boxes to transport to the tip. Yes, I could have fit these in the Mrs’s countryman but heck, that wouldn’t have looked as cool!
No pictures of the interior yet but it is a bit of a mundane black affair but perfectly comfortable. I do think older BMW’s had a more classy interior and I’d have been all over a tan setup but beggars can’t be choosers.
I’ll update my plans and feedback as I go along, but the first impressions (clouded by the honeymoon period) are inevitably positive. Its without doubt the most complete car I have ever owned by a long shot. Also feels significantly faster than some other fairly potent cars I have had (C63 507 Edition, Jag F Type R, Dodge Charger SRT).
Lastly in terms of the spec list, these are some of them. Forgive me, I don't know if some of this is standard!!
- Black-sapphire metallic
- Leather Merino/schwarz
- M Spots Seats
- M Shadow Line
- BMW Drive Recorder
- BMW Laserlicht
- Park Assist
- High gloss shadow line
- Headlining anthracite
- Driving assistant professional
- Connected Package Professional
Thanks for reading!
The Search During a few scouting trips back to the UK, I started test-driving. I knew I wanted a 3 Series Touring. I’d originally set my heart on an Alpina B3, but they were few and far between and, frankly, very expensive. I eventually test-drove a lovely M340i and was totally smitten, it felt like all the car I could ever need.
Then the dealership asked if I wanted to take the M3 Touring out... and that was my critical mistake.
I’ll go on record: I loved the idea of the M3 Touring, but like many, I wasn't sold on the front end. While it looks better in person, light colours make it a bit too obvious for my taste. The interior is a bit marmite, too; I appreciate the carbon buckets, but I just couldn't see myself living with them daily. However, unlike some, I don’t the big infotainment screen.
Anyway, I figured I had nothing to lose by test-driving it. Big mistake. The car was epic. It warmed me up to the idea immediately, man maths kicked in, and I realized I could about justify the jump over the M340i. The B3, while perfect, just wasn’t going to happen.
The Spec I narrowed it down: I wanted an M3 Touring in a dark colour with the standard M-Sport seats. While still in Dubai, I was busy coordinating the purchase of my wife’s Mini Countryman S All4. Once that was boxed off, I decided to live dangerously and find my own car remotely, too.
After several phone calls, videos, and CarVertical checks, I landed on the one. It was in Lincoln, and I was still in Dubai, moving to North Yorks. It was a low mile, early '24 plate with a great spec, well cared for and PPF. The only downside…..black wheels.
Like many old farts, I like my wheels to be metal-coloured so you can actually see the design and shape. When the dealership mentioned they were refurbing some minor marks, I jumped at the chance and asked, "Would you mind painting them silver?" They were happy to help, and the car went off to a local BMW specialist for a satin silver finish. The sneaky photos they sent looked incredible.
Back to our Dubai exit, we were scheduled for a one-way flight on March 5th. Then, things got interesting thanks to Donald Trump. Between geopolitical tensions and frequent missile alerts, our flight was cancelled. Interceptions, drones and fighter jets became the norm for a few days.
A week later, things calmed down, and we re-booked. At the airport, everything looked smooth until we were halfway through boarding. Suddenly, the process stopped. I checked Flight Radar to see a wall of planes holding over Oman, clearly something afoot.
We eventually pushed back 50 minutes late, only to sit on the taxiway for two hours while missile alerts blared on everyone's phones. We were sweating over the crew's flying hours, convinced the captain would head back to the gate. He actually announced we were likely heading back to disembark... until 10 minutes later, when he said we had one tiny gap to get out. We took it.
We arrived safe and sound in Newcastle and I picked up a VW Multivan hire car (we had a sh*t tonne of luggage!). I purposely booked the drop-off in Lincoln so I could kill two birds with one stone, head over the next day to collect the M3. As expected, I didn’t get a lot of sleep as I dwelled on our departure from Dubai (probably in good time) and the excitement of the new car. Morning broke on March 11th and off I went on a 2hr road trip to Lincoln to collect my new motor. The drive over was pleasant, not too much traffic but ironically the 2 podcasts I chose to listen to were both banging on about potholes – something I became acutely aware of since my relocation (they’re bloody everywhere).
The dealership went out of their way to come and collect me from Lincoln City Centre, took me to their wonderful base (within fantastic surroundings I may add) and to top it off, made me a nice cup of tea! The car was proudly parked right out front along with a nice-looking Defender.
Well, I have waffled on for long enough now, here are some pictures.
I know it’s a massive cliché but it always makes me smile when I see similar cars put to good use right away with a tip run and well, I am no different. With our shipping stuck (probably for eternity) in Jebel Ali port, Dubai – I had a load of shopping to do and subsequently boxes to transport to the tip. Yes, I could have fit these in the Mrs’s countryman but heck, that wouldn’t have looked as cool!
No pictures of the interior yet but it is a bit of a mundane black affair but perfectly comfortable. I do think older BMW’s had a more classy interior and I’d have been all over a tan setup but beggars can’t be choosers.
I’ll update my plans and feedback as I go along, but the first impressions (clouded by the honeymoon period) are inevitably positive. Its without doubt the most complete car I have ever owned by a long shot. Also feels significantly faster than some other fairly potent cars I have had (C63 507 Edition, Jag F Type R, Dodge Charger SRT).
Lastly in terms of the spec list, these are some of them. Forgive me, I don't know if some of this is standard!!
- Black-sapphire metallic
- Leather Merino/schwarz
- M Spots Seats
- M Shadow Line
- BMW Drive Recorder
- BMW Laserlicht
- Park Assist
- High gloss shadow line
- Headlining anthracite
- Driving assistant professional
- Connected Package Professional
Thanks for reading!
That's nice, normally I am not a fan of the G80/81/82 in dark colours as the nose just looks big and undefined, it's why I went for IOM green in mine, but on the wagon in sapphire black I am a convert! Agree that black wheels would have been overkill, love the contrast with the silver wheels.
I hope it keeps you entertained it as much as my G80 has for the last 14 months. I still get excited about getting in every time I drive it (in fact my 6:20am departure for the weekly 95 mile drive to the office is actually something I look forward to which wouldn't be the case in a random economic)
I look forward to hearing how you get on with it in the coming months.
I hope it keeps you entertained it as much as my G80 has for the last 14 months. I still get excited about getting in every time I drive it (in fact my 6:20am departure for the weekly 95 mile drive to the office is actually something I look forward to which wouldn't be the case in a random economic)
I look forward to hearing how you get on with it in the coming months.
Thanks for the positive comments :-).
The 2hr drive back to Harrogate from Yorkshire was great time well spent, with a mix of some steady country lanes and the A1 to cruise on.
I decided to defer the infotainment setup (apart from Spotify), kicked back and enjoyed.
Some cars I find it incredibly annoying to find just the right seating position, in this I seemed to strike it lucky. The M Sports seats are perfect for my needs.
Once back home my two boys couldn't wait for a spin. So within 10mins of getting home we were off again. Even in all the standard settings, they were giggling away, loving the 40% performance I'm probably extracting from the car.
Back home again and after a nice coffee, I finally get some proper time to take in the car, figure some stuff out. The condition was fully as expected and apart from minor mark on the PPF towards the rear, it's spotless. In fact I didn't notice it had PPF on the rear, I was told just the front end (you can see a strip of it just below the left rear parking sensor).
I then tackle the infotainment side of things and it's relatively straightforward. I'd already pre-downloaded the my BMW app but that seemed a mistake. I did they whilst in Dubai to get ahead of the game and it must have localised my account for me. When trying to sync it to the car and log into the app it constantly through up a "data unavailable" error, citing its failure to load the T's and C's. I persevered for an unhealthy amount of time, changing default browser settings, clearing cache etc etc before giving in and setting up a new account with a new email ID - bing, straight in.
The app seems a little gimmicky to me. Let's you take 3D pictures of the car, check fuel / range, tyre pressures, service information etc but I really don't know if I'll use it that much. If I had a pre-heating mode / warm up mode, I'd likely use it.
I have a brief look at the M modes which I'll fully configure over the weekend. Any recommendations gladly received!
Cheers
The 2hr drive back to Harrogate from Yorkshire was great time well spent, with a mix of some steady country lanes and the A1 to cruise on.
I decided to defer the infotainment setup (apart from Spotify), kicked back and enjoyed.
Some cars I find it incredibly annoying to find just the right seating position, in this I seemed to strike it lucky. The M Sports seats are perfect for my needs.
Once back home my two boys couldn't wait for a spin. So within 10mins of getting home we were off again. Even in all the standard settings, they were giggling away, loving the 40% performance I'm probably extracting from the car.
Back home again and after a nice coffee, I finally get some proper time to take in the car, figure some stuff out. The condition was fully as expected and apart from minor mark on the PPF towards the rear, it's spotless. In fact I didn't notice it had PPF on the rear, I was told just the front end (you can see a strip of it just below the left rear parking sensor).
I then tackle the infotainment side of things and it's relatively straightforward. I'd already pre-downloaded the my BMW app but that seemed a mistake. I did they whilst in Dubai to get ahead of the game and it must have localised my account for me. When trying to sync it to the car and log into the app it constantly through up a "data unavailable" error, citing its failure to load the T's and C's. I persevered for an unhealthy amount of time, changing default browser settings, clearing cache etc etc before giving in and setting up a new account with a new email ID - bing, straight in.
The app seems a little gimmicky to me. Let's you take 3D pictures of the car, check fuel / range, tyre pressures, service information etc but I really don't know if I'll use it that much. If I had a pre-heating mode / warm up mode, I'd likely use it.
I have a brief look at the M modes which I'll fully configure over the weekend. Any recommendations gladly received!
Cheers
MTK1919 said:
I have a brief look at the M modes which I'll fully configure over the weekend. Any recommendations gladly received!
I haven't driven one of these yet so I can't help(plus these have so much configuration too), but the M buttons are an absolute treat for your favourite settings though I've found, and I love them in my F82 M4, and I was the same in the E92 M3 as well. 
MTK1919 said:
Terminator X said:
^^ there is a preheat mode on mine.
TX.
Umm what am I missing then?TX.
I saw an option for ventilation but skipped passed that thinking it was cooling. Must have another look!
Thanks
I might be confusing ventilation with preheat though TBF
aren't they the same thing?TX.
Terminator X said:
On front page of the app, a small fan.
I might be confusing ventilation with preheat though TBF aren't they the same thing?
TX.
Yeah I see that, but with no actual temp settings to change I gathered it wasn't going to make it nice and cosy for me when I get in on a chilly morning! In fact, won't I just be making the situation worse with the wind chill factor haha!I might be confusing ventilation with preheat though TBF
aren't they the same thing?TX.
Given there's no remote start (again to my knowledge), then it'd need an auxiliary heater.
trails said:
The black and silver work really well to disguise/draw your eyes away the front bumper, looks great 
Haha - very much so. I'm not hiding the fact that I was in the camp of disliking the front of this car right from the off. A big draw of the B3 was the more handsome front end and I stand by that.
Even now, I wouldn't say I love the front end but I'm not firmly against it either. The other parts of the car (as you say) somewhat distract you from the less cohesive parts.
I remember when the E90 came out.....I hated it, couldn't believe what BMW had done, it's not a patch on the E46 in any configuration. It didn't stop me buying an E90 later down the line....it was a fantastic car. Oddly that had the opposite issue for me. It was the rear end looks that was borderline hideous!
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