RE: BMW M240i: Driven

[telecat]

whitevancam said:

I got one.

Mineral white M240i, with adaptive suspension, 8spd auto, adaptive headlights, full professional media, harmon kardon, folding mirrors, heated seats etc, list price if you build it to the same spec on the configurator is £42k.

I got it pre-reg with 9 miles for £29.5k, a bargain I think, I even got a good part-ex price for my F31 330D.

Have done 14k miles now, have averaged just over 31mpg during that time and it fits four people in and I even managed to fit a Beta 300 trials bike in it!!

I know its not an M car, but I commute 80 miles a day and its a nice place to sit for 2 hours.

Its the extra torque that sold me over a Golf R, it effortless.

Edited by whitevancam on Tuesday 15th August 10:30

Might need to get a Vertigo In mine You'll have to share the pics!!

[culpz]

ChocolateFrog said:

At lot of those options, really shouldn't be.

A £40k car really should have cruise control and heated seats as standard IMO.

I'm not one for personally speccing up cars with all the latest options anyway. All i want is a decent inbuilt sat nav system and probably the ZF Auto and that'd be me. I believe the basic nav on these is standard regardless.

So, knowing the basic price of these and the M140i, which is great value, with everything you do get, including that wonderful engine and the complete package as a whole, should it really have those things as standard?

[RobM77]

ChocolateFrog said:

A £40k car really should have cruise control and heated seats as standard IMO.

I shouldn't imagine heated seats would be very popular in a lot of markets! Dubai for example

[moulin12]

tosh.brice said:

A direct comparison of the 240 (preferably straight suspension and manual gears) with the (preferably manual) M2 would be useful.

[Edit] https://www.carthrottle.com/post/6-key-differences...

Edited by tosh.brice on Monday 14th August 10:35

In what way useful? One car is in the same price bracket of a RS, its natural competitor, the other is cheaper than a S3, its natural competitor. The article should be entitled 7 key differences, the 7th difference being that after discounts one car is nearly 2/3rds the price of the other.

Edited by moulin12 on Tuesday 15th August 18:06

[Ares]

MustardCutter said:

Wolands Advocate said:

It is bizarre. I had a manual M135i for nearly 5 years. It was many things but never bland or soulless.

Perhaps because the cabin is so well insulated noise-wise that unless you wind the windows down and nail it you never get the full waste gate and pops and bangs experience, just the cheesy (IMO, can appreciate some like it) 'active sound'. Perhaps some turbo lag would give it more character?

Edited by MustardCutter on Tuesday 15th August 13:46

So it needs waste gate chatter, poops and bangs to make it not bland and give it soul?? How chav-tastic

[Ares]

RedTrident said:

RobM77 said:

RT: What aspects of a car are you interested in? I'm intrigued by the idea that by simply modifying the 240i with suspension and diff changes along with engine character differences we could turn it from utterly joyless to totally joyful.

It's the lack of feel for me if I'm honest.

I just did a 200 mile round trip in it on Sunday. Took the daughter to visit her Auntie up in Bridlington. By the time I was back she was fast asleep. The car did everything I'd bought it for.

There are some lovely roads driving there and back from Manchester once I'm off the motorway. It honestly was just completely bland.

I'm just selling house at the moment and will have some spare cash. I'm genuinely thinking of getting into another 911. She'll be fine in the back and I won't need the pram soon.

You mean a £35k hot hatch/coupe can't match a £90k 911 for driving pleasure? How dreadful

[limpsfield]

I've just finished a 240 mile drive in mine to North Wales and it did it at 37mpg. I don't think I have seen that before. It was mainly m40 and cruise control.

I remembered a gripe. Why don't you have the option for auto syncing the aircon on passenger and driver side? Odd one.

[Wolands Advocate]

Ares said:

MustardCutter said:

Wolands Advocate said:

It is bizarre. I had a manual M135i for nearly 5 years. It was many things but never bland or soulless.

Perhaps because the cabin is so well insulated noise-wise that unless you wind the windows down and nail it you never get the full waste gate and pops and bangs experience, just the cheesy (IMO, can appreciate some like it) 'active sound'. Perhaps some turbo lag would give it more character?

Edited by MustardCutter on Tuesday 15th August 13:46

So it needs waste gate chatter, poops and bangs to make it not bland and give it soul?? How chav-tastic

Plus the MPerformance exhaust can be had for comfortably under a grand and adds more than enough snap, crackle and pop for most people. I had one fitted to my M135i (coming from a Tubi-equipped V10 M5, I found the standard set-up a bit quiet) and it sounded positively evil on a cold start and in confined spaces.

[menousername]

Does it have a spare wheel?

[whitevancam]

telecat said:

whitevancam said:

I got one.

Mineral white M240i, with adaptive suspension, 8spd auto, adaptive headlights, full professional media, harmon kardon, folding mirrors, heated seats etc, list price if you build it to the same spec on the configurator is £42k.

I got it pre-reg with 9 miles for £29.5k, a bargain I think, I even got a good part-ex price for my F31 330D.

Have done 14k miles now, have averaged just over 31mpg during that time and it fits four people in and I even managed to fit a Beta 300 trials bike in it!!

I know its not an M car, but I commute 80 miles a day and its a nice place to sit for 2 hours.

Its the extra torque that sold me over a Golf R, it effortless.

Edited by whitevancam on Tuesday 15th August 10:30

Might need to get a Vertigo In mine You'll have to share the pics!!

Wheels off, front brake and lever off in one piece, rear mudguard and exhaust off, handlebars off, turn through ninety degrees and tape to the tank still with clutch, throttle & kill switch attached, forks off.

Sit the bike on the passenger seat on the sump guard with the swing arm into the footwell, put every thing else and your tool kit in the boot.

[menousername]

whitevancam said:

Wheels off, front brake and lever off in one piece, rear mudguard and exhaust off, handlebars off, turn through ninety degrees and tape to the tank still with clutch, throttle & kill switch attached, forks off.

Sit the bike on the passenger seat on the sump guard with the swing arm into the footwell, put every thing else and your tool kit in the boot.

Yeah it, er, fits like a glove

[MustardCutter]

Ares said:

So it needs waste gate chatter, poops and bangs to make it not bland and give it soul?? How chav-tastic

What do you define as soul in a car?

[telecat]

whitevancam said:

telecat said:

whitevancam said:

I got one.

Mineral white M240i, with adaptive suspension, 8spd auto, adaptive headlights, full professional media, harmon kardon, folding mirrors, heated seats etc, list price if you build it to the same spec on the configurator is £42k.

I got it pre-reg with 9 miles for £29.5k, a bargain I think, I even got a good part-ex price for my F31 330D.

Have done 14k miles now, have averaged just over 31mpg during that time and it fits four people in and I even managed to fit a Beta 300 trials bike in it!!

I know its not an M car, but I commute 80 miles a day and its a nice place to sit for 2 hours.

Its the extra torque that sold me over a Golf R, it effortless.

Edited by whitevancam on Tuesday 15th August 10:30

Might need to get a Vertigo In mine You'll have to share the pics!!

Wheels off, front brake and lever off in one piece, rear mudguard and exhaust off, handlebars off, turn through ninety degrees and tape to the tank still with clutch, throttle & kill switch attached, forks off.

Sit the bike on the passenger seat on the sump guard with the swing arm into the footwell, put every thing else and your tool kit in the boot.

Bit too much for a Sunday Morning Trial but Top Marks!!!!

[ZX10R NIN]

I wasn't impressed with this car, but can understand it's appeal.

[Spoof]

I love my little 140. I bought it to commute to work so I didn't have to use the QF, its small enough to park in our crappy staff car park spaces, big enough for a 2.5 year old to get in the back, a Labrador in the boot if needed and quick enough to provide enough fun for a 45 minute B road commute.

It has negatives, its a £30k car with 350hp, of course some parts are less than optimal, its has budget aspects about it, but one thing I can't fault, is that engine and gearbox (ZF Auto), thats where your money is going.

If BMW fitted expensive dampers and an LSD, It'd be £8/9k more and the M2 (apart from looks) would be completely redundant.


I've removed all badging from mine, I think all those M badges are cringe-tactic on anything but a true M car.

[Ares]

MustardCutter said:

Ares said:

So it needs waste gate chatter, poops and bangs to make it not bland and give it soul?? How chav-tastic

What do you define as soul in a car?

Engine, drive, feel.

Certainly not just wastegate chatter and a popping exhaust, unless you are under 18.

[MustardCutter]

Ares said:

MustardCutter said:

Ares said:

So it needs waste gate chatter, poops and bangs to make it not bland and give it soul?? How chav-tastic

What do you define as soul in a car?

Engine, drive, feel.

Certainly not just wastegate chatter and a popping exhaust, unless you are under 18.

But it doesn't just have an audible waste gate and exhaust gurgles; it also has the cracking engine and drives well. It only lacks steering feel which pretty much all modern cars suffer. It must have some soul by your definition.

I would imagine many petrol heads over the age of 18 enjoy the various mechanical, induction and exhaust noises cars can make. Do they not form part of the car's character? Not everyone over the age of 18 want to be isolated from everything going on like an Audi or Roller, surely?

[Bullmiester]

Ares said:

JackReacher said:

Ive read some very good reviews of the Birds m235i suspension and LSD package, which apparently addresses the weakness of the standard suspension. Trouble is most of those reviews read more like an advert. Any real world experiences?

I put the Schnitzer springs on my 640d GC, transformed the car, all for less than £500.

I have the Birds set up( sus only) and am very happy with it, £1800, fitted in a few hours,the ride is still firm but the damping actually works instead of being deflected from one imperfection to the next.My problem with the std set up was the vertical movement it sent through the vehicle made it very uncomfortable on b roads and not confidence inspiring when pushing on.you can probably get a cheaper solution, but if like me, you just want a drive in/out solution, Birds certainly know there stuff. I find it crazy that BMW fit such poor suspension to there cars as for a relatively small amount of money they could do the job properly in the first place.Each to their own I know, but why people spend xxx ££ m exhasts etc when the damn thing cannot put down the power is beyond me !

[RedTrident]

Ares said:

RedTrident said:

RobM77 said:

RT: What aspects of a car are you interested in? I'm intrigued by the idea that by simply modifying the 240i with suspension and diff changes along with engine character differences we could turn it from utterly joyless to totally joyful.

It's the lack of feel for me if I'm honest.

I just did a 200 mile round trip in it on Sunday. Took the daughter to visit her Auntie up in Bridlington. By the time I was back she was fast asleep. The car did everything I'd bought it for.

There are some lovely roads driving there and back from Manchester once I'm off the motorway. It honestly was just completely bland.

I'm just selling house at the moment and will have some spare cash. I'm genuinely thinking of getting into another 911. She'll be fine in the back and I won't need the pram soon.

You mean a £35k hot hatch/coupe can't match a £90k 911 for driving pleasure? How dreadful

That's not what I meant

More musing about what I can get away with having a small child.

After posting on here yesterday, I took it for a blast over the hills of Saddleworth. Some lovely roads. Flicked it into sport, every setting to optimise the driver experience. It wasn't any better. Honestly, it is completely over rated. A 2 litre 4 cylinder like a Golf GTi or the AMG45 is a much better drivers car imo.

[zeDuffMan]

R0B. said:

Andy OH said:

You're correct, the only 2 series with a DCT box is the M2.

Having driven a 140i with the auto, you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between that and a DCT, its a very good auto gearbox.

On the road, in traffic, I would say the auto is preferable over the DCT anyway. My DCT M2 is bloody awful at low speeds. When you're up and running I don't think there's that much in it but I tend to drive in manual mode as the auto mode is pretty gash. It's only when you're really hammering it the DCT starts to make sense.