Moving from 1.2 Swift to 3.0 M140i
Discussion
Hi all,
As it says on the tin - I’m making a pretty big upgrade in car choice next Saturday. I’ve got an advanced driving lesson booked in for the 31st, but in the meantime are there any tips for me so that I can avoid making a ditch my humble abode?
It’ll be my first time in an automatic and a RWD too so any tips are welcomed!
P.s. also my first time posting - go easy on me? 🤣
As it says on the tin - I’m making a pretty big upgrade in car choice next Saturday. I’ve got an advanced driving lesson booked in for the 31st, but in the meantime are there any tips for me so that I can avoid making a ditch my humble abode?
It’ll be my first time in an automatic and a RWD too so any tips are welcomed!
P.s. also my first time posting - go easy on me? 🤣
both cracking cars in different ways...
just take it easily - people don't crash / die because they buy a more powerful car - it happens because they lose all common sense in how to drive...
both cars will do 30 round a corner or both can do 100+ in a straight line and not make it around the corner!
As above - subtlety with the right foot is key
And make sure you have really good tyres (Michelin PS4 type of tyre)
and then enjoy it
just take it easily - people don't crash / die because they buy a more powerful car - it happens because they lose all common sense in how to drive...
both cars will do 30 round a corner or both can do 100+ in a straight line and not make it around the corner!
As above - subtlety with the right foot is key
And make sure you have really good tyres (Michelin PS4 type of tyre)
and then enjoy it
The M140i is a pretty easy and docile car to drive normally so as long as you respect the throttle and don't go in for any "watch this" moments, you should be fine. If you want to explore what it can do in a safe environment, I can highly recommend Don Palmer's course (http://www.donpalmer.co.uk/car-control.html) although you'll want to budget for a new set of tyres too 
Enjoy!
Chris
Enjoy!
Chris
Be prepared to only have fun in that car at license loosing speeds. Unlike the swift which is fun a legal speeds. 
Seriously though. This time of year is the time when most folks not used to power and/or RWD bin there cars. As during the day its dry, fairly warm and all is good but mornings and evenings temps are below 10D and the roads are wet. So the handling of the car can be quite different depending on the time of day. Add in your car will almost certainly have low profile summer tyres, these tyres start to loose grip below 10 Degrees and as it approaches freezing they are pretty poor.
This is stuff that in your FWD swift are not such a big deal. It just spins it front wheels at best and maybe a bit understeer, In the BMW, not so lucky.
Best advice drive it with a healthy sense of fear until you've got past your first winter.
Seriously though. This time of year is the time when most folks not used to power and/or RWD bin there cars. As during the day its dry, fairly warm and all is good but mornings and evenings temps are below 10D and the roads are wet. So the handling of the car can be quite different depending on the time of day. Add in your car will almost certainly have low profile summer tyres, these tyres start to loose grip below 10 Degrees and as it approaches freezing they are pretty poor.
This is stuff that in your FWD swift are not such a big deal. It just spins it front wheels at best and maybe a bit understeer, In the BMW, not so lucky.
Best advice drive it with a healthy sense of fear until you've got past your first winter.
For a (reasonably) powerful RWD car it's pretty benign, most of the time you're just driving a midsized family hatch. The car is setup for natural understeer and there's tons of grip at both ends, wet or dry. You will need to get used to driving along barely touching the loud pedal as you simply don't need to press it much to keep pace with traffic easily. You will not get the rear end to slide unless you are driving like a cock but you will light up the inside tyre pulling out of junctions at which point the E-LSD and traction control spoil the fun so much you'll be hardly accelerating.
In snow the combination of E-LSD, RWD and summer tyres make it truly hopeless: unless you want to fit a real LSD then winter tyres are the way to go and now is the time to fit them.
In snow the combination of E-LSD, RWD and summer tyres make it truly hopeless: unless you want to fit a real LSD then winter tyres are the way to go and now is the time to fit them.
That's a massive upgrade - congratulations! 
As others have already said don't just jump in and boot it, especially when there is a corner involved. Take some time to get used to it and get a feel for how RWD drives differently then slowly work your way up from there.
And I'd echo the comment about winter tyres - if it snows don't expect to cope with even an incline unless you have winter tyres fitted. I've been putting them on my BMWs for years and they are so much better - even in the wet at lower temperatures like we are about to get.
But most of all have a great weekend.
As others have already said don't just jump in and boot it, especially when there is a corner involved. Take some time to get used to it and get a feel for how RWD drives differently then slowly work your way up from there.
And I'd echo the comment about winter tyres - if it snows don't expect to cope with even an incline unless you have winter tyres fitted. I've been putting them on my BMWs for years and they are so much better - even in the wet at lower temperatures like we are about to get.
But most of all have a great weekend.
Mr Tidy said:
That's a massive upgrade - congratulations!
As others have already said don't just jump in and boot it, especially when there is a corner involved. Take some time to get used to it and get a feel for how RWD drives differently then slowly work your way up from there.
And I'd echo the comment about winter tyres - if it snows don't expect to cope with even an incline unless you have winter tyres fitted. I've been putting them on my BMWs for years and they are so much better - even in the wet at lower temperatures like we are about to get.
But most of all have a great weekend.
....and be especially careful coming off roundabouts onto a dual carriageway. The temptation will be to boot it, as you have a nice long stretch in front of you.,...As others have already said don't just jump in and boot it, especially when there is a corner involved. Take some time to get used to it and get a feel for how RWD drives differently then slowly work your way up from there.
And I'd echo the comment about winter tyres - if it snows don't expect to cope with even an incline unless you have winter tyres fitted. I've been putting them on my BMWs for years and they are so much better - even in the wet at lower temperatures like we are about to get.
But most of all have a great weekend.
Ask me how I know?? Luckily I didn't hit anything
Lesson learnt in my first RWD car with only 120bhp!!Great news Mac - 3 hours is a decent 1st drive!
I managed to fishtail up the road leaving a roundabout on a damp Autumn day in my 1st car - a MK2 Cortina 1500 that may have had 60 bhp when it left the factory, but 9 years later probably only had 45 or so of them still working! But 155x13 tyres don't offer too much grip.
Teenage Kicks in action.
I'm just glad cars like yours weren't around back then!
I managed to fishtail up the road leaving a roundabout on a damp Autumn day in my 1st car - a MK2 Cortina 1500 that may have had 60 bhp when it left the factory, but 9 years later probably only had 45 or so of them still working! But 155x13 tyres don't offer too much grip.
Teenage Kicks in action.
I'm just glad cars like yours weren't around back then!
Congrats, nice purchase
Lots of good advice here already, especially good tyres plus traction control, I've been really impressed how well behaved my 350Z is in the wet with MPS4 and traction control on.
Worth making a mental note to keep checking the speedo for the first few trips in the new car, both the power, the auto box and the refinement may require you to recalibrate your judgement of speed.
One more thing, you may need to adapt your method of overtaking.
When I started driving I had nothing with more than 75bhp. My overtaking approach was to try and spot an opportunity in advance, fully depress my right foot, get a run-up at the dawdler, check if it's still clear, pull out, hopefully manage to get ahead, pull back in and only then consider removing my right foot from the carpet - I would be at full throttle throughout the whole manoeuvre to maximise my speed.
When I got something with a bit more power, I suddenly found myself pulling back in behind the next vehicle going rather quickly, and got a bit of a shock. With 300hp you can wait behind in a position with a good view, when it's clear can boot it to get up alongside, then once you are alongside ease off and maintain speed while you complete the manoeuvre. Apologies if this sounds obvious when it's written out, somehow it wasn't to me when I got my first 'fast' car.
Have fun :-)
Lots of good advice here already, especially good tyres plus traction control, I've been really impressed how well behaved my 350Z is in the wet with MPS4 and traction control on.
Worth making a mental note to keep checking the speedo for the first few trips in the new car, both the power, the auto box and the refinement may require you to recalibrate your judgement of speed.
One more thing, you may need to adapt your method of overtaking.
When I started driving I had nothing with more than 75bhp. My overtaking approach was to try and spot an opportunity in advance, fully depress my right foot, get a run-up at the dawdler, check if it's still clear, pull out, hopefully manage to get ahead, pull back in and only then consider removing my right foot from the carpet - I would be at full throttle throughout the whole manoeuvre to maximise my speed.
When I got something with a bit more power, I suddenly found myself pulling back in behind the next vehicle going rather quickly, and got a bit of a shock. With 300hp you can wait behind in a position with a good view, when it's clear can boot it to get up alongside, then once you are alongside ease off and maintain speed while you complete the manoeuvre. Apologies if this sounds obvious when it's written out, somehow it wasn't to me when I got my first 'fast' car.
Have fun :-)
Gassing Station | Car Buying | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff