My Glacier Silver F30 320d, and my previous BMWs
Discussion
This is now for sale on Pistonheads if any of you lovely people are interested:
https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/...
Thought I'd share some details of my latest purchase.
Having sold my E60 530d LCI, I briefly ventured into a life without BMW and quickly realised what a mistake I made.
I decided to go for an F30, requirements being lowish mileage, full history and xenon equipped (detest the halogens sorry). In my search radius, there were just 3 with xenons!
The car I settled on is an SE (first time I haven't got an M Sport!), a manual (after saying I'd always buy an auto) and doesn't have leather (which I said I'd never buy!) but after seeing it, I changed my mind entirely. The cloth interior is really comfortable and as an added bonus is also heated. Automatics are rare in the budget too, as most of these cars are coming off 3 to 4 year lease deals by company users trying to keep the BIK down.
It has the upgrade 18 inch wheels with new run flats, the adaptive xenon package, interior comfort package, storage and ambient lighting packages . power Fold mirrors too not sure if they're standard. With it being really low mileage (42k) compared to the rest of the market and in unmarked condition I'm over the moon especially being 1.5k under budget! The adaptive xenon package is awesome, if not distracting following it like a cat to a laser pointer at night...
Anyway here are some pictures. Plus a few of my old BMW, a 330ci Sport, a 330ci M-Clubsport, a 530i Sport (PX that I sold same day for a 250% profit!) and my 530d M Sport (Stage 1 mapped).
Plans are.... Nothing really. Maybe swap out any interior halogen bulbs for LED, activating enhanced Bluetooth if I can and some other coding. Maybe some tints in the future and am M Sport leather retrofit I can ever be bothered.
Oh and the best bit, the 184bhp lump is absolutely fine day to day thanks to the torque and got an astonishing 71mpg (60 US) on a trip the other day.
Old cars:
https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/...
Thought I'd share some details of my latest purchase.
Having sold my E60 530d LCI, I briefly ventured into a life without BMW and quickly realised what a mistake I made.
I decided to go for an F30, requirements being lowish mileage, full history and xenon equipped (detest the halogens sorry). In my search radius, there were just 3 with xenons!
The car I settled on is an SE (first time I haven't got an M Sport!), a manual (after saying I'd always buy an auto) and doesn't have leather (which I said I'd never buy!) but after seeing it, I changed my mind entirely. The cloth interior is really comfortable and as an added bonus is also heated. Automatics are rare in the budget too, as most of these cars are coming off 3 to 4 year lease deals by company users trying to keep the BIK down.
It has the upgrade 18 inch wheels with new run flats, the adaptive xenon package, interior comfort package, storage and ambient lighting packages . power Fold mirrors too not sure if they're standard. With it being really low mileage (42k) compared to the rest of the market and in unmarked condition I'm over the moon especially being 1.5k under budget! The adaptive xenon package is awesome, if not distracting following it like a cat to a laser pointer at night...
Anyway here are some pictures. Plus a few of my old BMW, a 330ci Sport, a 330ci M-Clubsport, a 530i Sport (PX that I sold same day for a 250% profit!) and my 530d M Sport (Stage 1 mapped).
Plans are.... Nothing really. Maybe swap out any interior halogen bulbs for LED, activating enhanced Bluetooth if I can and some other coding. Maybe some tints in the future and am M Sport leather retrofit I can ever be bothered.
Oh and the best bit, the 184bhp lump is absolutely fine day to day thanks to the torque and got an astonishing 71mpg (60 US) on a trip the other day.
Old cars:
Edited by joropug on Saturday 2nd February 16:52
I've been very pleased with economy. Doing 70 to 80ish on cruise it got 65mpg on a 190 mile trip the other day, the tank seems bottomless too I've done 550 miles on this tank and have an indicated 80 left. I'm averaging 54mpg on this tank, which included the 190 mile motorway trip.
As for power, I had a stage 1 530d (275bhp and bags of torque, with the 6 speed auto). It was very fast, but I don't find myself really lacking power in the 2.0, in fact I'm really pleased with it.
The drive modes I thought would be a gimmick, but the sport mode seems to come on boost more aggressively which makes it great fun.
My only complaint is the clutch position/seating position. I found the clutch to feel far away with the accelerator / brake feeling too close. Basically felt twisted a bit in the seat. I've now fitted a clutch stop though which has improved it a lot.
As for power, I had a stage 1 530d (275bhp and bags of torque, with the 6 speed auto). It was very fast, but I don't find myself really lacking power in the 2.0, in fact I'm really pleased with it.
The drive modes I thought would be a gimmick, but the sport mode seems to come on boost more aggressively which makes it great fun.
My only complaint is the clutch position/seating position. I found the clutch to feel far away with the accelerator / brake feeling too close. Basically felt twisted a bit in the seat. I've now fitted a clutch stop though which has improved it a lot.
keo said:
Nice cars!
I fancy a 320d next, are they really as economical in the real world as the figures suggest? I have got an Audi A3 at the minute and it is a struggle to get 50mpg from it. Although it is quattro and 170bhp model.
A3 is quite boring, hoping a BMW would be slightly better
Our 320d touring is on 56mpg over 48k miles as an average on obc I fancy a 320d next, are they really as economical in the real world as the figures suggest? I have got an Audi A3 at the minute and it is a struggle to get 50mpg from it. Although it is quattro and 170bhp model.
A3 is quite boring, hoping a BMW would be slightly better
Long runs it can do more obviously but town work brings it down .. our is mainly up and down the motorway
Would you believe, far superior. The E60 had m sport suspension and run flats, I ditched the run flats as it clattered over bumps so much and it was better, but still nowhere near as smooth as the F30.
In its defence i got the e60 on 87k on seemingly original suspension that didn't need replacing when I sold it on 115k. The F30 SE suspension seems significantly smoother. Neither have rattles in the interior and are solid in that respect, the F30 has more road noise but probably the run flats.
The e60 had more comfortable seats mainly as they had Base tilt and extendable knee supports which SE models unfortunately do not.
In its defence i got the e60 on 87k on seemingly original suspension that didn't need replacing when I sold it on 115k. The F30 SE suspension seems significantly smoother. Neither have rattles in the interior and are solid in that respect, the F30 has more road noise but probably the run flats.
The e60 had more comfortable seats mainly as they had Base tilt and extendable knee supports which SE models unfortunately do not.
I've got an F30 320d company car. The economy is amazing given the reasonable performance and it is a comfortable mile muncher. The chassis is also good too if you push on.
My biggest gripe with it is the awful manual gearbox. The clutch travel is ridiculous, worst thing about the car. The pedal offset is silly too, it's worse than a Saxo!
Do you not miss the refinement of the six pot?
My biggest gripe with it is the awful manual gearbox. The clutch travel is ridiculous, worst thing about the car. The pedal offset is silly too, it's worse than a Saxo!
Do you not miss the refinement of the six pot?
Brett748 said:
I've got an F30 320d company car. The economy is amazing given the reasonable performance and it is a comfortable mile muncher. The chassis is also good too if you push on.
My biggest gripe with it is the awful manual gearbox. The clutch travel is ridiculous, worst thing about the car. The pedal offset is silly too, it's worse than a Saxo!
Do you not miss the refinement of the six pot?
As above im totally with you. I can't recommend getting one of these enough.My biggest gripe with it is the awful manual gearbox. The clutch travel is ridiculous, worst thing about the car. The pedal offset is silly too, it's worse than a Saxo!
Do you not miss the refinement of the six pot?
https://www.mlperformance.co.uk/products/bms-short...
Or, make something similar yourself. Basically there's a huge dead zone which this can reduce. It makes it a lot better.
I still struggle to get the seating position right though, feeling too close ok my right leg and too far away on my left. I have considered buying metal pedal covers and putting spacers behind the clutch pedal!!
I don't find the box bad but the gear knob is really light. On my clubsport I tried a few different oem knobs and the weighted clubsport (same as F30 m sport) gives a much much weightier shift. On my shopping list.
I don't really notice it being 4 cylinder over 6, it obviously isn't as powerful but refinement has improved a lot since the older models.
The clutch position is ultimately why I sold my F30 328i, just such a pain in stop start traffic, shame as the rest of the car was spot on. Anyway, something that does help is the 'short throw clutch' stop by BMS. only a couple of quid and takes 2 mins to fit. It makes it better. Not great, but much better.
joropug said:
As above im totally with you. I can't recommend getting one of these enough.
https://www.mlperformance.co.uk/products/bms-short...
Or, make something similar yourself. Basically there's a huge dead zone which this can reduce. It makes it a lot better.
I still struggle to get the seating position right though, feeling too close ok my right leg and too far away on my left. I have considered buying metal pedal covers and putting spacers behind the clutch pedal!!
I don't find the box bad but the gear knob is really light. On my clubsport I tried a few different oem knobs and the weighted clubsport (same as F30 m sport) gives a much much weightier shift. On my shopping list.
I don't really notice it being 4 cylinder over 6, it obviously isn't as powerful but refinement has improved a lot since the older models.
https://www.mlperformance.co.uk/products/bms-short...
Or, make something similar yourself. Basically there's a huge dead zone which this can reduce. It makes it a lot better.
I still struggle to get the seating position right though, feeling too close ok my right leg and too far away on my left. I have considered buying metal pedal covers and putting spacers behind the clutch pedal!!
I don't find the box bad but the gear knob is really light. On my clubsport I tried a few different oem knobs and the weighted clubsport (same as F30 m sport) gives a much much weightier shift. On my shopping list.
I don't really notice it being 4 cylinder over 6, it obviously isn't as powerful but refinement has improved a lot since the older models.
So I made a purchase after consideration this weekend. The SE gear knob is quite light and hard plastic. I scoured eBay for a second hand M-Sport knob but none were available, they're £120 on eBay new. It's the same knob as found even on e46 clubsport models so I knew it was weighty and ergonomic, even if it is a little dated (my clubsport is 10 years older!).
A quick call to BMW confirmed suspicions that the eBay seller are buying direct from BMW hence the crap UK shipping time. £107.
First impressions are its as nice on the hand as I remember on the clubsport, the shifts are vastly smoother (amazing how much difference some weight does!) and it doesn't seem to vibrate as much with the 4 pot derv!
Do it. Complements the clutch stop well.
Comparison:
free image hosting ebay
A quick call to BMW confirmed suspicions that the eBay seller are buying direct from BMW hence the crap UK shipping time. £107.
First impressions are its as nice on the hand as I remember on the clubsport, the shifts are vastly smoother (amazing how much difference some weight does!) and it doesn't seem to vibrate as much with the 4 pot derv!
Do it. Complements the clutch stop well.
Comparison:
free image hosting ebay
Edited by joropug on Wednesday 27th September 14:52
In addition I'm going to keep a list of my Carly coding here. For anyone not in the know it's as easy way of coding your bmw using a phone and their Bluetooth dongle. It's expensive as a one off purchase but a few 10 quid donations here and there to sort friends out and you may see some of it back!
First off, diagnosis - nothing out of the blue. Phew.
Coding options:
-Activated digital speedometer
-Windows now do not stop rising on one touch, when someone opens a door
-5 blink lane change indicators
-3 Indicator flashes on lock
-1 indicator flash on unlock
-Start/Stop default = off (to save the battery/starter/engine mounts)
-Start/Stop auto turn on if you activate EcoPro drive mode.
-Door handle LEDs illuminate in reverse gear
-Led fog lights included on welcome lights
-LED Amber mirror lights included on welcome lights
-Welcome lights extended from 40 to 90 seconds
-Rear lights included in DRL
-Ambience lighting is no longer affected by dimming the speedo lights (always on bright)
-Front fog/cornering lights error check turned off and cold voltage check off
-Reverse lights error check turned off and cold voltage check off
-Mirrors auto-fold on 0.5s press of the lock button
-Audible beep when locking/unlocking (set to short, low volume chirp)
-Audible beep option unlocked in iDrive to turn it off if needed
-Drivers seatbelt bong deactivated
-iDrive now turns off immediately on opening door once engine off (usually stays in till you lock it
Things that didn't work so far:
-Power dials on idrive (torque and bhp gauges), apparently diesels don't give off the right info so they stay on 0 readings (boo!)
-PDC stop beeping when you select first gear (incredibly irritating, if you park up after reversing and the PDC is reading an object, it'll continue beeping with no way of turning it off except with the engine or moving forward a set distance.) presume this is for automatics only
More to do very soon as Carly have now unlocked all additional features for free!
First off, diagnosis - nothing out of the blue. Phew.
Coding options:
-Activated digital speedometer
-Windows now do not stop rising on one touch, when someone opens a door
-5 blink lane change indicators
-3 Indicator flashes on lock
-1 indicator flash on unlock
-Start/Stop default = off (to save the battery/starter/engine mounts)
-Start/Stop auto turn on if you activate EcoPro drive mode.
-Door handle LEDs illuminate in reverse gear
-Led fog lights included on welcome lights
-LED Amber mirror lights included on welcome lights
-Welcome lights extended from 40 to 90 seconds
-Rear lights included in DRL
-Ambience lighting is no longer affected by dimming the speedo lights (always on bright)
-Front fog/cornering lights error check turned off and cold voltage check off
-Reverse lights error check turned off and cold voltage check off
-Mirrors auto-fold on 0.5s press of the lock button
-Audible beep when locking/unlocking (set to short, low volume chirp)
-Audible beep option unlocked in iDrive to turn it off if needed
-Drivers seatbelt bong deactivated
-iDrive now turns off immediately on opening door once engine off (usually stays in till you lock it
Things that didn't work so far:
-Power dials on idrive (torque and bhp gauges), apparently diesels don't give off the right info so they stay on 0 readings (boo!)
-PDC stop beeping when you select first gear (incredibly irritating, if you park up after reversing and the PDC is reading an object, it'll continue beeping with no way of turning it off except with the engine or moving forward a set distance.) presume this is for automatics only
More to do very soon as Carly have now unlocked all additional features for free!
Edited by joropug on Thursday 4th October 07:07
Small update. Fitted my LED reverse light bulbs, they're pretty epic. Relatively straight forward fit but BMW allowed an absolute sadist to design the boot trim. Somehow got it back on in one piece.
The bulbs:
Comparison pic:
In reverse the door handles light up also (coded):
Just the fog lights to go, haven't got around to fitting the led replacements. The fog lights are also cornering lights and again come on in reverse for some reason at night:
Also s
t a brick this morning. Carly bugged out mid code. Usually no issue you just reload the back up but it kept saying my adapter needed an update, which wouldn't work. Cue 40 minutes of cold sweats. The whole rear light module which includes the parking sensors was temporarily inactive. I realised when I parked in a bush. Fortunately a soft one and I was able to restore the file ok.
The bulbs:
Comparison pic:
In reverse the door handles light up also (coded):
Just the fog lights to go, haven't got around to fitting the led replacements. The fog lights are also cornering lights and again come on in reverse for some reason at night:
Also s
t a brick this morning. Carly bugged out mid code. Usually no issue you just reload the back up but it kept saying my adapter needed an update, which wouldn't work. Cue 40 minutes of cold sweats. The whole rear light module which includes the parking sensors was temporarily inactive. I realised when I parked in a bush. Fortunately a soft one and I was able to restore the file ok. Edited by joropug on Thursday 28th September 21:05
Oh Behave said:
How did you find the stage 1 map on your 530d? I have an E61 530D which I am thinking about getting mapped, is it worth it?
Fantastic, night and day. I think my map was a relatively 'safe' one. The peak boost was no different (23 psi if I recall) before and after. It was the throttle response and how quickly it came on boost that you really noticed the difference. So much better lower down.I used MVT in Wareham, who put in oscarli software which I believe is written by the same bloke who does revo diesels. I coded out my faulty egr at the same time and you can go back and update it to remove the dpf at a later date if yours failed. Mine was still fine at 115k despite the map which had been on since 85k, regenerated approx weekly.
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