F31 330D to 340i ... has anyone made that swap?

[conanius]

Interested to know if anyone has gone from a 330D ->340i.

I've had my 330D since November and put ~20k on it so I know I'll take a bit of a bath on value, but life is too short and all that.

I've seen a few online tonight and if i can make the numbers work I'm tempted to do the swap.

The 330D, whilst not a slow car by any mans measure isn't as enjoyable as I'd hoped, and based on just videos - test drive will be sorted - the 340i's I've seen look like a more enjoyable drive - both from increased performance and soundtrack when pushing on.

Appreciate any feedback please

[smashy]

Thats funny Im thinking the same , im seeing how the diesel hate pans out ive got a year till my PCP is up. I got a call out the blue from the dealership where I got my car he had some pre reg 2ltrs Ds he was trying to shift.

When I said abut the diesel situation ,he said nothing will happen for years etc and no one will be effected for years etc...that really wound me up that comment and he lost me.I told him that just was not true In London where I live one council doubles your parking rates euro 6 or not and another council ,if you need a CPZ Permit to park outside your home again Euro 6 or not they hit you with a premium.Is this going to get worse or go away


I do a shed load of miles and what anyone says a 440i will not come anywhere near my 50 mpg even when im "pushing on" ,west london to leeds and back 54MPG a couple of weeks ago

Problem with my car in sport the steering wheel becomes horribly tight so I hardly use it only in short spurts ,mind you its too quick for the south east you can never use it properly in sport. So that would be the same with a 40i ,its a dilemma


Ive digressed a bit there sorry. Thing is is the 340i that great re "drama" (enough to change?) from what Ive read it isnt Ive also seen a guy who chopped his M140i because of lack of noise ,top end not sounding all that either If I was going this route id also have a look at the Jag XE S now pushing 380bhp but that may be a big price difference given the BMW discounts available all the time it seems


Mind you this is VERY tempting ,do love Joes vids https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cu1EfUMYh38

Edited by smashy on Wednesday 16th August 11:40

Edited by smashy on Wednesday 16th August 12:08

Edited by smashy on Wednesday 16th August 12:10

[335d]

smashy said:

Problem with my car in sport the steering wheel becomes horribly tight so I hardly use it only in short spurts ,mind you its too quick for the south east you can never use it properly in sport. So that would be the same with a 40i ,its a dilemma

Why don't you configure the Sports mode in the iDrive menu system to be Drivetrain only which will avoid the steering weighting up?

[smashy]

Hi 335d Im not saying im right and havent looked( I will) but I didnt think that was possible. I have heard only on M cars and also seen frustrated Vloggers (is that the word ) on youtube wishing the same thing.

How about your 335d ?

EDITED Nope I cant http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/archive/index.php...

Edited by smashy on Wednesday 16th August 12:13

[335d]

smashy said:

Hi 335d Im not saying im right and havent looked( I will) but I didnt think that was possible. I have heard only on M cars and also seen frustrated Vloggers (is that the word ) on youtube wishing the same thing.

How about your 335d ?

EDITED Nope I cant http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/archive/index.php...

Edited by smashy on Wednesday 16th August 12:13

Smashy, I can and have done this on my March 14 build 335d. It is called Configure Sports Mode in the iDrive.

What was the build month of your car?

[smashy]

Firstly sorry OP weve gone offtrack

Hello again 335d never seen it ill have a look right now sep 14 mind you do you have DHP Dynamic Handling package I dont

[335d]

Sorry just read your linked thread in more detail. My car does have adaptive suspension (dampers) so that may be the difference.

[smashy]

Sadly not on my idrive 335d think ill make sure for next time thanks

[GTEYE]

Back to the OP's dilemma....

In normal road use, I'm not convinced it's going to be a night and day difference.

Sure you'll get better noise, but the economy will take a substantial dip....and in most other respects its going to be exactly the same.

Tricky one, but unless your 330 is at the point where you need to change (end of lease, warranty, mileage or whatever), you might be spending quite a lot for a fairly marginal benefit.

The whole diesel thing has a while left to play I think, there are two many around (and still being made) for the market to drop that suddenly. I'd be inclined to let it pan out a while longer.

IMHO obviously

[smashy]

...my thoughts exactly gteye that 3ltr derv is a hell of an engine if you do a fair bit of miles is the trade off good enough think it's wills 2 on here traded his 335d for an m5 I get that. I think it's only the subliminal diesel bashing on forums that makes me think petrol 're the exhaust noise mostly heard from the outside I believe?

But the diesel hate 're pollution is an issue that can't be ignored

The guy who didnt get any "drama" in his M140i now is loving his audi TTrs ,I get that as well more expensive obviously.

Maybe stick the MPPK on the 440i and you will get a totally different experience to the diesel

Edited by smashy on Wednesday 16th August 14:33

[msej449]

I moved from a 330d xDrive Touring to an M235i Convertible. Mainly due to a change from lots of motorway business miles to a new job where I take the train to work 75% of the time. I'd say that the 330d is perfect if you do a lot of business mileage especially on motorways. I got an average 47mpg on real mix of driving conditions. My M235i (precursor to the M240i and its new engine) gets 30mpg average and changes gear much more. This is fine for how I use it but it would perhaps be comparatively tedious for the 'lots of business miles' scenario. It's not as if the 3.0L diesel makes for a slow vehicle, and having seen the 440i I would suspect that the difference it represents might leave you dissatisfied i.e. not enough of an improvement to be worth the cost.

Edited by msej449 on Thursday 17th August 17:10

[Fox-]

It is the same car with more noise, a bit more performance and less fuel economy. It is not going to transform your life or make a car you currently find boring into one you find absolutely thrilling. They are not *that* different and with 0-60 in 5.4 and 0-100 in 13 seconds it's not as if the 330d lacks power.

It sounds like you need to look at something entirely different. Moving from one three series to another probably isn't going to help.

[conanius]

Thanks for all the feedback.

It looks like, regardless of my 'life is too short' comment I can't make the numbers work - read, Im realising the difference isn't big enough when it looks like a ~£15k upgrade for fundamentally the same car.

I think this needs more thought, but with another service and tyres due, I'll leave this to tick on for a while.

There are some lovely 340i tourings out there fwkth spec that put mine to shame, so be fussy if you are looking for one

[TodmordenLad]

Just about to....well, sort of....
Ordered a 440i Gran Coupe earlier this month, arriving early October. I have a 2014 330D Touring and fancied a change, having driven diesel estates for the past fifteen years or so. I also don't need the estate space anymore as both kids are grown up and rarely in the car with their clobber - and my border terrier is a small dog. I don't like the Audi A5 or anything in the MB or Jag ranges, so sticking with BMW. I've test driven a few 4GC's and like the refinement and handling. Got a reasonable part ex price and the discount on the 440i was good, including the latest finance contribution.

[Billy_Whizzzz]

Went from a 330d touring to a (man) M140i and haven't regretted it one bit. Although capable I never loved the 330d but now love every drive in the 140. Completely different experience and sensation, and worth every penny (for me) to change.

[Pica-Pica]

When the 340i came out, I wanted one. Earlier this year after months of deliberating, I got a 335d. Very accomplished and easy (boring?) to drive. I know a 340i would be much the same. Car exhaust sounds do nothing for me. I think you need to look elsewhere.
I just looked at mpg on Honest John; 44 mpg to 26 mpg,

Edited by Pica-Pica on Tuesday 29th August 21:19

[chandrew]

Pica-Pica said:

When the 340i came out, I wanted one. Earlier this year after months of deliberating, I got a 335d. Very accomplished and easy (boring?) to drive. I know a 340i would be much the same. Car exhaust sounds do nothing for me. I think you need to look elsewhere.
I just looked at mpg on Honest John; 44 mpg to 26 mpg,

Edited by Pica-Pica on Tuesday 29th August 21:19

I've managed 31 mpg average in my 340 xdrive touring since getting it (10,000km ago). I don't have much town driving but many / most drives involve going over an alpine pass which (if coming home) is uphill for 31km. A reasonable amount of motorway driving but about 1000km on German autobahns, much of the time at over 200km/h. Personally I feel it'd be easy to get to BMW's quoted figures which given the performance available is pretty remarkable.

[diehardbenzfan]

I don't think a 40i variant will be much more engaging or more fun than a 30d, only difference will be the noise as I'd think a 340i wouldn't feel much faster as the 330d has more torque lower down the rev range. It is faster but won't feel it on a day to day basis.

If you're saying life is too short and you don't mind losing the money, I think it would be better to take the loss on an S4 Avant or a C43 estate as the difference between them and the range topping diesel would be greater than a 330d and 340i as they share everything but the engine.

[Fox-]

diehardbenzfan said:

I don't think a 40i variant will be much more engaging or more fun than a 30d, only difference will be the noise as I'd think a 340i wouldn't feel much faster as the 330d has more torque lower down the rev range. It is faster but won't feel it on a day to day basis.

This seems sensible advice.

diehardbenzfan said:

If you're saying life is too short and you don't mind losing the money, I think it would be better to take the loss on an S4 Avant

Seriously? The S4 is an A4 3.0TFSI S-Line with a name that makes it sound like something it isn't. It's a direct rival to the 340i so has nothing special that
a 340i doesn't that make it an exception to what you've said above. If anything its probably more dull.

[diehardbenzfan]

Fox- said:

Seriously? The S4 is an A4 3.0TFSI S-Line with a name that makes it sound like something it isn't. It's a direct rival to the 340i so has nothing special that
a 340i doesn't that make it an exception to what you've said above. If anything its probably more dull.

Well since Audi used to lump v8's in their s4's up until 2009, I would imagine they would put more effort into the S4 than bmw would put into a 340i! I haven't driven either but that's what I think!