[AdiSinghV12]

TESTING, TESTING 3, 3, 3

Well well well, “3” is all that’s buzzing in my mind since the time I took the delivery of my BMW 3er this evening. An Alpineweiss III F30 320d it is, equipped with the M Performance Power Kit (MPPK). APPARENTLY, this is also my 333rd post here on Team BHP!

Here’s a little write up on how it all started;


ONCE UPON A TIME…
My desire to own a 3 series started about a decade ago when I had just stepped into my teen age. Someone in my neighbourhood had just imported a BMW. It was a 3xx and that was the very first time I had a proper look at a BMW inside out. Those were the days when a Bimmer was almost as exclusive as a Bentley is today. I was love-struck with the blue propeller badge, the kidney grille, the rear-wheel drive mechanism, in a nutshell with the whole concept of a BMW. The locality I lived in had many imported/exotic cars but nothing else attracted me as BMWs did. Owning the Ultimate Driving Machine before finishing college was added to my wishlist. I started with the scale models and I can recall that in my entire collection, my favourite was a white pull-back BMW, some variant lol, along with a white Audi TT. So this is how the scene was like until one fine day mom decided to get an X1 for general use at home. There’s also a 525d in the family but sadly I didn’t have a DL at that time which kept me away from the driver's seat of both of them initially. It was hard to resist but as they say the longer you have to wait for something, the more you will appreciate when you get it.


THE MAIDEN VOYAGE
It was only a couple of years back when I got the opportunity to get intimate with a BMW. I had visited Deutsche Motoren with a friend of mine to have a look at the E90 3 Series and took their Alpine White 320d Corporate Edition for a Test Drive. As soon as I pressed the start button there was a on my face and with the roar of the engine I finally entered the world of Sheer Driving Pleasure!

I lifted my foot off the brake and slightly caressed the gas and there we go. I started off carefully and was taking it nice and steady until reaching the Rajpath signal, which decided to turn red. The sales manager quickly explained me the ‘DS’ mode while we were at the signal. I gently moved the gear lever to the ‘DS’ and said let's give it a go while I rested my foot on the brake. The roads were surprisingly not so crowded and it seemed like a perfect setup to test a Bimmer. He advised me to go easy on the gas as it was an area which had lots of VIP movement and I was new to the ‘DS’ mode and according to him, it completely changed the car’s character. The roads were surprisingly empty. I waited until the signal turned green and as soon as I saw the green light I murmured a line inspired from the movie Iron Man (one of my favorite movies of all time), ‘Sharma ji, sometimes you gotta run before you can walk’, before floooring the pedal! The car pushed us back and had us glued to the seat. I didn't care much about anything else for the next couple of minutes and only the word 'Joy' can define that moment. It was not that I was driving rash or overspending on public roads, it was just that the car felt so much fun. It was the power of the moment...a moment of internal happiness. I’m bad at expressing happiness and excitement at times so the word ‘internal happiness’ should sum it up. I had finally found the reason which makes the BMW folks blabbering the word ‘JOY’.

We then stopped by at the side of the road to click some snaps and while I was at it a long lost uncle spotted us out of the blues and stopped by. He inquired what were we doing and I showed him the car and enthusiastically explained him about stuffs it had to offer. He didn’t seem too impressed and said that the interiors are too basic and didn’t look that great overall. Later on I too felt that the car is too basic and the absence of iDrive certainly made the car feel like a computer without the internet. His expression towards the car kinda took away my excitement to some extent but he decided to accompany us back to the showroom. His red-beaconed Montero followed us as he joined us in the car while we returned to the showroom. He too took the details such as pricing and specs of the car as I sat quietly. I told the manager that I'll get back in an year or so and even on hearing that I won't be buying it anytime soon, he seemed pretty interested on giving us the further details which was a nice gesture. Even though all the bells and whistles were missing I just wanted one as I was just spell bounded by the performance.


BUT THEN :(
Due to some unavoidable circumstances, the purchase got delayed and the E90 reached to it’s extinction globally, though it was still on sale in India I didn’t really want to buy a phasing out model and I knew by the time my purchase would go through there won’t be any E90s left anyway. The manager had told me that the new 3-Series (F30) was supposedly going to cost a lot more than the then incumbent E90 (which is true). Someone had told me that the upcoming F30 was going to be softer and comfort oriented. I was slightly disappointed on hearing all this and lost my enthusiasm to some extent and started considering the other alternatives such as the A4 and the C250 CDi.

The F30 finally launched and as soon as the pics were released I started getting messages from friends... the ones who knew how much I love the 3 series but personally, I wasn't very impressed when I saw it in the official pictures...but the very first glimpse of her in flesh and I was lovestruck! It was like love at first sight! I really tried hard to convince myself that I don’t like the car and tried to find as many flaws as possible but I didn’t succeed. I’m glad I didn’t! I was infatuated by the C250 at that time...Too bad the beautiful motor is now discontinued by Mercedes-Benz India.


ALMOST THERE
My initial budget was around 30L and I was considering the E90 320d corporate edition but the almighty sitting up there always has the best planned for us, and as soon as the things that delayed my purchase got sorted out, grandpa shocked me by saying that he has booked a better car, that is the Audi A6 for me. I was shaken until I came to know that he's still planning and about to book the car and it is not yet booked. I rushed to Audi Mumbai West and thought I'd check the car once anyway. I loved the way it looked but the absence of Quattro on the 2.0TDi was a deal breaker. It’s a disgrace that the Quattro is not given in a car costing around 50L on road. Had a fairly good experience and took the car to the Lokhandwala back road to see what it’s got. The SA was a nice fellow and tried to convince me that RWD/Quattro has no significance in everyday driving condition. "Sir kya karna quattro ya real wheel drive gaadi le ke!!? It's hardly of any importance" said the sales rep, I took the car to about 60kmph and took a sharp turn and bang goes his head on the window. There was a minute of awkward silence in the cabin after that. This was purely unintentional though as I was just curious to see how the car reacts but it felt like he has got his answer...as they say "action speaks louder than the words". I invited him to take my car for a ride and take the same turn in the 525d or X1 at double the speed and see the difference and I guess he had got my point by then. Overall, the car felt comfortable over the bumps and had features like Auto Hold, Air Suspension, etc but was just not enough to satisfy the petrol/diesel head in me. After returning to the showroom, he still tried to convince me to take the car as he had almost finalised the deal with my grandpa but it was a humble no from my end. I did give him few references though on which he worked upon. There was also a used S4 up for grabs but it had few cracks on the windshield to which he said it happened while cleaning... but I wasn't given a green signal for a used car.

I told myself and people at home that nothing else will work out and it has to be a F30 and without wasting any more time I decided to book the car. I had driven a friend's 320d before and since I was caught up with some work I couldn't take the official test drive before booking it but I didn't want to get back and delay my purchase just for the test-drive so I called Navnit Motors the same day and told them my requirements and asked for the proforma... I wanted the top end variant because the base one despite being well equipped lacked some features, here is a list of the differences between the base line and the luxury line:

• 209 W, 9 speakers vs 100 W, 6 speakers
• Glass sunroof, electrical
• 17" Multispoke rims with 225/50R17 Tires
• High-Res TFT instrument display with extended contents
• Lights package with ambient lighting
• Sport steering wheel
• Extended bluetooth with audio streaming
• Contact photo display (iDrive)
• Voice control
• Dakota leather upholstery

Then they weren't too sure of white and I wasn't flexible on the colour and only wanted a white or red. Didn't get any update until a couple of days and then I finally got a call from Swapnil, who's also a fellow bhpian and he said that the red one has a booking on it but he can arrange a white for me. He recommended me the saddle brown option for the interior and I'd like to thank him for this as the shade is just too good and I have already got lots of compliments on the upholstery colour. I didn't waste any more time and got the down payment done through RTGS and everything went hassle free there after. And finally, an Alpine White Bimmer was billed to my name!

I decided to manage the registration part myself this time and since it was going to take time, I thought I'd make this period fruitful so ordered the M Performance Power Kit (MPPK).

The overall booking experience was nice and even though there were slight delays here and there everything finished nice and smooth in the end it's all that matters...

I’d give the overall experience with Navnit Motors and Swapnil a 9/10.


AND FINALLY
Here she is!

"On her way home... "

"Nature's message... Mornings indeed sound pleasant after I got her and JOY is swinging this thing around with windows down, sunroof open when half the world is asleep"

"These eyes aren't blue (pun intended) but still it could hypnotise"

CREDITS
Special thanks to:
lapsi
akshay1234
taranonline
fre2bpowerless
karan561
GTO
bluebeem
imp!
///RMan


for their advices on various random stuffs!

[AdiSinghV12]

I had to send her to the service center just a couple of days after delivery following a minor incident and it was a bit heartbreaking but then I thought I'd utilize the opportunity and get some more "M dosage". The front bumper had received a small damage and the service folks said they will change the whole bumper under Insurance/BMW Secure. Since the front was anyway getting changed I thought I'd rather go the M Sport way instead of stock. When I consulted a fellow bhpian akshay1234 he said that it was 'god's signal for me to get the M Sport front...' and even personally the M-Tech has always been my favourite so went ahead and ordered the M Sport Aerodynamics Kit. They adjusted the amount for the stock bumper but still the difference was about thrice the price of the stock one as it had many additional child parts but I didn't think much as I had corrupted my mind by listening to people's opinion and looking at the pics and boy, even though my wallet took a good hit I just couldn't take my eyes of the car when I saw her at the workshop a fewww weeks later. It was worth every penny spent. The quality of the work done at Navnit Motors was truely top notch. Apparently the same workshop is also the authorised service centre for Rolls Royce Motor Cars so you can imagine the kind of equipments and dedicated workforce they have. After my car was done I had a good half n hour discussion with the general manager and the director on driving and our love for cars. Here's a pic of their bodywork garage;

After she was ready for delivery I got a call from the parts manager and he was like "Sir, your 'yum' sport is ready and it looks brilliant" All this while I use to think this is how his accent is like but when I the saw the car I came to the conclusion that it's not his accent, the car actually looks yumm
"So how's it like?", let me start off with the negative's first. Here's a list of stuffs I miss in my car;

• Auto Hold - Small but convinient feature
• Paddle Shifters
• Black Headliner
• Navigation

They aren't really big stuffs and not something to crib about but yes their addition would have been much appreciated. And now, here's my personal opinion on various aspects of the F30. If you find it biased, please bear with me as I have a personal soft spot for this car and it might reflect a bit in my writeup;

EXTERIOR
The first time I saw the F30 in flesh it was at a shopping mall in Mumbai. A promotional teaser campaign was going on where the car was put in a glass box, covered by balloons. As soon as the balloons disappeared the very first glimpse of her was enough to get me sold and I just couldn't take my eyes off it. After the M Sport attire and M Performance gloss black grille things have changed quite a bit...of course positively! In the metal, it looks special indeed, every inch the junior BMW ///M. The car looks like a baby beast and has a good road presence. The front bumper has an aggressive and in-your-face styling yet not too loud. The rocker panels are more sculpted than the plain looking stock side skirts and it stands out from the regular 3ers around. The rear 3/4 is quite muscular and from the back it can be easily mistaken for a F10 5 Series by a non-enthusiast. The 17" multispoke rims surprisingly goes will with the M Sport aerodynamic kit but I'm thinking of painting em black sooner or later. Do let me know your opinion on this. I do have a new set of rims planned (19" Vossen CVT OR M6 GC style) but it will be more of a mid life upgrade after I have put on some fair amount of miles on the ODO.

INTERIOR

The interiors, it's a blend of minimalism and high-tech. The instrument cluster consists of four gauges (fuel level, speedometer, tachometer, engine oil temperature) and below it there's a high-res TFT display which briefly shows stuffs like the driving distance, driving mode, time until your next service visit, audio playlist, who's calling etc. The layouts are clean and the iDrive is pretty intuitive too. Everything is well placed and next to the gear lever you'll find the Drive Experience Control button which can be used to alter the steering feel and throttle response. I'll write more about this in the Drive & Handling part. Coming to the seats and upholstery, the saddle brown colour looks rich and the fit & finish of materials are very good. The front seats are well bolstered and the comfort level is quite satisfactory. The passenger seat however feels a little low and would have been better if it could be raised to the same maximum height as the driver's seat. If there's one thing I could change about the car's interior it'd be the headlining. Personally i'd have preferred black / anthracite headliner but nevertheless, I'm trying to find a way out to get it done.

The rear, umm there's space, there's...who cares, it's a 3 series let's go drive.

DRIVE & HANDLING
Even though we have heard people say that the F30 has lost it's 'Bimmer-ness' it's not true at all. The drive and handling is certainly the USP of this car and this is what makes the F30 it's segment leader in India and around the globe. The 205 Deutsche horses under the bonnet is raring to go even at the slightest press on the gas and you can alter their mood / character by the 'Drive Experience Control' button next. Most of you have read about this in other ownership reviews but I'll still point out what they offer briefly;

Selecting one of the first three, i.e Eco Pro will simultaneously alter the throttle response, shifting time and steering response. The upshifts are very early and it goes lazy on the downshifts. I have been using this quite a bit thanks to the bumper-to-bumper traffic and from my observation, even the temperature seems to sore a little inside the cabin after you switch the car to Eco Pro and even though the car is running the compressor of the AC seems to stop for a while. The car get super smooth but kinda boring but you can cruise at 80kmph @ 1500-1800 rpm. You'll gain some miles as you drive in eco pro but they seem to disappear as soon as you change the mode to sports and drive like how she's meant to be driven.

The comfort mode is the default mode... Pretty satisfying for regular driving. The power delivery is sober and the car has enough oomph for regular city driving and that occasional quick overtaking but if you're still not satisfied, heck just press the Drive Experience Control button forward one more time and the sober 205 horses the will turn into hooligans. There's a quick downshift as soon as you press the sport mode button, floor the gas and you'll be pushed back to the seat without much delay. No turbo lag whatsoever. Every time I use this mode my cell phone, sunglasses and key fob and whatever is there in the storage space near the gear lever displaces from their original position and I have to find them when I stop the car at the signal

The steering weighs up nicely and is typical BMW and the shifting time is just perfect for spirited driving. I used to be a manual fan but the new ZF8 gearbox is just perfect and shifts exactly the way I'd have done in a manual car...or probably even better!

In a nutshell, it's a sweetheart of a motor and the beautiful ZF8 compliments it perfectly. It's like a marriage made in heaven and after the addition of M Performance Power Kit things have got even more sweeter and the car revs like a rev happy petrol. You feel the actual difference of the MPPK as soon as you cross the triple digit mark. I also have the X1 and the car seem to run out of juice after 150 kmph but this thing just goes on and on. It's tough to guess what speed you are doing until you take a quick sneak peak at the speedo and high speeds overtaking is much more fun. I just did my first outstation trip from Mumbai to Shirdi and I surprised myself on couple of occasions when I looked at the speedometer. The only downside is the car feels bouncy on uneven roads at high speeds but it seem to be getting better as the it was more prominent when the car was brand new.

If you look at the last picture of this post, the entire engine is well behind the front axle. This coupled with a light weight construction and 50:50 weight distribution makes the four pot F30s a seriously capable machine. Give this car a better suspension than the one offered in India and it can humble some sports cars around. You probably need to have a eight figure bank balance to own a perfect handling mid-engine sports car but kudos to BMW for having one on sale for pennies (in comparison). JOY is certainly BMW! All said and done, don't expect it to take sharp 90 degree turns. I have tried it on your behalf and it's not a wise idea.

If I type more it'd probably be all talk and no show so I'll let the pictures speak now and keep you guys posted with pics and videos.. Thanks for reading! Throw in your queries if you have any and I'll be happy to help. Cheers!

[cityvic]

Congratulations on the Ultimat3, Aditya.
Hoping to see the other upgrades you planning being fit fast.

Please share with us some more pictures of the car too.

Thanks
Rohin

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

[dean5545]

Was waiting for your review since long time!
Nice write up and keep updating.
Enjoy !

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by dean5545

Was waiting for your review since long time!
Nice write up and keep updating.
Enjoy !

Thanks buddy! I'll be ordering the carbon fiber lip spoiler and getting the diffuser wrapped in gloss black by next week. Will keep y'all posted.

[asivan]

Congratulations on a spectacular purchase What an amazing car! the F30 is one of my favourites, a perfect balance between sportiness and comfort.

Can you please share what are the upgrades included in the M Power performance kit?

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by asivan

Congratulations on a spectacular purchase What an amazing car! the F30 is one of my favourites, a perfect balance between sportiness and comfort.

Can you please share what are the upgrades included in the M Power performance kit?

Thank you! Well, the M Performance Power kit consists of a new ECU, a larger intercooler and few other small parts. The new figures are 205 bhp, 420 Nm which may not seem much on paper but practically it's quite impressive...and you can always add a universal tuning box such as JBD.

[rajushank84]

Congrats on the F30!

Originally Posted by AdiSinghV12

...I wanted the top end variant because the base one despite being well equipped lacked some features, here is a list of the differences between the base line and the luxury line:...

So did you get the baseline + packages added to it, or the luxury line?

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by rajushank84

Congrats on the F30!



So did you get the baseline + packages added to it, or the luxury line?

It's 2014 Luxury Line with;

• M Sport Kit
• M Performance Power Kit
• M Performance Gloss Black Grille
• M Sport Front ARB

[AdiSinghV12]

Quick update;

The car has completed 1500 odd kms in the last one month and I'd have said each and every kilometer was 'sheer driving pleasure' if only Mumbai's traffic was a little better

However, there are a couple of minor issues, number one - the right side projector went off on a couple of occasions and the other one is weird noise from the wiper. I have informed the same to the service manager at Navnit Motors and have been promised that the issues will be solved at the soonest so hoping to see it sorted out out when I'm back.

[AdiSinghV12]

Some better pics of her; Shout-out to ///RMan and Automobili Ardent for the photoshoot!

[sapeco]

Adi Congrats on your Ultimate Driving Machine. It sure looks absolutely stunning in White!. Wishing you a pleasant ownership and many many miles of happy driving.

One small request. I just wanted to know where you got the license plate and the holder from. It just complements the car beautifully. Cheers.

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by sapeco

Adi Congrats on your Ultimate Driving Machine. It sure looks absolutely stunning in White!. Wishing you a pleasant ownership and many many miles of happy driving.

One small request. I just wanted to know where you got the license plate and the holder from. It just complements the car beautifully. Cheers.

Thanks bro! You can get the license plate directly from germanplates.com. No hassles whatsoever.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by AdiSinghV12

However, there are a couple of minor issues, number one - the right side projector went off on a couple of occasions and the other one is weird noise from the wiper.

Hello Adi, first of all congratulations for the ///M. I know I am late to the party but nevertheless!

Any update on the above issues reported by you occurring on your car to Navnit Motors?

Anurag.