Discussion
15 years into my driving career it's time to introduce only my fourth different car
The previous three are all written up in this thread. My most recent car before this was a 2007 z4 coupé which I wasn't really planning on selling (I'd had it for 6 years) but finally decided I fancied something a little newer and a bit more reliable with a little more space for my bike
Another quick BMW was what I had in mind. I'd never owned a diesel before but had driven a couple of 640d's back in 2020 when I was considering buying one of those to replace the Z pre-covid. Unfortunately though those aren't particularly practical cars (despite the size) as they lack folding rear seats.
I decided to go for the next best thing, the same engine in a smaller and lighter car, with added four wheel drive, which ended up landing me in a 435d
The spec -
The wheels, brakes and harmon kardon speakers come as part of the "M sport plus" package which I'd say is pretty much essential with these cars (any that don't have it sell for significantly less). The basic sound system has only 6 speakers and 100w of output, the harmon kardon system is 16 speakers and 600w of output. The wheels and brakes are a significant visual improvement on the standard items too
It's a bit of a lottery finding one of these with the perfect spec given so much of the spec is driven by the options selected by the first owner when new, my strategy was to pick a few bits that were essential to me and then anything else that the car came with was a bonus. It would have been nice to have got something with a more exciting interior colour and perhaps also the M Sport styling bits (splitter, skirts, diffuser) but other than that this one has basically everything that I wanted. I did drive one with the head up display, which I liked, but I think with a digital dash this isn't essential as you get the same information in a slightly different place
The car was sitting on just over 29k miles on collection. I'm looking forward to putting a few more on it over the next few months and years!
The previous three are all written up in this thread. My most recent car before this was a 2007 z4 coupé which I wasn't really planning on selling (I'd had it for 6 years) but finally decided I fancied something a little newer and a bit more reliable with a little more space for my bike
Another quick BMW was what I had in mind. I'd never owned a diesel before but had driven a couple of 640d's back in 2020 when I was considering buying one of those to replace the Z pre-covid. Unfortunately though those aren't particularly practical cars (despite the size) as they lack folding rear seats.
I decided to go for the next best thing, the same engine in a smaller and lighter car, with added four wheel drive, which ended up landing me in a 435d
The spec -
- black sapphire metallic with black dakota leather
- 19" style 704m wheels
- m sport brakes with blue calipers
- adaptive chassis
- digital dash
- reversing camera (can't believe this isn't standard)
- folding mirrors (as above)
- harmon kardon speaker and amp
- sun protection glass
The wheels, brakes and harmon kardon speakers come as part of the "M sport plus" package which I'd say is pretty much essential with these cars (any that don't have it sell for significantly less). The basic sound system has only 6 speakers and 100w of output, the harmon kardon system is 16 speakers and 600w of output. The wheels and brakes are a significant visual improvement on the standard items too
It's a bit of a lottery finding one of these with the perfect spec given so much of the spec is driven by the options selected by the first owner when new, my strategy was to pick a few bits that were essential to me and then anything else that the car came with was a bonus. It would have been nice to have got something with a more exciting interior colour and perhaps also the M Sport styling bits (splitter, skirts, diffuser) but other than that this one has basically everything that I wanted. I did drive one with the head up display, which I liked, but I think with a digital dash this isn't essential as you get the same information in a slightly different place
The car was sitting on just over 29k miles on collection. I'm looking forward to putting a few more on it over the next few months and years!
gtidriver said:
Nice car, ive a 430d that took me ages to find in the correct spec too. Most are standard with bigger wheels brakes and stereo. very few have big option list.
I guess the good news is, for me at least, most of the stuff that I would want comes as standard with the M Sport Plus pack!PistonRings said:
You'll hear criticism of the ride height and wallowing due to the xdrive, but personally I never found that an issue.
Coming from a lowered Z4 I'm loving the suspension at the moment! Adaptive does seem to make a difference toos70rmp said:
sweet but get the springs replaced asap with ACS springs and you'll enjoy the car more
Still required even with adaptive suspension?Gunk said:
s70rmp said:
YES the are required lol
personal choice but the xdrives is setup up with SE springs not M Sport
have a good drive on a twisty road and see if you can live with it as is
I’ve got a 330d xdrive touring and they are a bit bouncy. Nice car by the way.personal choice but the xdrives is setup up with SE springs not M Sport
have a good drive on a twisty road and see if you can live with it as is
Do you guys run yours in sport or comfort?
Quick update from me as I've had the car for a few weeks and covered around 800 miles
- Very impressed with the fuel economy. Does 35mpg everywhere even in bad stop start traffic and 45mpg+ at decent motorway speeds
- The acceleration is addictive! I rarely use it in sport mode. Grip is excellent even when pushing on in the wet around corners!
- Really impressed with the ride on the 19" wheels. Much more comfortable than my old z4
- Supplying dealer screwed the rear plate directly into the tailgate. Car went back yesterday to get that sorted out
- Car would benefit from a good machine polish, will get a 2 stage detail booked in in early November
- Only one USB port and the ambient lighting is very dim
MarkJS said:
Your car appears to be LCI, so you should have a USB port on the dashboard and also under the armrest.
Your ambient lighting brightness should be adjustable either in iDrive or by using the dash brightness control next to the headlight switch.
No second USB on mine, just the one in the armrestYour ambient lighting brightness should be adjustable either in iDrive or by using the dash brightness control next to the headlight switch.
Ambient lighting - I've found this within the menu but even the brightest setting is very dim. Perhaps this just shows the age of the car though as more modern stuff seems to have much brighter interior lighting
Almost 1000 miles in now and very impressed with the car. Has to be one of the best all rounders on the market right now I think. Fast, economical, comfortable, modern, good looking, practical and reasonable running costs. Also seats 4 people without too much trouble!
Looking forward to seeing how the paint comes out after a detail. Anyone had experience of this?
Looking forward to seeing how the paint comes out after a detail. Anyone had experience of this?
Summit_Detailing said:
Interested to read your initial experiences with the car 147.
I'm considering a 35d in estate or GC form in the next month or so.
Slightly random question but is there a good amount of lumbar adjustment on the front seats?
Cheers,
Chris
p.s yes black sapphire looks mega after a detail, not particularly glossy due to the amount of small metallic flake in the paint but it can look really crisp.
Great - looking forward to seeing how it turns out then!I'm considering a 35d in estate or GC form in the next month or so.
Slightly random question but is there a good amount of lumbar adjustment on the front seats?
Cheers,
Chris
p.s yes black sapphire looks mega after a detail, not particularly glossy due to the amount of small metallic flake in the paint but it can look really crisp.
The GC is probably an even better car than the coupé - all of the benefits I've listed above plus even more practical. The only reason I didn't go for a GC is that I prefer the looks of the coupé and don't really need the rear seats!
No lumbar adjustment on mine (or electronic thigh support?) but the seats are still very comfortable
Time for an update from me a year after my last post!
Car is currently sitting on 41k miles, so I've done 11k miles in it in 13 months, quite a bit more than I used to do in my old z4. Most of my driving is motorway, I spend a lot of time in Birmingham and Warwick and I'm based in Nottingham. I've also done some one off longer trips including a 500 mile round trip to Pembrokeshire
Things that I like and don't like after my time to date with the car
Car is currently sitting on 41k miles, so I've done 11k miles in it in 13 months, quite a bit more than I used to do in my old z4. Most of my driving is motorway, I spend a lot of time in Birmingham and Warwick and I'm based in Nottingham. I've also done some one off longer trips including a 500 mile round trip to Pembrokeshire
Things that I like and don't like after my time to date with the car
- The balance of performance and economy is pretty much unbeatable in my eyes. Easy to average 50mpg at proper motorway speeds
- Linked to this I love having a 550+ mile range to a tank after a ~300 mile range with the z4
- Properly comfortable (and quiet) car at speed on the motorway. I've changed my opinion of diesel, for the type of driving that I do it's the correct choice
- I wouldn't buy another car without "premium" audio, the Harman Kardon system is excellent
- I would however seek to avoid buying a black car again in future - impossible to keep looking clean! (But when it is clean it looks great)
- Ditto diamond cut alloys. I'd probably get these refurbed to freshen up at this point but it looks like it's more trouble to do that than it is worth
- Ditto black leather interior. So boring (but easy to keep clean!)
- It's been faultlessly reliable to date, nothing has gone wrong with it, nothing came out of the MOT and it's not needed a service yet since I bought it
d_a_n1979 said:
https://i.ibb.co/hVZMPYR/PXL-20230403-141123835.jp...
Agree; the HK audio is very good indeed... If not already; have a play with the settings and read through this post for some ideas for the equaliser settings:
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t...
Re alloys; I'd never get diamond cut personally; it has no longevity at all... A decent refurb & powdercoat/lacquer will have them looking much better... Platinum silver wheels on your 4'er would look spot on IMO
I had the 19" 351Ms on my previous F01 fully refurbed and powdercoated in platinum silver and they looked superb against the azurite black exerior:
Here is my EQ - terrible picture because of the lighting, apologies. Took quite a while to dial it in to the sound that I wantedAgree; the HK audio is very good indeed... If not already; have a play with the settings and read through this post for some ideas for the equaliser settings:
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t...
Re alloys; I'd never get diamond cut personally; it has no longevity at all... A decent refurb & powdercoat/lacquer will have them looking much better... Platinum silver wheels on your 4'er would look spot on IMO
I had the 19" 351Ms on my previous F01 fully refurbed and powdercoated in platinum silver and they looked superb against the azurite black exerior:
I reckon diamond cut wheels look amazing brand new but like all wheels over time they can do with a refresh (which is way easier with powder coat - lots of people actually seem to powedercoat these wheels when they refurb). They do have a nice shine against the dark paint!
Your car looks very nice!
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff