340i Touring - good or bad idea?
Discussion
Love ours. Nearly 4 years old now. Was always going to trade it in at the end of the 3 years, paying the balance was the simplest choice I've made. MPPSK is epic, also worth looking at the xHP gearbox software.
Think I'll keep this forever.
My wife now has 6 points!!
Edited by sma on Thursday 11th June 18:52
ThePrisoner said:
James-m5qjf said:
Very Nice. I wish i picked another colour like that . Mines Sapphire Black which only stays clean for a day . 
sma said:
Love ours. Nearly 4 years old now. Was always going to trade it in at the end of the 3 years, paying the balance was the simplest choice I've made. MPPSK is epic, also worth looking at the xHP gearbox software.
Think I'll keep this forever.
My wife now has 6 points!!
Edited by sma on Thursday 11th June 18:52
. Had the back box done by PCW to make it sound a bit better and now looking at xHP gearbox remap, although might wait until the warranty expires. 
Tell me about it.mr sagman said:
James-m5qjf said:
Wow lovely colour and spec... The MPPSK turns it into an animal.. just be careful of the speeding at first because they hit 100 without trying.I am very tempted by a reasonably powerful estate and having been looking over the past weeks, I currently have a E46 330ci (6.3sec to 60) which I might well keep at well, but we often end up in the mrs diesel fiesta due to the dog and have just got a second hound.
Might be some errors in the below but its what I have lifted from Parkers, and the 340i mpg stands out as being amazing however, but appears to be backed up by real world driving in which case what is not to like?
__Spec | 0-60 | Mpg__
M340i 4.4sec 33mpg x-drive
340i. 5.1sec 37mpg
335i. 5.3sec 34mpg
328i. 5.8sec 41mpg
325d 6.7sec 55mpg
320i. 7.3sec 43mpg
320d 7.5sec 58mpg
Daniel
dhutch said:
Looks amazing.
I am very tempted by a reasonably powerful estate and having been looking over the past weeks, I currently have a E46 330ci (6.3sec to 60) which I might well keep at well, but we often end up in the mrs diesel fiesta due to the dog and have just got a second hound.
Might be some errors in the below but its what I have lifted from Parkers, and the 340i mpg stands out as being amazing however, but appears to be backed up by real world driving in which case what is not to like?
__Spec | 0-60 | Mpg__
M340i 4.4sec 33mpg x-drive
340i. 5.1sec 37mpg
335i. 5.3sec 34mpg
328i. 5.8sec 41mpg
325d 6.7sec 55mpg
320i. 7.3sec 43mpg
320d 7.5sec 58mpg
Daniel
I feel that 0-60 is an almost irrelevant figure these days. I would dig a bit deeper on mid range and in gear performance figures instead. The 340i shines in most of those areas though.I am very tempted by a reasonably powerful estate and having been looking over the past weeks, I currently have a E46 330ci (6.3sec to 60) which I might well keep at well, but we often end up in the mrs diesel fiesta due to the dog and have just got a second hound.
Might be some errors in the below but its what I have lifted from Parkers, and the 340i mpg stands out as being amazing however, but appears to be backed up by real world driving in which case what is not to like?
__Spec | 0-60 | Mpg__
M340i 4.4sec 33mpg x-drive
340i. 5.1sec 37mpg
335i. 5.3sec 34mpg
328i. 5.8sec 41mpg
325d 6.7sec 55mpg
320i. 7.3sec 43mpg
320d 7.5sec 58mpg
Daniel
J3PTF said:
Been browsing far too much the last couple of months, and am tempted by a nearly new one of these. A bit of an impulse buy though, so any experience or thoughts from the collective PH wisdom?
It's as close to a M3 estate as you'll ever get. probably the best all round "nice" car that's not an SUV anywhere in the world. andyeds1234 said:
I feel that 0-60 is an almost irrelevant figure these days. I would dig a bit deeper on mid range and in gear performance figures instead. The 340i shines in most of those areas though.
I wouldn't disagree, it's a very blunt tool, but does given a quantitative figure for a cars ability to launch itself forwards, if not better than bhp per ton. I terms of acceleration I am much more interested in the 15-85mph band, but I doubt it would be sufficiently different to be worth changing the standard.
However also as automatics become far more common, right through into top level sporty vehicles (still yet to own an auto) the performance of this is also important, but much more qualitative and open to interpretation, which makes broad comparison hard.
Also as per the post above yours, with large wheels, low profile and run flat tyres, for most people the ride quality is also an important part of it. And if pushing on, the performance of the suspension for grip and handling is also key.
My first two cars where 306s and these did very well here, especially for their time. I swapped the E46 330ci from the staggered 18s to square 17s for a combination of comfort, tyre cost, and because I was getting sick of pothole damage on my cross country commute.
Daniel
I have a saloon and it's been a fantastic car for me over the last 2 years. Does everything very well, in comfort it's quiet, smooth and easy to bumble about in. In sport (with the MPPSK) it becomes ASBO loud, faster than I ever need on the road and great fun. I've been over europe in it (Adenau on one tank of fuel!) and recently had to do a few motorway runs. It's been very frugal, returning over 45mpg if I go steady. The other big bonus for me is that it doesn't stand out, it looks like every other 3 series on the road so it doesn't attract attention and when you unleash the near 400bhp it's unexpected.
James-m5qjf said:
Very nice - is that the one from Sytner Oldbury by any chance? I’ve been watching very carefully since starting this thread and there aren’t that many about.Very nearly bought a really nice mineral grey with red leather, but it sold while I was waiting for a p/x from the dealer!
The search goes on, but I’m sure I’ll give up soon a compromise a bit on colour / spec!
J3PTF said:
James-m5qjf said:
Very nice - is that the one from Sytner Oldbury by any chance? I’ve been watching very carefully since starting this thread and there aren’t that many about.Very nearly bought a really nice mineral grey with red leather, but it sold while I was waiting for a p/x from the dealer!
The search goes on, but I’m sure I’ll give up soon a compromise a bit on colour / spec!
mr sagman said:
I have a mineral grey with red leather and its a fantastic colour combo... Saw the mineral / red leather come up at the North wales dealership and it was loaded to the hilt with extras and a cracking price for a low mileage one, I just knew it would sell instantly, If you want a bargain you need to watch the BMW AUC like a hawk as the desirable ones sell very very quickly, Trust me it will be worth the patience as they are a fantastic car bloody love mine.
Yes that was the one - they were inundated with calls for that one apparently hence it went in a few hours.The decent spec are definitely going very quickly on AUC so just waking to go for it as soon as the right one comes up.
And on that point - are there any must have options? Pro nav, HK, reversing camera are top of my list, but is there anything else you wouldn’t be without / wish you had?
J3PTF said:
mr sagman said:
I have a mineral grey with red leather and its a fantastic colour combo... Saw the mineral / red leather come up at the North wales dealership and it was loaded to the hilt with extras and a cracking price for a low mileage one, I just knew it would sell instantly, If you want a bargain you need to watch the BMW AUC like a hawk as the desirable ones sell very very quickly, Trust me it will be worth the patience as they are a fantastic car bloody love mine.
Yes that was the one - they were inundated with calls for that one apparently hence it went in a few hours.The decent spec are definitely going very quickly on AUC so just waking to go for it as soon as the right one comes up.
And on that point - are there any must have options? Pro nav, HK, reversing camera are top of my list, but is there anything else you wouldn’t be without / wish you had?
Mine doesn't have the Pro sat nave (wider screen than the business) would have loved that ideally, Pano roof also don't have but would love it.
There is definately a big demand for the 340 Tourers at present as people seem to realise what a bargain they are, About 5-6 weeks ago a really well specced red touring with literally every extra on it with 19k miles for £21.5k on the AUC and it sold within 2 hours as my mate was after it, fast forward 2 weeks and it appeared on another car dealership (non AUC) for £26K and it sold pretty quickly, So you are also competing against trade for the real bargains, good luck with your search, And if you get a car pre June 18 definately get the MPPSK fitted.
mr sagman said:
MIne has the M sport plus pack which is similar to the earlier version of the Shadow edition, which includes Hardon Karmon (must have) Privacy glass (must have) upgraded brake calipers (looks miles better than without) Mine also has heated seats (useful but not a deal breaker imo),( Comfort access ( good but would rather it didnt tbh as they are easier to nick with it), Adaptive suspension ( defo worth getting if you can) google it for a full description)
Mine doesn't have the Pro sat nave (wider screen than the business) would have loved that ideally, Pano roof also don't have but would love it.
There is definately a big demand for the 340 Tourers at present as people seem to realise what a bargain they are, About 5-6 weeks ago a really well specced red touring with literally every extra on it with 19k miles for £21.5k on the AUC and it sold within 2 hours as my mate was after it, fast forward 2 weeks and it appeared on another car dealership (non AUC) for £26K and it sold pretty quickly, So you are also competing against trade for the real bargains, good luck with your search, And if you get a car pre June 18 definately get the MPPSK fitted.
Useful stuff - thanks. Is the privacy glass the same as the sun protection? I’ve seen sun protection specced on the vast majority, but not the privacy glass. Pano roof would be nice but probably not a deal breaker for me (I’ve got to compromise on something!). I specced it on my last car, but after the novelty had worn off, it was very rarely opened.Mine doesn't have the Pro sat nave (wider screen than the business) would have loved that ideally, Pano roof also don't have but would love it.
There is definately a big demand for the 340 Tourers at present as people seem to realise what a bargain they are, About 5-6 weeks ago a really well specced red touring with literally every extra on it with 19k miles for £21.5k on the AUC and it sold within 2 hours as my mate was after it, fast forward 2 weeks and it appeared on another car dealership (non AUC) for £26K and it sold pretty quickly, So you are also competing against trade for the real bargains, good luck with your search, And if you get a car pre June 18 definately get the MPPSK fitted.
I remember seeing the red one on BMW site - was somewhere near Heathrow I think? Looked fantastic with the black trim. Saw the 26k one with the other seller - didn’t occur that it was the same one. Maybe means the grey / red from last week may pop up soon, but there’s something odd going on with pricing if independents are sourcing stock from AUC!
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