So now that the F30 has been out a while..

But that doesn't mean it's not true.

Originally Posted by tturedraider

The"single buttress" is a design element right out of the 5er and the new stunningly gorgeous 6er. The iDrive screen, that whole dash design language, is straight out of the 6er, one of the most outstandingly beautiful designs BMW has ever penned.

The design and location of the iDrive screen makes perfect sense and is the exact opposite of an afterthought. It is purposefully and carefully designed to be exactly where it is. It is now a feature that will be used every single time you are in the car, as is true with virtually every new car on the market today, and it is positioned so that it is perfectly in the driver's sight with a quick, easy glance. What makes no sense is a screen that deploys and retracts every time the car is turned on and off. An after thought is exactly what I think of when I see the retracting screens in the A6 and A8. It's as if when they finished the dash design they suddenly realized, "oh, we need a screen. Oh well, since we didn't design a place for one we'll just stick it here and make it open and retract"......every frikken time the car is started and turned off.

This is the interior of the 6






Here is the 5






And the E92






750iL


And the F30

If tt would put down his mug of BMW Kool-Aid for a minute and compare the 6'er with the F30 interior he would note that the perfectly placed nav screen in the 6'er does not look like a stuck-on after thought. He would also notice that the "buttress" on the 6'er looks like a flowing design line, rather than an anti cowl shake brace with a cover on it, like it it does on the F30.
I will agree with tt on this point; the 6 is well thought out and the next 100 large I have sitting around collecting dust in CD's is going for a 6 series, an M6 would be quite nice indeed.

Originally Posted by tturedraider

BJ, these tasteless yahoos can howl at the moon all they want.

I am not tasteless! You want tasteless, look up "Chris Bangle" in Wikipedia.

Originally Posted by captainaudio

This is the interior of the 6



Here is the 5



And the E92

Not a droopy drawers dashboard in the lot! Oops, I meant a strategically placed design transition. Mmmmm, grape Kool-Aid, my fave!

Originally Posted by DSXMachina

the 6 is well thought out and the next 100 large I have sitting around collecting dust in CD's is going for a 6 series, an M6 would be quite nice indeed.

I think the reason the nav screen looks more integrated on the 6 is that it is more in proportion with the rest of the dash, especially looking toward the passenger side. The Nav screen obviously has to be of a nominal size to be functional, but the 3's dash is not as expansive as the 6's so the result is the proportion is a bit off.


Why, oh why, on the F30 can't they manage to get the A-pillars/headliner to match the rest of the interior?




It's obvious they can do it on the 6er. Just doing that would go a long way in unifying
things and give it a "well thought out" look.

Originally Posted by captainaudio

Here is the 5

]

Oops, I was thinking of the "buttress" on the E60 5er.

Originally Posted by DSXMachina

If tt would put down his mug of BMW Kool-Aid for a minute and compare the 6'er with the F30 interior he would note that the perfectly placed nav screen in the 6'er does not look like a stuck-on after thought. He would also notice that the "buttress" on the 6'er looks like a flowing design line, rather than an anti cowl shake brace with a cover on it, like it it does on the F30.
I will agree with tt on this point; the 6 is well thought out and the next 100 large I have sitting around collecting dust in CD's is going for a 6 series, an M6 would be quite nice indeed.

Oh well, we'll have to agree to disagree on this. I don't think the iDrive screen on the F30 looks like an afterthought and I like the "design language" carryover of the buttress from the 6er and the E60 5er.

Originally Posted by DSXMachina

I am not tasteless! You want tasteless, look up "Chris Bangle" in Wikipedia.

Bangle is responsible for the E46 design.

Originally Posted by Nordic_Kat

Why, oh why, on the F30 can't they manage to get the A-pillars/headliner to match the rest of the interior?




It's obvious they can do it on the 6er. Just doing that would go a long way in unifying
things and give it a "well thought out" look.

Kat, that goes back to the E9x if not earlier.

Originally Posted by DSXMachina

BJ, you might want to moonlight for the studio which shoots BMW interiors for their ads. Your interior shots actually have me liking the 'look', mostly. Your naturally lit exposures are as good as they get with tens of thousands of dollars of lighting. Agreed, the fit and finish quality looks very high in your photos.
There are a few quirky things I have trouble with, or at least my eye has trouble with. The single buttress from the console up to the dash is an unusual styling element. The 'drop-off' on the right side of the dash isn't pleasing to my sense of balance. And as has been mentioned in this thread, for what you paid for the car the Nav screen looks stuck on as an afterthought. Far less expensive cars have them built into or retract into the dashboard.
None of these unusual elements would result in me not buying one if I were in the market. I'm just nitpicking.

He's alive!

Thanks for the kind words on my photography and the car. I think the new interior is the most important part of the F30, it's really driver-oriented and fresh looking. Some thoughts:

Buttress Console: doesn't really bother me as it 'contains' the dash, pulls it over towards the driver. Importantly, it's a comfortable and necessary place for a passenger to rest his leg against.

Swoopy Dash: it's different but the way the wood and vinyl integrate and flow looks rich.

iDrive Screen: it's not unfinished and stuck-on, it's perfectly placed and perfectly sized. I applaud BMW for not shrouding it in a cave (F10) or making it retractable. You use it constantly, can't have delays waiting for it to pop up as you start the engine. Because of the breathing room around it it doesn't feel heavy or in the way. It just works.

Material: the hard plastic is gone, replaced by a softer and more pliable substance. Noire worries about your shoes scratching the door panels, no more bruised knees leaning against the console.

BJ

Originally Posted by tturedraider

I hated the E90 dash when I first saw it at the car show, just before it came on the market, in 2005. I couldn't believe BMW made such a huge departure from the E30, E36, and E46.

This is virtually verbatim what E46 people said about the E90. Some still do.

Exactly. Some don't like change. Others embrace it.

BJ

If you compare the F30 with the E9x it appears to me that the iDrive screen is as much in the drivers line of site on the E9x as it is on the F30.
I never even noticed the "buttress" before this thread so I guess it did not bother me. Somewhat unique but I don't find it unattactive.

Of the pictures I posted I like the 6 interior the best. It is even better in person. I had a 650 for a test drive a few weeks ago and the interior is very upscale feeling compared to a 3 Series. A friend of mine is replacing his E92 M3 with a 650i. He hasn't received it yet but he may get it this week. I will probably see him Saturday and get a chance to check out the car. Not sure what color combo or options he went for.

CA

Originally Posted by boltjaM3s

I get that you're jealous but please, no need to sound petty and foolish too. Not my fault you bought an instantly-old car, don't blame me.

BJ

I am Jealous? -- come on... and as for sounding petty and foolish, well I guess that’s better than being petty and foolish, but, you digress…

Originally Posted by boltjaM3s

Exactly. Some don't like change. Others embrace it.

BTW, -- I admire your willingness to embrace the ignominy of those terrible wrinkles in your passenger-seat bolster. Just screams “build-quality” don’t ya’ think?

Originally Posted by Nordic_Kat

I think the reason the nav screen looks more integrated on the 6 is that it is more in proportion with the rest of the dash, especially looking toward the passenger side. The Nav screen obviously has to be of a nominal size to be functional, but the 3's dash is not as expansive as the 6's so the result is the proportion is a bit off.


Why, oh why, on the F30 can't they manage to get the A-pillars/headliner to match the rest of the interior?




It's obvious they can do it on the 6er. Just doing that would go a long way in unifying
things and give it a "well thought out"

See, again, I like the lighter headliner and the contrast with the saddle and the black.

A saddle headliner would make the cabin too orange and black too like a crypt. The F30 interiors look spacious and bright for the most part. BMW was too safe on the inside. I like the fact that they're shaking it up a bit.

BJ

Originally Posted by boltjaM3s

See, again, I like the lighter headliner and the contrast with the saddle and the black.

A saddle headliner would make the cabin too orange and black too like a crypt. The F30 interiors look spacious and bright for the most part. BMW was too safe on the inside. I like the fact that they're shaking it up a bit.

BJ

I agree. A the saddle looks nice in moderation and contrasts nicely with the black. I don't think a saddle headliner would work as well as the light beige.

CA

Just to clarify, I wasn't criticizing the layout of the interior, it was strictly an observation about material quality as well as fit and finish, the center console feels like low rent plastic to me, and there are exposed edges on the door panels. Lots of cost cutting is evident to me.

The layout itself has some issues, but at least it finally has real cup holders.

Originally Posted by Kilgore Trout

Just to clarify, I wasn't criticizing the layout of the interior, it was strictly an observation about material quality as well as fit and finish, the center console feels like low rent plastic to me, and there are exposed edges on the door panels. Lots of cost cutting is evident to me.

The layout itself has some issues, but at least it finally has real cup holders.

I actually like the cup holders on my 335i.

I can't really comment on the quality of the materials on the F30 due to a lack of familiarity but I will say that the cheap contact paper looking stuff that covers the dash in my E93 and the fact that the paint (or whatever crap they used) to cover the plastic interior trim on the back of the front seats is wearing off is completely unacceptable.

CA

Originally Posted by captainaudio

I actually like the cup holders on my 335i.

CA

I thought I was the only one

There are many things on the F30 I don't care for, but they are not deal breaker. The deal breaker will be some competitor's car that actually has better driving dynamics.

Originally Posted by boltjaM3s

See, again, I like the lighter headliner and the contrast with the saddle and the black.

A saddle headliner would make the cabin too orange and black too like a crypt. The F30 interiors look spacious and bright for the most part. BMW was too safe on the inside. I like the fact that they're shaking it up a bit.

BJ

An anthracite headliner would look great! In reality it does not make the car feel crypt-like at all. It gives the interior a very rich feel. It completes the contrasts.

Originally Posted by dtc100

I thought I was the only one

.

I like e90s cupholders too.
The saddle looks great in f30. The buttress is bad, the first thing that I noticed when the interior photos were published.
Anthracite headliner would look great IMO.

Sent from my GT-N7000 using Bimmer App

The first thing I noticed when driving the new 5 Series was how much cheaper the interior looked and felt as compared to our E60. The picture posted by CA just reminded me of my first impression.

I really like the 7 series and 6 series interiors as pictured. By comparison, the 3 Series interior does kinda look like BMW robbed the parts bin. It may also look off to me because there are at least three colors in a relatively small cabin area and it looks too busy (judging from BJs pictures). Maybe it would look better to me if it were a black interior?

All this talk about vanilla and chocolate! Does anyone else remember our discussions about the 'shark fin' antenna back in the good old days? We haven't changed a bit. Well, boltjames transmogrified into boltjaM3s*, but little else has changed. That's one change I'm not embracing beej.

* Now that the ///M328** is history, may I suggest a remonikerization to b0ltjames?

** Last seen being driven*** by the kid who bought it using his bar mitvah money, to his part time job at McDonald's.

*** Tastefully modified with racing stripes, an undercarriage light kit, and a spoiler off a WRX STI.

Originally Posted by Capobranco

I am Jealous? -- come on... and as for sounding petty and foolish, well I guess that's better than being petty and foolish, but, you digress….




BTW, -- I admire your willingness to embrace the ignominy of those terrible wrinkles in your passenger-seat bolster. Just screams "build-quality" don't ya' think?

Look, this is your subforum now, I'm just a guest, so we'll leave it at that.

You bought a 7 year old car as-new and likely are positioned to be The King Of E9X with all the 17 year old E90 "owners" programmed to worship your every move, and just like the silly E46 owners you won't like the dose of reality from the grown-ups in our new cars. I get it.

BJ

Originally Posted by captainaudio

I actually like the cup holders on my 335i.

I can't really comment on the quality of the materials on the F30 due to a lack of familiarity but I will say that the cheap contact paper looking stuff that covers the dash in my E93 and the fact that the paint (or whatever crap they used) to cover the plastic interior trim on the back of the front seats is wearing off is completely unacceptable.

CA

You may not like the dash cover in the E9X series but it's urethane and my friends in the auto interior business are quite impressed with the use of this material.

I've driven the F30 as a loaner. My humble thoughts based on having spent a day with the car, which is obviously FAR from what is needed to assess the vehicle:

1. Exterior styling - I love it in person MINUS the bland hood and its horizontal line running across. What were they thinking on this one, our GT has this too and it has to be one of the ugliest features of this new look.
2. Interior styling - I love it but cannot tell how practical it will be in the long-run. Also could not determine how anti-glare the new NAV screen really is, since it is no longer recessed.
3. Seats - this is where i disagree with the vast majority here. Those seats are HARD as heck, one thing I hate about the E90. You have no idea how bad...if only I could rip out the GT seats and throw them in the E90.
4. Vehicle dynamics - all felt like a true BMW.
5. EPS - it is about as lifeless as it can be. Needless to say, the wife loved it and this kind of steering will appeal to the masses...so a well-calculated, shrewd move for BMW, from a financial standpoint, as more cars will be sold, but I hate the damned thing. Period.
6. ASS - Need we say more, the fact that a recent decison was made allowing dealers to disable this speaks for itself. Really, the update is to allow your last setting to endure for eternity, meaning you turn this off once and you never have to disable it again. Sign me up.

Oh yeah, no WAY would I buy an F30. The 328 is only 2 years old and I have a good friend, who is a mechanic at a local BMW dealership, that will be maintaining the car on the side, with me getting my hands dirty along the way.

I hope all of you are doing well. Bemo out!

The auto/ start stop can be coded to be on the off position on startup and won't turn on unless you press it to be on. I have coded a few to eliminate this useless feature

Originally Posted by boltjaM3s

Look, this is your subforum now, I'm just a guest, so we'll leave it at that.

You bought a 7 year old car as-new and likely are positioned to be The King Of E9X with all the 17 year old E90 "owners" programmed to worship your every move, and just like the silly E46 owners you won't like the dose of reality from the grown-ups in our new cars. I get it.

BJ

How droll - I was hoping for better…..

How charmingly similar to the “knight in the forest” from the Holy Grail, as you bellow “Come back here and I’ll bite your knee-caps off.” Really now, I see you were up and at ‘em early today---Perhaps a sleepless night fretting over the cellulite upholstery? Pleasant dreams.

BTW I know, I know, “you get it”….jus’ not very often……