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Auto bending lights, as far i remember as of now. Plus, s60 comes with traditional Volvo safety systems, like bind sport warning, etc etc I don't exactly remember their names, though. I'll have to check brochure again to confirm them.

But most of them are something, you'll hardly ever use, rather you'll end up turning off most of them on your daily drives.

The C class does come with auto bending lights. It's such a boon in the ghats!

My comments were in regard with the Volvo V40 although the s60 shares most of them. Let Me just say that you will have to go through there brochure to see what they offer specially the V40. The list is too long and exhaustive to reproduce here. It does really make the X1 appear much less equipped.

In February, I had gone to see the older baseline X1 which was being offered at 23 lakhs OTR. Got into the car and it was a quick no, irrespective of the mouth watering price point to own a beamer. Then I saw a 3er, and checked it out just for the heck of it. After all, it was priced at 50% higher than the X1 that was shown to me. Anyway, the minute I got into the 3er, I knew that I liked it and that is what I wanted. I finally took delivery of a SportsLine in September, 2013.

All I would like to say is that you have to get into the car and see for yourself which one you like without even thinking about it. I guess you will just know without any reasons, without any arguments, without any logic. And btw, do not be afraid of the low GC. The 3er usually does not touch anything. I scraped only once in 4000 kms, and that too because the bump was really too high and I was just a tad bit fast.

So, I would suggest that you get into the car and let your heart decide.

Did you TD the X1 that time ? How did it fare with respect to the 3 series?

Navigation and 12gb hard drive are influencing your decision? Absurd to say the least. Any google phone will give you much superior navigation that also with traffic and most cars have USB slots that take 32GB pen drives.

Panoramic roof - maybe if it is really that important - it is your personal choice.

I think the older X1 baseline was too bare bone. If I am not wrong it had no iDrive and the new style of interiors.

The current X1 baseline also doesn't make sense in my opinion. It's only the Sport line that interests me.

Well, you are absolutely spot on with the getting in to the car feeling to decide which one is the right one. Will be doing it this weekend.

Having navigation system inbuilt compared to on phone is a much different experience and also much more convenient. Have experienced this in past.

Hard drive inbuilt is not a big point, just that it comes with navigation system.

Panoramic roof, personally I am not too keen on it but my wife is. And in near future my son, as I am sure the open roof will keep him in his car seat longer than otherwise.

But again, the decision will be taken after "feeling" both the cars. As of now the X1 looks stronger on paper based on my priorities mentioned in earlier posts.

Completely agree with Sandeep here, I have driven both cars, there may not be a huge difference in driving dynamics but still enough to like 3. Only good reason to choose x1 can be the price point. To me it's about whether I would like to spend that much extra for a better car or not.

I would agree with you but there are several things to consider in navigation:

Things are changing very fast in Pune/Mumbai/India, unlike in Europe/US, etc. If your navigation system gets no updates and has limited POIs, the in-built system will get useless very fast. Please do ask BMW how much they will charge for updates to the maps, etc.

Traffic info is not available in this in-built system.

Isn't panoramic roof the one that doesn't open and is fixed? Something like the Evoque or what Volvo calls the moon roof in its V40.

Price difference is also one of the factor I am inclined towards X1 but it's definitely not going to be "the" deciding factor. I am willing to compromise on driving dynamics (only a little, that's why X1 and not C or A4) for comfort and practicality.

Thanks for the important tip!
I will discuss this in detail with BMW guys to understand all pros and cons.

I believe so and yes they call it moon roof. Anyways, opening roof in our conditions is useless, unless of course during world cup days. lol:

Well, I did have a short drive in the X1 but by that time I was no longer interested in it. Also, the 3 that I test drove was a CBU and the way the suspension tightened in the Sports mode was awesome. I really cannot give a comparative feedback between the two.


I agree that the X1 was too bare and without the i-Drive et al but the feel that you get once you are inside the 3 is very different from what you get in the X1. And, I just hated the layout of the dials in the E90 version.

It will be interesting to note that although I wanted the i-Drive at that time, now I turn it off when I drive. I even turn off the live feed in the MID. I find it too distracting while driving. At the same time, I do use it by turning on the trip info at the start of the trip but I check it only when I am not driving. At night, the i-Drive gives out a significant glow and it feels much better when is turned off. Of course one can reduce the brightness but I prefer to turn it off to avoid getting distracted.

As far as the Navigation is concerned, I feel that while it is very necessary in Europe and USA due to lack of people on the road, in India, it is more of a toy.

Also, if you are not going to push your car and if you are also interested in toys, you could also check out the A4 for its higher trim and toys.

Will be taking delivery of a 320d Sport line in first week of January.
Have following questions regarding the initial to do's immediately after delivery:

1. What kind of protective coating I should be going for?

2. Is under body coating/protection required for this car?

3. Planning to buy all weather sports mats from BMW for 20k. Is there better option? Want to buy red and black combination mats.

4. Is there a run-in period for these cars?

5. Any other specific thing which I should be aware of.

Will be doing a full PDI once the car reaches the yard.

1. Paint protection should be done. Costs about 7k from the dealership.

2. Under body protection I'm not sure. I don't think it's required.

3. All weather rubber mats jet black cost 4800 from the dealership. I think 20k for sports mats is insanity.

4. I was warned not to cross 120kmph for the first 2500 km

Paint protection and under body coating are something that depends upon you. I have never for them done and all my cars have turned out fine till now.

Mats at 20 k? If you think they are worth the price then why not?

Run in period is for 2k kms. You are not supposed to cross 3.5k rpm. Mentioned in the manual. Good part is without manual shifts you would never cross that mark. Even at sports mode the car shifts around 3k rpm unless you are really standing on the race. So you are more or less safe.