Advice on G23

[ApproachingMidlifecrisis]

Hi all,

I've never owned a BMW before (or even a nice car) and I've decided it's time as part of my mid life crisis to get a convertible (convinced the wife it's better than running off with a younger model!). I’m very close to pulling the trigger on a 2021ish BMW G23 420i Convertible (want a decent boot and 4 seats). I've got about £25k to spend. Thought I’d sanity-check with people who actually own one, so help with any of these questions would be greatly appreciated:

- Is owning a convertible all it's cracked up to be or do you stop putting the roof down fairly quickly with the weather in the UK (and why)
- Is it noisier (or hotter in a heatwave) with the roof up than a normal car
- what options are worth having and what's not. I was thinking comfort pack (for warm air collar/heated steering wheel) and sports pro for the adaptive suspension. Lumber support doesn't seem to be available on most cars on the market (unfortunately for my back)
- What actually goes wrong with these, and when? Is this easy to spot when buying?
- do they start getting expensive to fix at higher mileage (50k+). Worth paying a lot more for lower mileage?

And most importantly:
What do you wish you knew before buying?

Cheers all. Much appreciated 👍

[John Henry]

I bought a G series 440. Fully loaded. The seller was a surgeon living in Bath. It had about 11k on it. Unusually for me, he drove it and I didn’t. It was under manufacturer warranty so I didn’t see the need. Went to town and transferred the funds. I drove it back to his house to complete paperwork.
Immediately on touching the brakes I could feel something was wrong. There was a distinct vibration, like the discs were warped. Seller denied any knowledge and I had paid at this point.
Long story short, the car had apparently stood (through Covid) unused an all four discs had enormous corrosion on the inner disc faces.
Heavy braking wasn’t shifting it. Ended up paying for new discs and pads at the front. After my pushing really hard, BMW made a goodwill contribution.
I’ve since read this issue isn’t uncommon. 21 plate. So watch for that.
The 440 is a quick car and dead easy to live with. Lovely on a warm day and still quite practical. Not at all common either.

[ApproachingMidlifecrisis]

Thanks John. That doesn't sound good. How much was that to fix (before BMW's good will gesture)? Cheers

[John Henry]

North of £600 from memory. Just check the brakes don’t feel graunchy.

[ApproachingMidlifecrisis]

Cheers

[bigdom]

John Henry said:

North of £600 from memory. Just check the brakes don t feel graunchy.

It normally comes from people washing cars, then not moving them. You get pad transfer, which can be removed, but not straightforward

[bigdom]

ApproachingMidlifecrisis said:

Hi all,

I've never owned a BMW before (or even a nice car) and I've decided it's time as part of my mid life crisis to get a convertible (convinced the wife it's better than running off with a younger model!). I m very close to pulling the trigger on a 2021ish BMW G23 420i Convertible (want a decent boot and 4 seats). I've got about £25k to spend. Thought I d sanity-check with people who actually own one, so help with any of these questions would be greatly appreciated:

- Is owning a convertible all it's cracked up to be or do you stop putting the roof down fairly quickly with the weather in the UK (and why)
- Is it noisier (or hotter in a heatwave) with the roof up than a normal car
- what options are worth having and what's not. I was thinking comfort pack (for warm air collar/heated steering wheel) and sports pro for the adaptive suspension. Lumber support doesn't seem to be available on most cars on the market (unfortunately for my back)
- What actually goes wrong with these, and when? Is this easy to spot when buying?
- do they start getting expensive to fix at higher mileage (50k+). Worth paying a lot more for lower mileage?

And most importantly:
What do you wish you knew before buying?

Cheers all. Much appreciated ?

A convertible will always be noisier than one with a solid roof. Regarding mileage, I sold one of my BMW's last year with nearly 160k on it, it had never broken down, or thrown a major bill. Unless you looked at the dashboard, you wouldn't have known. Would happily sit at autobahn speeds.

The 420i comes with a closed deck engine based on the B58 (440i), which has proven to be a very reliable engine. The roof mechanism/potential for water in the boot would be the things to consider. My mate recently came out of his convertible, and bought a X3 M40i, which he personally prefers.

The question really is how much do you want to have the roof down? I have a panoramic in one of the cars, and only tend to have it open when pottering around in the South of France.

[CantDecide]

Not a 4 series, but I bought a G29 Z4 which is a soft top, my first one. With with the roof up it is very civilised and a nice place to be. However the soft top will make some movement noises, particularly on our rough roads, you will hear fabric rubbing and light creaks, but nothing too bad. Of course having the roof down is where it’s at, both my wife and I love that at every opportunity. If you don’t see yourself doing that often then don’t buy a soft top as the downsides will outweigh the upsides.