[Balster]

Hi to all,



well after saving for a new Jag XF 3.0D S Premium Lux for nearly a year, I plumped for a new 520D M Sport :-P

Jag gorgeous car in all respects. But then I had to take a F10 out to rule it out, and I ended up buying one.

Build quality in a different league, technology miles ahead and the BMW was the safer option(better MPG, residual etc..)



520D LCI M Sport:

Sport shift auto,

M Sport Plus package,

Professional Media Package,

Advanced Parking Package,

Driving Assistant Plus Package,

Lumbar Support,

VDC,

Multi Functional Dashboard,

Speed sign reading thingy,

Imperial blue xirallic metallic,

Oyster Dakota seats



And I got a double digit discount too from my local dealer after playing them off against a Broadspeed quote.

I'm toying with the idea of getting mudflaps on it - dealer says can't be done due to M Sport bodykit.



I'm more excited about the BMW than I would have been if I had ordered the Jag.

My first BMW, so very excited and can't wait until 1st March 2014.



I've already started reading the instruction manual, what else can I do to make the time go by quicker?



I've been reading the posts on this excellent forum for a few weeks now, and there are some great posts on here.

Hopefully I will be able to contribute to them too. I will post pics when I get the car.



I will probably go for the dent and scuff removal package from the dealer.

From what I have read, the paint protection is a rip off. I want that gorgeous new car smell though!

Insurance with the options will be interesting...£358





Cheers.

[Beancounter_74]

Congratulations on your order, you've chosen a great car with a very nice spec .
I've just passed 2,500 in mine and it's brilliant.
You might want to take a look at the coding threads and see if there's anything that you'd like to get done - I've just built the cable and am waiting to download the software.
Apart from that, sit tight, read up on here and enjoy the moment when yours arrives

[B33M3R]

Hi and welcome, nice choice of options you've got there. You definitely made the better choice going for the BMW IMO.

The only thing I'd say about your chosen options is have a think about whether or not the VDC is really worth it on the M-Sport.

You'll only be able to soften things up and so far I've found the passive M-Sport suspension just right, just firm enough to have a bit of fun for such a big car and quite forgiving on the bumpy horrible Fen roads, entirely subjective though this one. Nearly a £1000 saving or towards something else there.

So far as paint protection, unless you're getting it free or heavily discounted it's pretty much snake oil. You'd do better putting the £500 odd Seal & Protect price towards a full set of home detailing products IMO. You can actually buy the Autoglym Life Shine on ebay for about £40 which is basically what BMW Seal & Protect is anyway.

Have you considered the Adaptive Headlight Light option? It's very impressive especially with the new version of the High Beam Assist? Function like the LED headlights in the demo vids.

So far as insurance, I was pleasently surprised also. 35yrs, full NCD with the Mrs named whose 27, £370 with business use, legals, protected NCD, the lot. Must be getting old!

[Lee]

Congrats and welcome.

[Piers]

Hi and welcome, nice choice of options there. I am 1800 miles into mine now and it is awesome.

[Balster]

I went for the VDC, because the roads up here in Yorkshire are a nightmare, so many pot holes and missing bits of tarmac.
The saleslady did say that you have to be a professional racing driver to notice the difference between VDC and M Sport. The car has been ordered and I want it for 1st March. If I remove the VDC, the car will proabably be delayed. The car starts prodcution on the 3rd Feb.
I did fancy comfort seats though - Wife is only 5 feet tall and struggled with some of the seat controls.

To VDC or not to VDC - that is the question.

[Balster]

Bugger! I was always on the fence when it came to VDC, but B33M3R yo have convinced me that it was a mistake. Just dropped my dealer a line to remove VDC and replace it with Adaptive lights and the lane warning system - I did fancy these tow ptions, espicially the lane changing system. When I drive to the in-laws in London, it can be a scary place to drive and the lane changing system will be a useful device.
If I have to delay the car by a couple of weeks than so be it. Marry in haste and all that....

Did anyone sign up for the BMW Smart Dent removal scheme when they bought their car?
I may go for it - stone chips and mums in their 4x4s in car parks!!

Cheers.

[B33M3R]

Lol, initially I was going for the VDC but my sales guy, who's also a friend I went to school with, said he wouldn't personally spec it on the M-Sport unless I wanted to be able to soften it up.

Like I've said, this is a very personal thing but for me I often drive on pretty crap Fen roads, full sunken sections, missing tarmac and pot holes and find the suspension perfectly forgiving. More so than the E90 M Sport I had previously.

So far as delaying the car altering your options, I really can't see as how changing any of your options would cause this. So long as the cars not locked in you'll be fine. Also, BMW's arrival dates seem to be a bit conservative so I'd wager you'll probably see it before March 1st in any case.

You won't be disappointed with the Adaptive's, great bit of kit!

[Beancounter_74]

I think you made the right choice re removing the VDC, the latest incarnation of the MSport suspension is superb and I think you'll be very impressed.

It seems that VDC is favoured by our friends over the pond as they do not get access to the MSport suspension for some bizarre reason.

[Balster]

Spoke to the dealer this morning.
Removed VDC and replaced with Adaptive Lights(& HBA) and Lane changing system.
Fortunately the car was not in the fixed build process, so I will still get the car for 1st March...phew!

Many thanks for the advice.

Cheers

[Piers]

Sounds great, but if you get the chance, add in folding mirrors for £300, and if you want to stream music from your phone over bluetooth, you need enhanced bluetooth too.

[B33M3R]

Oh Piers, now you've done it! Poor bloke.

Anyway, about the colour.......................only joking!

Nice work on the Adaptive's and HBA, you won't be disappointed, it's very snazzy.

I still reckon you'll be in it before March 1st.

[Balster]

I can't wait. I believe that it comes with the folding and dimming mirrors.
I will be plugging in a 32Gb USB stick with my music in it.
Something I did notice, was that the demo car did not find all of the tracks - must be something to do with recognising specific coded tracks - I will suss it out(I do work in IT).

[dippo]

Correct. The folding mirrors (430) are included in the Advanced Parking Package (ZGN).

[Piers]

Ambient lighting?

[Balster]

Piers = mr comedy :-)

I did have the Internet option on though. I do fancy listening to You Tube.
There must be a code to get this working when the car is in motion?

[Piers]

Sorry, been through the box ticking exercise myself recently, so I know how hard it is, but glad I went with my spec. Mind you that reversing camera is pretty cool, but had'nt time to investigate it when I ordered.

[B33M3R]

Originally Posted by Balster

Piers = mr comedy :-)

I did have the Internet option on though. I do fancy listening to You Tube.
There must be a code to get this working when the car is in motion?

You can stream (as well as store on the device) as much music as you like with Deezer via BMW Apps, which is pretty much the same as Spotify (if not bigger apparently) providing you have an iPhone.

I pay for Spotify which will stream via bluetooth but also get Deezer as a free swappable with Orange which fully intergrates via USB and I can confirm it works very well via the iDrive. Only whinge is that it doesn't appear to list out your music and allow you to scroll up and down the playlist as the iPod does, which is annoying if you have a very long playlist.

I've not had a massive chance to fully fiddle with it yet as I only got a new iPhone 5s for Christmas, before that I was on Android which doesn't play well with iDrive!

[Shake n Bake]

Hi Balster, congrats on taking the plunge. Nice spec. I've enjoyed the same colour combo myself for the past 3 years and I still really like it.

I'm about to replace it with another 5 series and popped into Jag and Audi yesterday, just so I could rule them out. Must say I was very impressed with the exterior and interior of the XF. Haven't driven one yet. Are you able to expand on what prompted you to turn away from the XF?

Thanks

[Balster]

The Jag XF is a great car I actually went as far as ordering one:
3.0 D S Premium Lux. Stratus Grey, Dark Draco Alloy Wheels, Meridian Surround System, Black Back, Ivory Leather & Rear parking Camera.
Great car, lots of kerb appeal. Super fast - 0-60 in 5.9 Secs, 600NM Torque Adaptive Suspension, heated & cooled seats etc..
I got 21% discount on the car too - £39k

Then I sat in the BMW and was blown away by the build quality and the technology. Jaguar can only dream to achieve that level of driver satisfaction.
The technology is out of this world compared to some of the pre-historic stuff that Jag has got.

I went back to two Jag dealerships and started 'moving' internal panels - they all moved! Not on the BMW though. The fit and finish on all of the Jags that I compared were ALL different, the BMW was consistent in that the fit and alignment of every car I looked at was perfect.
ALSO - The internal panels(eg cup holder covers) were ALL uneven and not flush, I only came across one XF were I would have said that the levelling was acceptable.
And like I keep telling my Wife, for the two weeks between me ordering the Jag and then ordering the BMW, it was painful - I doubted myself and the purchase. But with the BMW, I'm at ease with myself.


Go have a look at the Jag and make sure that you run your hands over all of the panels - do this on a few and you will see what I mean.
I also noticed that on some of the cars the boot was out of alignment on some of them - these were new cars in the showroom. Also there are gaps in the centre console. I don't beleive that Jag knows what the word snug means!


When I sat in the BMW in the showroom (530d had the M Sport Plus package) and connected my IPhone to listen to the sound from the Harmon Kardon system - I was convinced immediately. The sound quality blew the Jags, top end Meridian sound system away.


Cheers

[Shake n Bake]

That is really, really helpful. Thank you. I only stood at the open doorway and visually was impressed. I will do what you say and have a thorough inspection and test drive.

Will have a chat with my neighbour tonight when he comes home from work at nearby Jaguar and put those points to him. He's pretty honest about the competition and owned a 5 series before his promotion landed him a Discovery for about £200 a month!

[hajmuntz]

Originally Posted by B33M3R

Hi and welcome, nice choice of options you've got there. You definitely made the better choice going for the BMW IMO.

The only thing I'd say about your chosen options is have a think about whether or not the VDC is really worth it on the M-Sport.

You'll only be able to soften things up and so far I've found the passive M-Sport suspension just right, just firm enough to have a bit of fun for such a big car and quite forgiving on the bumpy horrible Fen roads, entirely subjective though this one. Nearly a £1000 saving or towards something else there.

So far as paint protection, unless you're getting it free or heavily discounted it's pretty much snake oil. You'd do better putting the £500 odd Seal & Protect price towards a full set of home detailing products IMO. You can actually buy the Autoglym Life Shine on ebay for about £40 which is basically what BMW Seal & Protect is anyway.

Have you considered the Adaptive Headlight Light option? It's very impressive especially with the new version of the High Beam Assist? Function like the LED headlights in the demo vids.

So far as insurance, I was pleasently surprised also. 35yrs, full NCD with the Mrs named whose 27, £370 with business use, legals, protected NCD, the lot. Must be getting old!

Who did you insure through?