[nadeem]

Originally Posted by graaja

Thank you for the feedback. This is very helpful. I will go with the original quoted IDV of 33.3L if the difference is very high for a 35L IDV. I will also talk to the agent and find out if they refund the full IDV or market price.

@graaja I recently renewed my insurance for my 3GT (1yr renewal). I went for the TATA AIG instead of ICICI since the price difference was way too much. I got the initial quote at 74K for 3667550 IDV (I had heavy discounts when I got my GT, so the IDV was already low to start with) and the packages were (Zero Dep + RTI + (Engine Protect + Hydrostatic loss) + Tyre Protect + Key loss + consumables + RSA). I tried other sources and told the dealer that I got a quote from another agent for same coverage at 66K. So the dealer later gave me an offer at 67.8K premium amount and a payment discount of 3.8k. Basically my insurance states 67.8k premium on paper and I pay 64k. Since it was directly from the dealer I went for it.

The RTI itself had bumped up the premium by 10.5k. So if you are not taking that I would assume your premium should have been much much lower (55 - 58K I would assume). I am sure you can just claim that you got a much better offer from another agent and they might do an even better offer .

[Turbanator]

Originally Posted by graaja

Which version is this?

Originally Posted by ramsi

for this which model and wonder if anyone knows if some of this can be an upgrade to existing models. Its tech after all

It’s the current version ID 7 or Live Cockpit. Most of the newer models are fitted with this.

Though it’s possible to retrofit some of the older generations as upgrade, not aware if there are options for this yet.

[graaja]

Front brake pads and discs replaced:

As promised by the service manager, he sent a driver to pick up the GT on 2nd February at 9:30AM. They replaced the front brake pads and discs and returned the car by 4:30PM. The car was quite dirty from the recent Munnar trip. It returned back clean and shining. Another totally satisfactory service experience from Kun BMW.

Below are the invoices of the spare parts and labor. As the car is under BSI, I did not have to pay anything. My understanding is that if the car is not under BSI, then the labor charges may be slightly higher.





Finalizing insurance:

Originally Posted by nadeem

I went for the TATA AIG instead of ICICI since the price difference was way too much...

Originally Posted by Hayek

I use Tata AIG for my car...

Originally Posted by Turbanator

If I am not mistaken, AIG has special relations with BMW...

Thank you all for the valuable inputs regarding insurance. After seeing the Tata AIG quote from @nadeem, I went back to the dealer and asked him what is the reason for the high premium compared to what @nadeem got, as I did not go for RTI. He told me there are two reasons for this.

1. My policy has 3rd party component, which @nadeem's would not have due to 3 year coverage new cars get.
2. My car is now in the 4th year. Because of this the premium for zero dep is higher.

He still revised the quotation and brought down the premium to 69K. I am going to go ahead with this quote and renew.

[mrugu]

Folks

I have a 2019 330i GT MSport. While the basic audio system is good, it is definitely not up to the mark for a car of this class and price.

As someone who cares about the audio quality, are there any good aftermarket options available to upgrade? If yes - what does it mean in terms of warranty? Will BMW void the warranty etc?

Any guidance appreciated. I am based in Pune but open to getting the upgrade done in Mumbai as well.

[graaja]

Originally Posted by mrugu

Folks

I have a 2019 330i GT MSport. While the basic audio system is good, it is definitely not up to the mark for a car of this class and price.

As someone who cares about the audio quality, are there any good aftermarket options available to upgrade? If yes - what does it mean in terms of warranty? Will BMW void the warranty etc?

Any guidance appreciated. I am based in Pune but open to getting the upgrade done in Mumbai as well.

If you cut or splice any wires, then definitely the warranty will be void for some systems at least. Which systems will depend on what BMW thinks the installation may affect.

You could try BavSound systems. These are drop in replacement to the BMW speakers and I have read very good reviews about these. At some point, I was thinking of doing this upgrade. But as I don't listen to music that much during the drives, I dropped that idea.

[Arjun Reddy]

Tax Collected @ Source on your Brake Pad/disc invoice.

Is this a new regulation?

Not sure I have noticed this before on my service invoices. The government seems to be tracking Maintainance bills now. Interesting.

[mrugu]

Originally Posted by graaja

If you cut or splice any wires, then definitely the warranty will be void for some systems at least. Which systems will depend on what BMW thinks the installation may affect.

You could try BavSound systems. These are drop in replacement to the BMW speakers and I have read very good reviews about these. At some point, I was thinking of doing this upgrade. But as I don't listen to music that much during the drives, I dropped that idea.

Thanks graaja. Looked them up and seems like this is a purchase to be done when I am in the US or Europe next!

[graaja]

Originally Posted by Arjun Reddy

Tax Collected @ Source on your Brake Pad/disc invoice.

Is this a new regulation?

Not sure I have noticed this before on my service invoices. The government seems to be tracking Maintainance bills now. Interesting.

I stopped even trying to understand the taxation system. Thought TCS is another tax like CGST, IGST, Cess etc.

[showboat]

Originally Posted by graaja

Insurance Renewal:

It's time to renew the insurance policy. I have received three quotes from the dealer.

1. ICICI Lombard, IDV 35L, premium 1.05L
2. Bajaj Allianz, IDV 35L, premium 83K
3. Tata AIG, IDV, 33.3L, premium 71K

All the above are with zero dep + consumables + engine cover. Tata AIG also adds tire protection, key replacement and roadside assistance which are not part of ICICI and Bajaj.

As all these are issued by the dealer, they all support cashless claims. So I am thinking of going with Tata AIG.

Is there any reason I should choose Bajaj over Tata - like claim rejections even after the cashless tie up?

PS: I guess I may get better quotes if I were to go shopping in sites like policy bazaar. But ever since the insurance claim I had with the Jetta which was very smooth because the dealership handled all the formalities, I prefer to get the insurance from the dealers for that peace of mind.

Hi Graaja,
Love this thread and your fitness journey. Its been a fantastic read. Keep it up.

Regarding insurance: BMW usually has a cashless process with ICICI and HDFC Ergo and maybe 1-2 more. If you stick with whichever ones they are working with they will still handle all the formalities even if you bought the insurance through someone else. Kun Chennai has done everything for us via ICICI initially (someone smashed the side mirror of our X5) and even now with HDFC Ergo.

I've found the best deals is through your relationship manager at your bank. This obviously is only an option if they are cashless with BMW. HDFC has given us great deals (20-30% less than dealer quote at least) and the same with ICICI. The added bonus is you don't get hassled every year by the calls from brokers after registering on PolicyBazaar, CoverFox, etc.

[ramsi]

A GT joins a GT - White BMW 330i M Shadow Sport Unveiled

Not trying to take away your thunder Ganesh - coincidently I have a Polo GT too.

Originally Posted by graaja

Had a wonderful drive to Munnar. Once I hit the hills, all the resolution went away like new year gym resolution.

Well, when I drove the Polo GT, it usually was with a zest for thrill. I did a Goa (North) to Pune (Race Course). She was an absolute beauty that day. Travelling alone allowed me to exercise freedom on various stretches of the road. As I had said in my previous reply, when my baby comes back, I'll discuss my so called resolutions (New Year or otherwise).

When I got the 330i M-Sport, I decided to try and limit my need for speed to 60 km/h for local drives within confines of Goa and set a notification via the iDrive to Ding at 55 km/h as a cautionary reminder. But, within a span of just under 3 or 4 months, trying to maximise FE and be a model citizen, I got fed up of the limiter and went back to the old caged animal let loose mode. Well, just as you discarded your resolution in Munnar. Having got to know her, by this time there is not a single road that has not seen or heard the roar and felt the whoosh of the Feisty Feline on its roads where permitted.

I have no regards to FE whatsoever. So much for resolutions. However, at most times, the 330i is driven on Eco Pro Mode.

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

BTW, I noticed that your tripmeter was not reset for over 6,000km

In response after graaja
I personally started using the trip meter to see the fuel efficiency of the car and gauge the real consumption on filling a tank vs the computed one by the electronics of the car. I found BMW’s readings were quite close, though not accurate. Reasonably impressed with BMW. Plus I wanted to see if, with my new style of driving, the car would give me double-digit efficiency. How wrong was I to even dream that I’d achieve this and like graaja, I stopped looking at the range and FE in the car. The closest I got was 9km/l.

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

Maybe I am too greedy for data :-)

Sadly, I never cared much for data points or stats as a real and true car enthusiast, I was more interested in the dynamics of a car and its performance than to care about FE or stats. The thrill is the car and the nature of the drive. For me, the car is a tool that fulfils the purpose of fun, thrill, ride, and the journey experienced. The rest is sort of nerdy data (no offence meant). Plus in Europe, where most of my time was spent, there was a total disregard for FE when it came to car buying. The phrase “kitna deti hai”, a stroke of genius marketing, was totally alien in the EU/UK (in the old days). Now, environmental pressures have driven this point home finally.

Originally Posted by graaja

I only use the short term trip meter that I monitor for every session. This meter gets auto reset after a few hours.

I did not even know that this facility was a available in the car. There's so much to learn from BHPians.

Originally Posted by graaja

Insurance Renewal:

Originally Posted by showboat

Hi Graaja,
I've found the best deals is through your relationship manager at your bank. This obviously is only an option if they are cashless with BMW.

Learnt my lesson. Always get advice on Team-BHP site before committing. It seems I’ve been bamboozled in Goa. Look at the IDV I’ve got and the price I've paid in my previous post .

C’est LaVie.

Originally Posted by graaja

Thank you so much for your kind words ramsi Looking forward to pictures of your 330i.

Well here goes. Here is a teaser of my baby now - The Feared (revered) Feline Beast

This 1st one shows the tyre tread with the classic red mud of Goa to bring a little local character to the car:








This last one in BW:


It is an actual picture with a wide-angle lens and is a play on the movie Christine (1983) Trailer #1 (search term on YouTube). Interested BHPians can watch to understand why I've called mine The Feisty Feline above.

She had turned 2 in January. I thought I'd give her some TLC. She’d been pranged by scooters on the bumper and had a small knock on the offside wing. I got that done, then had it cleaned and polished at M-Benz () as they had done a good job last time.

The side skirtings had borne the brunt of continuous road works over the last 18 months, plus the tar had splashed on the side skirts and fender with a few spots hardened, despite initially cleaning them with a bit of diesel. The majority came off, but sadly, it seems the hot mix had burned into the paintwork and despite the polishing, the spots have not completely come off. Yellow satins remain. It's not shown clearly in the pictures.

I have an independent body / coachworks kid who does a marvelous job of our other company cars. He will repaint the two sides entirely. He won’t be using water-based paints as used by major car manufacturers, but normal solvent based ones. Senior BHPians if you feel that is not a wise decision, please feel free to comment. AFAIK, I believe that in the end, the top coat used by the reputable car companies is solvent based.

Will post updates when it’s back from the touch up of the skirtings. Not happening for a couple of weeks.

[hurtem]

Graaja this was a very helpful thread and really helped me seal my getting a pre worshipped Sportline 320d GT. I’m considering several mods as it’s out of warranty and will look into your suggestions there.

[graaja]

Originally Posted by hurtem

Graaja this was a very helpful thread and really helped me seal my getting a pre worshipped Sportline 320d GT. I’m considering several mods as it’s out of warranty and will look into your suggestions there.

This is awesome! Congratulations on your GT. It is a great practical car. Wishing you tens of thousands of miles and smiles. Post some pictures of your steed.

[graaja]

5th Oil Service:



A couple of weeks back, got the notification for an oil change. As I had a trip to Coorg coming up the last weekend, I called up BMW and set up an appointment for Wednesday evening. Due to some work, I could not take the car to the workshop this time as I usually do. The service manager Mr. Karthik was very helpful and he said he will arrange a driver to pick up the car and drop it after service. As promised, a driver came and took the car on Wednesday. As there was an air filter that had to arrive by courier on Thursday, they completed the work and delivered the car as promised on Thursday. As usual, extremely happy with the service from the dealership.

Astrophotography Event at Coorg:

Drove to Coorg during the weekend to attend an astrophotography event. This was a small event where a few fellow astrophotographers decided to spend a couple of nights at Thala Cauvery in Coorg and do some visual astronomy and photography. I carried two mounts, two telescopes, a few cameras and accessories. And we were three traveling in the car. Folded the 60% of rear seat and the boot gobbled up all the equipment. There was an extremely bad stretch of road between Hassanur and Chamrajnagar. For about 8km, the road literally did not exist and it was like offroading. Though the car managed all the bad roads without scraping, it did scrape on a couple of humongous speed breakers. This car never ceases to surprise me in all my adventures

At Coorg, it was a mixed experience. The first day was a disaster. Sky was covered with clouds till midnight. When the sky cleared up, I had lots of equipment issues. I had made the mistake of taking a new camera that arrived just the day before and I had not set it up. Could not get it to focus in the night. Also, there was lots of dew which further worsened the situation. Solved these problems the next day. A fellow astrophotographer rigged up a DIY dew heater made of nichrome wire. This heater when connected to a power bank keeps the lens of the telescopes a couple of degrees above ambient which prevents fogging. Also fixed the focus issue in the camera. Except for occasional clouds rolling in (and spoiling many photos), got clear skies on the second night. Managed to click a few pictures of some celestial objects. A few pictures from this drive.

The gear.


The boot gobbling up all the gear.


Some beautiful roads.




Some not so beautiful roads. The road in this picture is the best of the worst. In some other sections, there were humongous craters. Took me 45 minutes to cover an 8km stretch.


A few customary coffee stops.






A few car pictures





Unloading the equipment.


Setting up the telescope.


The complete gear including the dew heaters - the rings covered by packing tape. Though this was a quick jugaad, without this it would not have been possible to shoot anything.


The DIY dew heaters. He made quite a bunch of them to help everyone.


Few setups from fellow photographers.



A few pictures of deep space objects shot during the session.

Bode's Galaxy (the big disc on the left): This galaxy is 11.74 million light years away from earth and 45,000 light years in radius. Cigar Galaxy (the thin one resembling a cigar on the right): This galaxy is about 11.4 million light years away from earth and is about 18,500 light years in radius.


Markarian's chain: A group of galaxies at 50 to 55 million light years from earth. These galaxies move synchronized and form a pattern like a chain.


Trifid Nebula (bottom left): This nebula is situated in the Milky Way galaxy 5,200 light years from earth with a radius of 21 light years. This nebula is a star forming region and gives birth to many new stars. Lagoon Nebula (top right): This nebula is situated in the Milky Way galaxy at a distance of 4,077 light years with a size of 55x20 light years.

[Dr.AD]

Absolutely fantastic photos Graaja! Both of the 3GT and the deep space objects :-)

The photographs of the galaxies and the nebulae are really fantastic. Thank you for sharing those. It is clear that you have studied this subject well and mastered this art too. Your passion and more importantly the preparation and hard-work is clearly seen through this post!

Also, great to see you could carry all your equipment so easily in the 3GT. This would never have been possible in the 3 sedan. You are really putting the 3GT to the best possible use.

You are an inspiration to many of us, be it your fitness posts, triathlon stories, now your astrophotography stories, or just the way you exploit the full potential of your 3GT! You are a true hero!

[androdev]

Wow. I once bought a telescope to impress my kids but I could not graduate beyond the moon :-) I would have guessed these photos to be from Hubble/NASA!

Also I am relieved to know you eat cake and bread. Lol.