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Post by johnc on Sept 10, 2021 8:44:37 GMT
I have a new 420D in black today with quite subtle red leather. I think it is the MSport but I can't be sure. It is kitted out with all the driver aids, adaptive cruise, head up display etc and it is really nice to drive. Apart from the 4 cylinder diesel sound, there aren't many complaints about the way it covers the ground. It has a really good ride on its 19" wheels, corners flat and has pretty quick steering which is perhaps a smidge light but very direct. It is quiet, comfortable and well finished inside.
From the side and the rear it is a handsome car (although I think the rear side windows are too small) but it still has that awful grill although the all black finish hides it a bit.
I am not going to get much opportunity to go driving today, other than one short trip I need to make and then back to the garage to pick up my car later.
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Post by Bob Sacamano v2.0 on Sept 10, 2021 9:04:28 GMT
One daft niggle I have with the new 3 Series is the size of the door handle recesses compared to the previous generation. Once I noticed them I couldn't stop seeing huge depressions behind each handle.
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Post by Boxer6 on Sept 10, 2021 9:34:40 GMT
Dare I ask which garage the M5 is at?  |
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Post by Big Blue on Sept 10, 2021 10:36:52 GMT
One daft niggle I have with the new 3 Series is the size of the door handle recesses compared to the previous generation. Once I noticed them I couldn't stop seeing huge depressions behind each handle. To cater for the fat fingered, be-ringed doorman who will be the third owner…… |
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Post by johnc on Sept 10, 2021 11:59:03 GMT
Dare I ask which garage the M5 is at? Harry Fairbairn in Giffnock. However I am pretty pissed off. They called me about 11.45 to say the car was ready so I just went to pick it up because the traffic at this time of the day is much lighter. I got there, paid the bill and drove my car back to the office. About a mile from the office the car chimes up that it is now overdue its service by 10 miles. I have also had an email to say the same thing. I phoned them and they have told me I need to take it back so that they can reset it or see what has triggered the problem. At this rate I will have lost half a day fannying about because of their inefficiencies. Oh and they go on lunch between 1pm and 1.30 so I have to leave it till after that! |
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Post by Big Blue on Sept 10, 2021 13:59:27 GMT
This is the kind of UK dealer experience that fucks me off. I had a service done in Czech Republic whilst on holiday and if anything like this had happened the service guys would have walked in to the showroom and offered to shoot themselves in front of me. And I didn't have to pay VAT as a dirty foreigner. I will be timing services with holidays.......
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Post by johnc on Sept 10, 2021 15:22:57 GMT
I'm just back after half a day wasted! The service that was due was the brake fluid one but I asked them to change the oil as well because the car has largely had a year of Covid short distance driving and it showed the oil didn't need changed for another 12,000 miles - I would rather pay to have fresh oil in the circumstances.
The service adviser knew that it was just a brake fluid service with the addition of an oil change but that message never got to the mechanic who treated it as a full service, without microfilters plus a brake fluid change. As a consequence the info they put into the car's computer sent it into a tailspin. They have now deleted the oil change which should have resulted in the car showing it needs a full service, incl oil about this time next year - it doesn't, it shows it needs it in September 2023!
They say they are going to have to get back in touch with BMW to get them to do something online to correct the service information. It really shouldn't have been difficult but it was (and it still needs fixed)!
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Post by Boxer6 on Sept 10, 2021 15:38:52 GMT
Dare I ask which garage the M5 is at? Harry Fairbairn in Giffnock. However I am pretty pissed off. They called me about 11.45 to say the car was ready so I just went to pick it up because the traffic at this time of the day is much lighter. I got there, paid the bill and drove my car back to the office. About a mile from the office the car chimes up that it is now overdue its service by 10 miles. I have also had an email to say the same thing. I phoned them and they have told me I need to take it back so that they can reset it or see what has triggered the problem. At this rate I will have lost half a day fannying about because of their inefficiencies. Oh and they go on lunch between 1pm and 1.30 so I have to leave it till after that! I'm just back after half a day wasted! The service that was due was the brake fluid one but I asked them to change the oil as well because the car has largely had a year of Covid short distance driving and it showed the oil didn't need changed for another 12,000 miles - I would rather pay to have fresh oil in the circumstances. The service adviser knew that it was just a brake fluid service with the addition of an oil change but that message never got to the mechanic who treated it as a full service, without microfilters plus a brake fluid change. As a consequence the info they put into the car's computer sent it into a tailspin. They have now deleted the oil change which should have resulted in the car showing it needs a full service, incl oil about this time next year - it doesn't, it shows it needs it in September 2023! They say they are going to have to get back in touch with BMW to get them to do something online to correct the service information. It really shouldn't have been difficult but it was (and it still needs fixed)! All this is making we glad I'm not still considering a 5-series! (Allegedly). |
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Post by Tim on Sept 13, 2021 8:02:59 GMT
It's a consequence of the hurry to adopt new digital technology and make the world paperless.
In the old days the service invoice would've covered it and stayed with the car without all this dicking about.
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Post by Martin on Sept 13, 2021 8:17:49 GMT
Harry Fairbairn in Giffnock. However I am pretty pissed off. They called me about 11.45 to say the car was ready so I just went to pick it up because the traffic at this time of the day is much lighter. I got there, paid the bill and drove my car back to the office. About a mile from the office the car chimes up that it is now overdue its service by 10 miles. I have also had an email to say the same thing. I phoned them and they have told me I need to take it back so that they can reset it or see what has triggered the problem. At this rate I will have lost half a day fannying about because of their inefficiencies. Oh and they go on lunch between 1pm and 1.30 so I have to leave it till after that! I'm just back after half a day wasted! The service that was due was the brake fluid one but I asked them to change the oil as well because the car has largely had a year of Covid short distance driving and it showed the oil didn't need changed for another 12,000 miles - I would rather pay to have fresh oil in the circumstances. The service adviser knew that it was just a brake fluid service with the addition of an oil change but that message never got to the mechanic who treated it as a full service, without microfilters plus a brake fluid change. As a consequence the info they put into the car's computer sent it into a tailspin. They have now deleted the oil change which should have resulted in the car showing it needs a full service, incl oil about this time next year - it doesn't, it shows it needs it in September 2023! They say they are going to have to get back in touch with BMW to get them to do something online to correct the service information. It really shouldn't have been difficult but it was (and it still needs fixed)! All this is making we glad I'm not still considering a 5-series! (Allegedly). Is that some sort of reverse man maths?  |
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Post by Martin on Sept 13, 2021 8:20:36 GMT
It's a consequence of the hurry to adopt new digital technology and make the world paperless. In the old days the service invoice would've covered it and stayed with the car without all this dicking about. Having the service history electronically in the car is much better/more secure than a service book and a positive use of tech imo. The problem is the dealership couldn't do anything other than follow the standard process without messing it up. |
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Post by Tim on Sept 13, 2021 8:34:15 GMT
It's a consequence of the hurry to adopt new digital technology and make the world paperless. In the old days the service invoice would've covered it and stayed with the car without all this dicking about. Having the service history electronically in the car is much better/more secure than a service book and a positive use of tech imo. The problem is the dealership couldn't do anything other than follow the standard process without messing it up. Yeah you're right except what I said still stands - the people doing this at the dealerships aren't IT whizzkids and a 'prestige' brand like BMW should, for their own sake, make non-standard processes easier for the people who represent them. |
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Post by Boxer6 on Sept 13, 2021 9:41:34 GMT
All this is making we glad I'm not still considering a 5-series! (Allegedly). Is that some sort of reverse man maths? Might be!  |
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Post by racingteatray on Sept 13, 2021 11:46:51 GMT
From the side and the rear it is a handsome car (although I think the rear side windows are too small) but it still has that awful grill although the all black finish hides it a bit. I am not going to get much opportunity to go driving today, other than one short trip I need to make and then back to the garage to pick up my car later. Did the front end styling grow on you at all in the five minutes you had it? A black new-shape M4 convertible passed me yesterday as I standing at the side of the road and despite it being in the best possible setting - sunny day in the high Alps, roof-down, powering uphill towards the Sustenpass, it was brutally hideous - worse than the standard 4. Looked like it had been modelled on Darth Vader's helmet. |
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Post by johnc on Sept 13, 2021 11:56:07 GMT
Did the front end styling grow on you at all in the five minutes you had it? No it didn't although I do find the M4 less offensive than the standard 4 series. I also didn't like the potentially dangerous lane control system I had to fight with if I crossed a white line without indicating. When I say fight with, I mean it - it was like someone had tried to grab the wheel. I really wonder what would happen in one of those moments when someone moves into your lane or pulls out and doesn't see you and there is a need for an instant reaction and lane change - I reckon this steering nanny could result in a failure to get out of the way and no offence meant to the fairer sex but I doubt my wife would have fought it hard like I did. |
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Post by Boxer6 on Sept 13, 2021 14:09:24 GMT
Did the front end styling grow on you at all in the five minutes you had it? No it didn't although I do find the M4 less offensive than the standard 4 series. I also didn't like the potentially dangerous lane control system I had to fight with if I crossed a white line without indicating. When I say fight with, I mean it - it was like someone had tried to grab the wheel. I really wonder what would happen in one of those moments when someone moves into your lane or pulls out and doesn't see you and there is a need for an instant reaction and lane change - I reckon this steering nanny could result in a failure to get out of the way and no offence meant to the fairer sex but I doubt my wife would have fought it hard like I did. This should maybe be one for Alf's "what (still) scares you" thread! I wonder if it's BMW's fightback against non-indicating drivers ruining their reputation? Mind, I seriously doubt that, after all these years! |
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Post by Martin on Sept 13, 2021 15:46:56 GMT
Did the front end styling grow on you at all in the five minutes you had it? No it didn't although I do find the M4 less offensive than the standard 4 series. I also didn't like the potentially dangerous lane control system I had to fight with if I crossed a white line without indicating. When I say fight with, I mean it - it was like someone had tried to grab the wheel. I really wonder what would happen in one of those moments when someone moves into your lane or pulls out and doesn't see you and there is a need for an instant reaction and lane change - I reckon this steering nanny could result in a failure to get out of the way and no offence meant to the fairer sex but I doubt my wife would have fought it hard like I did. Don't you have it on the M5? It was on my 7 and once switched off it stayed off or you could change it for vibration with different intensity. It's the same on my current car as well, but there is a steering wheel button to turn it back on, which is handy as I do use the steering assist when in stop/start traffic as the car drives itself. The 7 only had basic cruise so I kept it on very low vibration and only because the button on the dashboard between the centre vents lit up amber if I turned it off....I don't like amber/red warning lights! Not an issue anyway if you use the indicators. |
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Post by johnc on Sept 13, 2021 16:03:21 GMT
No it didn't although I do find the M4 less offensive than the standard 4 series. I also didn't like the potentially dangerous lane control system I had to fight with if I crossed a white line without indicating. When I say fight with, I mean it - it was like someone had tried to grab the wheel. I really wonder what would happen in one of those moments when someone moves into your lane or pulls out and doesn't see you and there is a need for an instant reaction and lane change - I reckon this steering nanny could result in a failure to get out of the way and no offence meant to the fairer sex but I doubt my wife would have fought it hard like I did. Don't you have it on the M5? It was on my 7 and once switched off it stayed off or you could change it for vibration with different intensity. It's the same on my current car as well, but there is a steering wheel button to turn it back on, which is handy as I do use the steering assist when in stop/start traffic as the car drives itself. The 7 only had basic cruise so I kept it on very low vibration and only because the button on the dashboard between the centre vents lit up amber if I turned it off....I don't like amber/red warning lights! Not an issue anyway if you use the indicators. The M5 has the vibration which I keep on low but the 4 series has a gorilla behind the dash who quite literally pushes back against you so hard that the car moves back one or two feet in the direction it came from before the drivers strong arm tactics make it realise you do want to move over and then it allows you. The first time it happened I thought something had broken mechanically. I tried to turn it off but I pressed everything and it didn't seem to make any difference. I couldn't get the cruise control to work either and it obviously needed me to sit with the owner's manual for a while. Whilst I am at it, the car has another strange feature. When you lift off the accelerator to slow down, the car turns off the engine and freewheels - this can be a bit disconcerting when you are used to engine braking because it almost feels as if the car speeds up when you lift off the throttle and it is then necessary to brake because the engine isn't going to help you. EDIT: I should add that I had joined a dual carriageway in the outside lane (we have one of those in Glasgow) and a few hundred yards later where the double whites run out and with hardly a car in sight, I tried to move to the inside lane without indicating which is when the fun began! |
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Post by Tim on Sept 13, 2021 16:05:56 GMT
Have you tried your own car in ECO mode?
I did it in the 430 after reading a bit in EVO mag about their 550i xDrive. The 430 doesn't switch off the engine but clearly has a coast function. The complete lack of engine braking is very strange.
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Post by johnc on Sept 13, 2021 16:22:39 GMT
Have you tried your own car in ECO mode? I did it in the 430 after reading a bit in EVO mag about their 550i xDrive. The 430 doesn't switch off the engine but clearly has a coast function. The complete lack of engine braking is very strange. BMW obviously didn't think an M5 should have an ECO mode. I only have Comfort, Sport and Sport Plus! |
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Post by racingteatray on Sept 13, 2021 16:36:15 GMT
My 440i is like the 430D in that it freewheels in ECO Pro but not otherwise. I made good use of it yesterday when faced with going through the 17km San Gotthard tunnel with the range read-out showing 45kms of range remaining. There was only one motorway service station between Lugano and the tunnel and it turned out to currently being rebuilt, such that you could stop for a pee and a sandwich, but not to refuel.
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Post by Martin on Sept 13, 2021 16:54:45 GMT
The 750 and Golf both coast in Eco, but the engine doesn't switch off, I assume that's a Mild Hybrid thing.
The 7 had Eco / Comfort Plus / Comfort / Comfort Individual / Sport / Sport Individual and Adaptive! Adaptive (Voodoo mode) was all you needed really and it was better to leave it in that that mode it used all the sensors/cameras to decide what to do with the dampers, anti roll system and even ride height (eg raising it over speed bumps).
The Family truck has a number of modes, but the on road ones are Eco/Comfort/Dynamic and Auto. Auto doesn't seem to change anything on the road, I'm pretty sure it just relates to the off road modes. I never use Eco but I do put it in Dynamic quite a lot as the ride is still very good but it stops that initial roll and softness before the active anti-roll kicks in you get when you're in Auto.
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Post by Bob Sacamano v2.0 on Sept 13, 2021 17:00:29 GMT
Yeah, mine has the 48V hybrid which means that it will coast with the engine off. I wen to pick up a mate yesterday and he was looking at his phone when I pulled into his street - he got quite a shock when he looked up and I was there, having approached almost silently for the last 100m. He thought I'd gone mad and gone electric!
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Post by Tim on Sept 14, 2021 11:54:49 GMT
I used Eco Pro going up to Aberdeen last week and between Dundee and Aberdeen it told me I'd added 10 miles to my range which seemed pretty decent given it's all dual carriageway with average speed cameras so a cruise controlled 70 ish.
I think the saving just encourages me to use more of the performance when I go back to normal mode though, by the time I got home the saving was down to 7 miles as I'd switched Eco Pro off for the 13 mile run from Dundee to home!
The fuel saving mode makes more sense in the 430 than the 320, in the latter it felt as if half the engine had been stolen.
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Post by racingteatray on Sept 14, 2021 13:25:55 GMT
In the 440i, it's more akin to the drivetrain having been dosed with Valium. It just sort of slurs amiably along like Leslie Phillips after a long boozy lunch. It will still fully kick-down and bark at you, but only if you physically mash the accelerator into the carpet.
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Post by ChrisM on Sept 14, 2021 14:28:07 GMT
I used Eco Pro going up to Aberdeen last week and between Dundee and Aberdeen it told me ..... I have many fond memories of driving that road many times in the distant past, before it was fully dualled and one guy was holding out in his house near Forfar with the earthworks going on all around him, and another trip driving a hire car upgrade of a Granada "Cosworth" (the 24v V-6). Then there was the last time I did the trip in a hired Skoda Octavia just over 2 years ago before covid reared its ugly head; how time flies |
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Post by Big Blue on Sept 14, 2021 16:06:29 GMT
Did the front end styling grow on you at all in the five minutes you had it? Most of the new M4s I've seen have been in such revolting colours that the grille is the last thing I'd be concerned with. Now I'm all for having fancy cars in bright colours but there are couple of green and orange options that really aren't suitable for the colour TV age! Also, as written before by others here, the front end is a bit ungainly but it will no doubt become familiar but the rear 3/4 view and the window-into-shoulder detail most definitely won't. |
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Post by racingteatray on Sept 14, 2021 16:48:19 GMT
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Post by Tim on Sept 14, 2021 16:51:55 GMT
I'm glad I haven't eaten yet.
I can still only see Nissan GT-R in the rear half - side view or rear 3/4. Not a massive complaint but the Nissan is a 12 year old car.....
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