littleazn248
Go Kart Champion
- Location
- NorCal
So I recently picked up a 2014 F30 335i M-sport. After 1,150miles I have almost finished breaking in the car so I can soon really give it a drive. Here are just some impressions, once I do the break in oil change I can drive the car more naturally.
Some specs:
-N55 inline 6
-270whp/ 273-lb-ft tq
-RWD
-8AT not dct
-M-sport, Tech package, Premium package, Driver Assistance package
Exterior
Being a 335i this has the larger caliper setup as well as the dual out exhaust. Unfortunately as a result of the M-Sport package you loose the fog lights but,in exchange you gain better looking body work Without this package I just find the front end looks a little too squished. The car is also equipped with some very heavy 19" (403m) wheels. Lastly being an M-Sport the vehicle is 1/2" lower iirc. Overall the car looks very aggressive though I'll eventually throw on some lowering springs.
Interior
The car is well equipped inside with well laid out, driver oriented controls. At first the iDrive system was very confusing but, once you get a chance to mess around with it, its not too bad. The seats feel supportive but, they are different from the GTI seats. The best I can explain it is that while the BMW seats cradle you they are not as deep as the GTI seats. Though the BMW seats are more comfortable I actually prefer how the GTI seats hug you. Lastly the steering wheel is crazy good. It's a very large diameter and soft leather wrapped steering wheel that is supposedly the same as the M3 wheel. After using this the steering wheel the GTI's wheel feels too skinny lol.
Driving
First thing I found the most interesting about this car is the mode selectors. You can choose between Sport+, Sport, Comfort, and EcoPro mode.
Sport+: Increases the weight of the steering, adjust the throttle sensitivity, opens exhaust butterfly, and activates dynamic traction control. I feel that this mode is actually a little too un-natural. The steering while weighted feels overly dramatic. I've driven numerous cars with hydraulic steering assist and I can say that they are not close to as heavy. The throttle sensitivity feels about right, and is noticeably more sensitive than comfort mode. This mode also opens up the exhaust butterfly valve which allows for exhaust burbles. I haven't driven the car hard enough to activate traction control yet. The car also changes shift characteristics and never utilizes the 8th gear in this mode.
Sport: Same as Sport+ but doesn't disable traction control. This is also my default profile.
Comfort. Everything is dulled down a bit. The exhaust butterfly valve is shut, shift points are low, and steering is lighter.
Eco-Pro mode: IMHO its pointless you'll accelerate slower than a prius.
In general I'll say the car is very different in feel compared to the GTI. I dislike that regardless of the mode you don't feel much through the steering wheel. You can go over man-hole covers , small bumps and not feel much feedback. Lastly while I can take turns at the same speed as the GTI, I don't feel it. I'll go to say that the while the GTI is slower it feels faster, and while the BMW is faster it feels a lot slower than it actually is. While I loose some sense of speed I like how the BMW is just able to do it without much effort. While it felt like I was pushing the GTI to the edge the BMW feels like it can be safely pushed harder. The BMW also feels more confident? It feels like a heavier car that is more sure footed.
For now these are just my impressions. I'll upload some pics once I take it in for the break-in oil change.
Some specs:
-N55 inline 6
-270whp/ 273-lb-ft tq
-RWD
-8AT not dct
-M-sport, Tech package, Premium package, Driver Assistance package
Exterior
Being a 335i this has the larger caliper setup as well as the dual out exhaust. Unfortunately as a result of the M-Sport package you loose the fog lights but,in exchange you gain better looking body work Without this package I just find the front end looks a little too squished. The car is also equipped with some very heavy 19" (403m) wheels. Lastly being an M-Sport the vehicle is 1/2" lower iirc. Overall the car looks very aggressive though I'll eventually throw on some lowering springs.
Interior
The car is well equipped inside with well laid out, driver oriented controls. At first the iDrive system was very confusing but, once you get a chance to mess around with it, its not too bad. The seats feel supportive but, they are different from the GTI seats. The best I can explain it is that while the BMW seats cradle you they are not as deep as the GTI seats. Though the BMW seats are more comfortable I actually prefer how the GTI seats hug you. Lastly the steering wheel is crazy good. It's a very large diameter and soft leather wrapped steering wheel that is supposedly the same as the M3 wheel. After using this the steering wheel the GTI's wheel feels too skinny lol.
Driving
First thing I found the most interesting about this car is the mode selectors. You can choose between Sport+, Sport, Comfort, and EcoPro mode.
Sport+: Increases the weight of the steering, adjust the throttle sensitivity, opens exhaust butterfly, and activates dynamic traction control. I feel that this mode is actually a little too un-natural. The steering while weighted feels overly dramatic. I've driven numerous cars with hydraulic steering assist and I can say that they are not close to as heavy. The throttle sensitivity feels about right, and is noticeably more sensitive than comfort mode. This mode also opens up the exhaust butterfly valve which allows for exhaust burbles. I haven't driven the car hard enough to activate traction control yet. The car also changes shift characteristics and never utilizes the 8th gear in this mode.
Sport: Same as Sport+ but doesn't disable traction control. This is also my default profile.
Comfort. Everything is dulled down a bit. The exhaust butterfly valve is shut, shift points are low, and steering is lighter.
Eco-Pro mode: IMHO its pointless you'll accelerate slower than a prius.
In general I'll say the car is very different in feel compared to the GTI. I dislike that regardless of the mode you don't feel much through the steering wheel. You can go over man-hole covers , small bumps and not feel much feedback. Lastly while I can take turns at the same speed as the GTI, I don't feel it. I'll go to say that the while the GTI is slower it feels faster, and while the BMW is faster it feels a lot slower than it actually is. While I loose some sense of speed I like how the BMW is just able to do it without much effort. While it felt like I was pushing the GTI to the edge the BMW feels like it can be safely pushed harder. The BMW also feels more confident? It feels like a heavier car that is more sure footed.
For now these are just my impressions. I'll upload some pics once I take it in for the break-in oil change.