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      02-28-2012, 02:53 AM   #1
mlai
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The new F30 from an F10 owner's perspective.....

Guys, slightly off topic but....

Test drove the F30 335i Sport today. Didn't even ask for it. My salesperson called me and asked if I wanted to go for a spin Not the perfect weather but.... Who am I to complain.....

The F30 335i sport was red. Looks good. Salesperson indicated that the F30 looks better with bright colors where as the F10 looks more classy with colder colors. I tend to agree. The red looked stunning on the F30.

I am not going to comment much on the obvious but it is a 3 and not a 5. No comparison in terms of classiness. F10 wins hands down in terms of luxury feeling. Looking at the interior of the F30, feels very cheap. Too cheap for a HKD767K 335i. At that price point, any reasonable FAMILY or EXECUTIVE will go for a 535i instead...... So who's going to buy the F30 335i? Hardcore enthusiasts?

This is what my biggest disappointment lies. Given that it is a 3 series, I fully expect that the F30 handles like a sport car. The 335i sport line included M Sport suspension. But I can't help but feel that my F10 feels more sporty than the F30 335i! Something is just not right. Steering of the F30 is WAY TOO LIGHT. Coming from a series of AMGs, I thought that the F10 steering was light, but has grown to love it now. The F30 in sport mode feels barely the same steering responsiveness as my F10 in normal mode! That's just not right. Test drove back and forth on Stubbs road this morning. Disappointing.

But it handles well for a sedan. Just does not feel that it is a sports car. Feels more like the A7 in steering response now. Steering feedback is also light. Lighter than my F10.....

Power? Well, the F30 335i has an abundance of it. I didn't step on it due to the road conditions (wet road, foggy, light rain). Throttle response was within my expectation but didn't blow me away. My 135i with N54 has way more kick (I didn't mod the engine in any way) than the F30 335i. So it does leave me feeling a tad unsatisfied. My F10 550i have way better throttle response (after throttle resets) than the new 335i.

So what do I like about it? The rear seats! Legroom has definitely improved from last gen 3-series. I would say the rear legrooms are on par with E39s now. But the rear seats and the aircon outlets looked real cheap to me.

Gadgetries? On par with the F10. But just feels a lot cheaper. The iDrive looks like cheap remote controls. The screen looks better than the F10 but it doesn't flip close like the A6, so it looks more like an after thought with the way it is presented. Oh, Eco mode is there. And i concurred that the execution of the start-stop is worse than the CLS350 that i tried last year. Very noticeable, and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. My salesperson can't figure out why either.

I wasn't particularly interested in the F30 4dr but I was interested in the convertible. But based on what my feeling about the F30 is right now, i think I will keep my 135i vert

PS. Salesperson said that 328i production are almost all sold out until fall. And that she's fielding inquiries for the 6GCs everyday after I told her what it was last year
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      02-28-2012, 03:54 AM   #2
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Good review, mlai.

I think the F30 interior may not be worse than the E90. It's just the F10 interior so exceptional.

I figured these F30 have to mod the heck out of them in order to make us satisfied, even the sport line. The M sport looks much better for the exterior but the interior is even more rustic. So I say just get the basic stock and spend $100-150k for mods, forget about the sport line, luxury line or whatever.

For me, F30 really doesn't draw my interest. Let's see the later M3 or M4 whatever.

BTW, just saw a frozen grey M5 at tin hau installing hi-fi. Really sick.
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Last edited by RC3; 02-28-2012 at 05:23 AM..
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      02-28-2012, 04:21 AM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RC3 View Post
Good review, mlai.

I think the F30 interior may not be worse than the E90. It's just the F10 interior so exceptional.

I figured these F30 have to mod the heck out of them in order to make us satisfied, even the sport line. The M sport looks much better for the exterior but the interior is even more rustic. So I say just get the basic stock and spend $10-15k for mods, forget about the sport line, luxury line or whatever.

For me, F30 really doesn't draw my interest. Let's see the later M3 or M4 whatever.

BTW, just saw a frozen grey M5 at tin hau installing hi-fi. Really sick.
Could very well be my brother-in-law's new car
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      02-28-2012, 06:30 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mlai View Post
Could very well be my brother-in-law's new car
Oh, most-likely. A couple was there actually, may be your sis and bro in law.

Are they doing hi-fi or alarm?

Are you suggesting them any mod plans? Morr?
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      02-28-2012, 10:41 AM   #5
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Not sure what they were doing.... Haven't checked with them yet.....
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      02-29-2012, 11:37 PM   #6
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Why does BMWHK make Sport Line the top Model?
Luxury Line should be the most expensive, isn't it?
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      03-01-2012, 04:30 AM   #7
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The start / stop only work when the battery is at a certain level (more then 70% I pressume) in order to preserve the battery as you know drawing the battery too much does no good to a battery you want to keep it near 70% at most time.

I bet the start/stop would perform even worst in the summer with the heavy load on engine so no start/stop is fine for me.

As for the price of the F30, I think for a few "skin" more, you will know what to buy with the same amount of money unless you are a hardcore enthusiast. I think BMWHK will lower the price once those hardcore guys gotten their hands on the F30, then maybe they will "hit spring" afterwards
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      03-01-2012, 08:03 AM   #8
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I test drove the 328i and finally bought a F10. F10 interior is way better!
and 700K+ for a 335i is quite pricey
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      03-01-2012, 12:28 PM   #9
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Nice review

Thanks mlai
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      03-01-2012, 06:05 PM   #10
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Nice review.

But I am curious about their entry level model which I believe might receive the tax refund from government and then becomes a deal breaker
Ok I am just day dreaming
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      03-01-2012, 08:23 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by donniemcm View Post
Nice review.

But I am curious about their entry level model which I believe might receive the tax refund from government and then becomes a deal breaker
Ok I am just day dreaming
Actually I heard from some source that says the base F30 (ie. 320) doesn't qualify for the tax refund as the car is not heavy enough compare to the F10 520. So hence the little price difference between the two.
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      03-02-2012, 06:00 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kcip View Post
Why does BMWHK make Sport Line the top Model?
Luxury Line should be the most expensive, isn't it?
Sport/Modern/Luxury all cost the same. It's just that Sport will become the most popular line among HK buyers and BMWHK hasn't bothered putting the prices of other lines on their price list.

Quote:
Originally Posted by extrawhite View Post
I test drove the 328i and finally bought a F10. F10 interior is way better!
and 700K+ for a 335i is quite pricey
Agreed, when you can buy a 535i GT (11/12) for "just" 668k...
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      03-08-2012, 11:52 AM   #13
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Excellent review, mlai

Agreeed with RC. As long as the engine and transmission is same, I rather get the base line and spend for mods. There will be tons of parts coming for F30...
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      03-09-2012, 08:18 AM   #14
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Nice review. Thanks mali.

I would like to get the E90 then mod it, instead of getting a brand new F30.

I was thinking of buying between E90 and F10, After sitting in both front and rear. I ended up getting a F10. Well...E90 is a good car but the interior is not my cup of tea. ^_^
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