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Kafkaesque320 moves uptown to a 2016 M Sport 328i - The hunt and the Acquisition

48K views 651 replies 60 participants last post by  FCBayernFTW 
#1 · (Edited)
Here's a long one to read on the crapper...

I talked a little bit about the new car in my existing 320i BMS Stage 1 epic saga thread, for those of you who actually follow that one and I still haven't decided whether or not to keep that thread going. I doubt this will become anything close to that thread, mainly because for the first time in, well, ever, I am content with my car. The day I was driving the 320i home I was having buyer's remorse. Car felt a little like the emperor's new clothes, if anyone is familiar with the reference. I threw the stage 1 piggyback on there to try and up the boost and HP on what was a quick yet, overall pretty gutless ultimate driving machine and was trying to block out the fact that this $36,500 MSRP car lacked features that my $23000 Mazda3 had back in 2010. But overall, I learned to love that car and it served me well. It was flawless mechanically, the build quality was solid (not a squeak or rattle for 3 years) and though, at least the way I had mine optioned, it was a 'stripper' as BJ would have said (RIP), it still had that BMW DNA.

Fast forward to a month or so ago when I really started shopping around. Some of you followed that search process on my other thread so I won't elaborate but, though I saw a lot of 2016 328i heavily discounted, most were the middle-aged Koreatown, college-aged kids-out-of-the-house Mom-mobile lease specials with 17's, halogens and not much else. I drove a '16 with Greg Poland (sales adviser savior of the forums...) and while I was somewhat impressed, the base suspension (even on 18's) still fundamentally bummed me out coming from the 704 M sport suspension, as did that crappy base steering wheel they throw in all the non-M 3 series. So I kept looking and was starting to give up, not finding any M sport 328's, or finding them and thinking they were out of my price range. I wanted to stay with my 320 monthly payment of $367. I figured I would have to settle, again.

I wanted the cake and I wanted to eat it.

So after Greg and a guy @ Irvine BMW I was talking to struck out and weren't able to acquire a few M sports I found at other dealers, I decided to go straight to the source and hit up Crevier BMW. From the get go, they (particularly Craig Holland) were the absolute best, most streamlined staff to deal with. Night and day. Within a few days and with the help of a few forum members (mwm1166 thanks!) I hit them with a counter offer to their initial offer that they accepted and I went down to Santa Ana to get the car - a Black Sapphire 2016 328i with M Sport package, driver assist, Navigation & heated seats. Sticker price $48,575. After some negotiating on-site and me refusing to do the deal unless they took my car and ate my last 3 payments, we agreed, and I signed on the dotted with the usual $1500 driveoff, zero 'down' and a monthly payment of...No $hit...$367 a month, out the door, tax included. Safe to say I am driving one of the cheapest $49000 328's on the market. I am still in shock as to this deal. They ate 3 payments, drive off was the same as the 320 and my payment is the same, for an M Sport 328 with a $13k higher MSRP? Moral of the story is they really want to move those 2016's right now.

So on with the review:

I won't go too deep with the review since the vast majority of you have the 328 and know its strengths and weaknesses, but here it goes in no particular order. I will be making a lot of 320 comparisons, mainly to my 320 which had moonroof, sport package and thats it. This thread isn't intended to bash the 320 but, since I did have it for 3 years, I will say whatever the hell I want about that car, prefacing it with my thoughts that it is still a great car even though at the end of the day, in my short time with this car, I do think the 320 is 'BMW-light', generally speaking.

Power

Compared to stock 320i, the stock 328i blows it away. Simple as that. Compared to stage 1, it still blows it away. I haven't done JB4 or whatever on the 320, so I don't know, but yeah, I've seen the dynos. With the 320i, I was always having to get on it, wind it out. The 328i is just effortless and strangely, because of that, I find myself driving it more conservatively than the 320. Something about knowing that when I throw it in sport and step on the gas, that it will unleash, is enough for me. I have thus far had my share of onramp blasts and aggressive passing and have had some time to drive it hard and this car is fast. Car and Driver clocked low 5's right, 5.3, something like that? Seems about right. Couple this with the 'active sound', which I think sounds beautiful, and the car feels like a beast compared to what I am used to. Right now I feel like I am 100% fine with it stock but I have that stage 1 piggyback in my back pocket I could try if I get used to it.

Ride/handling/etc.

Car has the same M sport 704 suspension that I loved so much from the 320. The ride is very similar but I will say this - I know that on paper, the difference isn't much, but in real life, the 328i feels heavier. No doubt about it. Same summer tires, same suspension, but this car feels bigger and heavier. I would say that is the one advantage the 320i had - it felt lighter and easier to throw around.. But not by much. This car is still very fun to drive and for whatever reason, the car feels more solid and substantial than the 320 did, so overall, it feels more solid.

Steering


I don't really have a problem with the steering. I thought the E90 steering was too heavy. Always thought that. I don't mind the steering on the F30. I think its one of the most overstated gripes about the car. But I also don't think you need to hand crank your engine to start it or have roll up windows to be an 'enthusiast', so who knows.

Interior and exterior design/tech and features

Alright this is really where it gets good and where the car feels a lot nicer than my last car. The little details and attention to detail is immediately felt with this being not only the M sport but also the LCI. There are little metal and chrome touches everywhere, on all the switch gear and framing the buttons, we have the little 'M' elements, which I don't mind, like on the wheels, the door sills, etc., we have the M steel dead pedal cover, we have the excellent and robust paddle shifters on an already great M sport steering wheel,we have the sport AT now standard which means the significantly nicer shifter compared to what I had, we have the anthracite wood trim which is beautiful compared to the ****ty silver matte trim I had and much nicer than the burl, in my opinion. We have standard power seats with aluminum trimmed buttons and switches and lets stop right there. The power seats. Compared to the manual seats, there is so much more room for finite position adjustment. The M sport body package... I think some of it is borderline rice, but its subtle rice, so I don't really care but the front grill looks so ****ing good. Couple that with the full LED headlights and the whole front end is just MEAN.

Moving on to tech. Where do I start? The 320 was so base its just night and day. Comfort access is nice, the foot sweep to open the trunk is nice, the different options for backlighting the instrument panel is a nice touch, having satellite radio (even though it sounds like ****) is nice and the extended display is nice. Which leads me to Nav.

I humbly take back and eat my words re: Navigation, not needing it and it not being necessary or Waze being better or whatever. Having the much nicer, larger, higher res Nav screen with all the options for split screen displays, displaying album artwork, the maps, and having the directions and routing displayed under the speedo and tach is just really nice. Honestly, the nav screen and extended display makes the interior. The screen is beautiful, the maps are nice to look at even if you aren't using them (especially at night) and the options to zoom in and out and interact with the maps goes much deeper than I really care to go. Less than a week in and I would never get another BMW without it.

Interestingly, I have taken the same routes I used to take in the old car when all I had was Waze, and the BMW routes are similar. It uses real time traffic info to route and reroute you and overall, its fine. Love the nav, love the extended display.

Other, Misc.

The car is still brand new so MPG will improve a little but I have noted a 2-3 MPG decrease vs. the 320i on the exact same routes. Floor the 328 a few times and its amazing the dent that puts in the fuel consumption reading on the trip computer vs. when I used to floor the 320. Moor boost, more power, heavier car, more gas. Still, Im getting 25 overall so far which is fine.

2 things the car doesn't have that would be nice are HK audio and leather. In my case though beggars cant be choosers and this is how the car was optioned. I may be imaging this, but the sensatec seems a little nicer in this car/the LCI. Yeah, probably imagining that. Also, today for example, I took my daughter to the park and it had just rained so she stepped all over my backseat with muddy shoes and left her scuff marks everywhere and all I had to do is wipe them down with a wet rag and they were like new. I think with 2 young kids, sensatec is probably the way to go. I sat in some cars with leather on the showroom at Crevier and honestly, blind taste test and most people wouldnt be able to feel the difference. You really only notice the difference with the higher end leathers in the 5 and 7 series, otherwise the Dakota is pretty crappy. These seats are heated now, which I love and missed from the GTI. (Another option available in most $25k cars that my 320 didn't have.)

As for Audio, I mean I have said it before, but I think the base system is really pretty good. I listen to a lot of lossless FLAC and WAV files and the sound quality is night and day vs. satellite or Pandora. So HK would have been nice, but audio is fine, esp considering I listen to podcasts and audiobooks quite a bit.

So that is it for now. I have gone on long enough. Though based on the same F30 platform as my 320 was, this car is nicer in every possible way. It feels more like a 'luxury' car because almost every surface you touch is well crafted, well made, nice to the touch with attention to detail and design. This is the overall vibe with all the little bonuses of Nav and extended display/options as well.

A car that feels quite a bit more luxury, considerably more powerful with plenty of sporting characteristics to keep me amused from day to day.

Gripes

There are few but here they are:

This came with the conti sport pro contact summer run flats and they suck balls compared to the Pirellis. The Cinturatos are much better tires. These are noisier tires and they ride rougher. This is an easy fix.

The other thing is something I experienced with the GTI - chassis flex and subsequent groaning or squeaking from where the rubber door seals flexing against the metal door frames. I did not have this problem with the 320. This is however a common grip with the F30 328 and I have read countless threads about the problem. I am no stranger to this so for the time being I rubbed some Gummi PFledge (sp?) on the seals which helped and stuck a few small black felt furniture pads (the kind that go on the bottom of chair legs) along the metal door frames and it has silenced it.

When I get a moment I will take it to the dealer to apply the BMW Teflon tape which is supposed to be a 'permanent' fix.

Thats it for now. Haven't had time to take any pictures besides this. Thanks for reading. Love this car.







 
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#3 ·
Great looking car, and great deal too! :thumbup: The prices of MY16 F30's are pretty soft right now, 15%+ is quite doable and a relatively loaded one probably will get decent RV discounts 3 years down the road given the new 3-series will be out by then.

N26 + ZF 8AT + F30 chassis is one nice package, mine now has 40k+ miles and 4 years, and it is a keeper! :D

As for a heavy car, the recent loaner was a X3 xDrive 28i, that is a heavy car for the N26 to move. In comparison the 328i is definitely much more agile than the X3 xDrive 28i.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Congrats bud!

Can't wait to hear your reaction when you put in the stage 1. Lookin forward to the next acceleration video :jawdrop:
It really is inevitable isn't it? :dunno:

I forgot to talk about the LED headlights. I love that when I am walking up on the car and unlock with the key fob that it beeps and they flash on, level out, etc. I also love the outline of the LED's and design vs. just the circles of the pre-LCI. They look sharper, more aggressive.

Nighttime visibility is night and day. So much brighter and a far more consistent wash vs. the **** halogens, easily the worst feature of any 3 series, those halogens. Projection distance is a little longer and the high beams actually seem like high beams. Very bright, make night driving more enjoyable.

Stock acceleration video coming sooner than later and at some point, I suppose, stage 1.

I said this in your other thread, but that is a really really good deal. Well done!

Glad you're enjoying the new car!
Thanks. Yes, silly deal. Silly. It is an odd feeling because I feel like I should almost feel guilty for having such a nice car and I certainly would if it cost what most people are likely paying on such a car, but at $367 a month, I am guilt free. You have to understand that I came from a long background of cheap used Japanese econocars, at some point a low-end 2WD Tacoma, then the Mazda, the GTI, the Tiguans, the 320, but nothing every like this.

Residual is $32k and a likely buyout of around $30k at lease end if I wanted also feels totally reasonable, all things considered. Car insurance went up all of $11 a month or something too.

Getting the car tinted tomorrow afternoon, same as the 320, same place. Ceramic, 35% up front and limo in the rear. The totally transparent windows/zero tint is already annoying the hell out of me
 
#6 ·
Good job! Enjoy! And I agree about the steering :D
 
#8 · (Edited)
Congrats on your new F30, Kafkaesque320! You're not going to change your Bimmerfest login ID to Kafkaesque328 are you? :rofl:

I agree with you about F3x's steering - i've read a lot of gripes about it in professional reviews and here on Bimmerfest forums, but found it perfectly fine for both street and track driving with my 320i. Never did understand what the fuss was all about. :dunno:
 
#21 ·
You have RWD and ZSP/704. Makes a big difference. The F30's with base suspension and steering are awful.
 
#9 ·
Excellent write up. I thought I got a good deal!

Thought you can't tint in CA? Please advise!
 
#10 · (Edited)
Well technically you can't but it seems like the majority of cars I see in southern CA have tinted windows, so honestly, I don't really think cops bother. You are also supposed to have a front plate but I didn't have one for 3 years on the 320i and never got hassled. Only had the tint for about a year on the 320 but never got hassled for that either. The tint is far worth the negligible risk of a ticket. Tinted my wife's Tiguan the first week we got it. Besides keeping the car cooler and drastically reducing glare and UV rays, the limo in the rear is much nicer for the kid(s), especially on a long road trip where the sun is beating down from one direction for hours on end. It also looks way better and the privacy factor is huge. We get practically endless sun here, so tinted windows are a must.

I hope to take an actual leisure drive out Angeles Crest or similar in the next few weeks where I can take some proper pictures.

Forgot to mention the backup camera/driver assist. This is a nice camera. The Tiguan has a backup camera and it isn't nearly as clear. I also like the distance meter with the green and yellow and red indicating if you are getting close to various objects when backing up in back of you and on the sides, definitely helpful with all the parking lot navigating and parking structures/tight spots I deal with. I also like the power folding mirror feature that comes with premium package as well how the passenger side side mirror automatically tilts down when you put it in reverse. Makes it next to impossible to curb your wheels
 
#11 · (Edited)
Only thing I would suggest, aesthetically, is to get the blacked out kidney grill for front. We have the Sapphire Black as well and the black grill looks much better, IMO. We also got the rear spoiler, which was nice since we didn't have to paint it. :thumbup:

Agree about the backup camera. Not something I initially wanted but now I think it is nearly indispensable, since we have to do a Y-turn in our drive to head out. Only thing I regret not getting is head up display. This speedo is fairly hard to read. But I believe head up display is part of a costly pkg unfortunately.
 
#13 · (Edited)
So after Greg and a guy @ Irvine BMW I was talking to struck out and weren't able to acquire a few M sports I found at other dealers, I decided to go straight to the source and hit up Crevier BMW. From the get go, they (particularly Craig Holland) were the absolute best, most streamlined staff to deal with. Night and day. Within a few days and with the help of a few forum members, I hit them with a counter offer to their initial offer that they accepted and I went down to Santa Ana to get the car - a Black Sapphire 2016 328i with M Sport package, driver assist, Navigation & heated seats. Sticker price $48,575. After some negotiating on-site and me refusing to do the deal unless they took my car and ate my last 3 payments, we agreed, and I signed on the dotted with the usual $1500 driveoff, zero 'down' and a monthly payment of...No $hit...$367 a month, out the door, tax included. Safe to say I am driving one of the cheapest $49000 328's on the market. I am still in shock as to this deal. They ate 3 payments, drive off was the same as the 320 and my payment is the same, for an M Sport 328 with a $13k higher MSRP? Moral of the story is they really want to move those 2016's right now.
Just read the numbers from the other thread, so was the discount $8500 off MSRP? Including sign-off the monthly of $408 is a little less than 1% of cap cost on this MY16 328i.

As for the MY14 320i being the same monthly, do note that 320i was at beginning of model year, while this MY16 328i is at the end of model year. A $367 payment on a MSRP $36k 320i is roughly 1% of MSRP, which is not bad for a start-of-model-year lease deal.

(looks like there is an extra $1500 discount somewhere).
$48,745 MSRP
- 6,000 dealer discount
$42,745 offered by dealer
-1,000 loyalty credit BMWFS credit
$ 40,245 Cap Cost/Selling Price

66% RV 36 months/36k miles

$32,171.71. Residual value

Due at signing $1500
 
#16 · (Edited)
You count drive off in coming up with % of msrp, even though part of that is 1st months payment and DMV? Hmm

Dont forget the 320 had a drive off too. If you just count payment, $367 a month on a $48745 car is .75 of msrp. And yes, factory discounts included a $1000 loyalty and $1500 that they called BMWFS lease credit/rebate, something like that.

@jjrandorin what I will say is if you do opt for the tech stuff in the bmw, like Nav, it is quite a bit nicer than tech options in cheaper cars. Like nav for example in VW or honda, for example - its like having a garmin display from 2003 in your dash...

The car I test drove with Greg had HUD. I wear polarized sunglasses and couldnt really see it. Guess it would be cool at night. So since I have Nav now can I get car play or is there something missing?

@RockyM, Spoilers of any kind aren't really my thing
 
#14 ·
Wow, now that is a thorough write-up. First, congratulations on finding the 328i config you wanted, and a hearty "way to go!" on the deal.

I have also noticed that Sat Radio sounds like it is under water, but streaming music, old school CDs sound fine. My departed TSX had XM, and it sounded every bit as good as any other audio source.
 
#27 ·
I agree with you about F3x's steering - i've read a lot of gripes about it in professional reviews and here on Bimmerfest forums, but found it perfectly fine for both street and track driving with my 320i. Never did understand what the fuss was all about.
I agree, with regard to the steering on my ZSP, ZMT 320i no complaints and I have driven an E90 328i 6MT, steering feel of the E90 is similar to my 2004 GTO.
 
#29 ·
Congrats...nice writeup!
 
#40 ·
It is a shame that X Drive is almost a bad word in BMW circles since Quattro and AWD is kind of what Audi has based a lot of their rep on. The feel I have gotten driving Quattro Audi A4 and A5 is that they drive like they are on rails. Sounds like Xdrive in BMW world means something less favorable.

For the record I grew up in far far Northern CA at around 2800 feet and we got a lot of snow each year, as in shoveling snow to get your car out of the drive way and snow plows being a daily occurance and I never had an AWD car. Always drove crappy front wheel drive Jap economboxes and 2WD trucks and endured several winters like that. My dad had a 4WD truck but my mom's main car was a fwd Honda accord and with the exception of occasionally having to throw on chains, front wheel drive was fine. While AWD is nice, its really not that big of a deal.
 
#50 ·
It is a shame that X Drive is almost a bad word in BMW circles since Quattro and AWD is kind of what Audi has based a lot of their rep on. The feel I have gotten driving Quattro Audi A4 and A5 is that they drive like they are on rails. Sounds like Xdrive in BMW world means something less favorable.

For the record I grew up in far far Northern CA at around 2800 feet and we got a lot of snow each year, as in shoveling snow to get your car out of the drive way and snow plows being a daily occurance and I never had an AWD car. Always drove crappy front wheel drive Jap economboxes and 2WD trucks and endured several winters like that. My dad had a 4WD truck but my mom's main car was a fwd Honda accord and with the exception of occasionally having to throw on chains, front wheel drive was fine. While AWD is nice, its really not that big of a deal.
I don't think xDrive is 'bad', it's just not what I want. The best Bimmers are RWD. Love the feel, and convertibles are already heavy enough as it is. My E93 with RWD is 4000 lbs. The F33 440i xDrive is 4300 lbs now! :yikes:

If I was buying an Audi, it'd most definitely be a Quattro, as the best Audis have always been Quattro. Buy from a manufacturer what they're best known for. For BMW it's clearly RWD vehicles (and Inline-6 engines).

The rate I'm going, I might very well end up in an Audi A5/S5 Quattro convertible next.
 
#44 ·
Glad you saw the light!! Again, not to bash the 320 but the 328 is a much more potent combination of power and handling. I drive the 320 extensively before settling on my 328. Just knowing that there is a crouching tiger under the hood (in Sport mode) makes my day. I chuckle when the V6 Camrys try to pull a fast one (pun intended) at stoplights. Having the satisfaction of knowing you can smoke them is an awesome feeling.
And 500 miles to the tank on the highway. Wow, 1.5 yrs and still in awe of my 13' 328.
 
#45 ·
Glad you saw the light!! Again, not to bash the 320 but the 328 is a much more potent combination of power and handling. I drive the 320 extensively before settling on my 328. Just knowing that there is a crouching tiger under the hood (in Sport mode) makes my day. I chuckle when the V6 Camrys try to pull a fast one (pun intended) at stoplights. Having the satisfaction of knowing you can smoke them is an awesome feeling.
And 500 miles to the tank on the highway.
Wow, 1.5 yrs and still in awe of my 13' 328.
Come on now....I hope you don't launch your car at a stop light otherwise the opposite would be true.
 
#46 ·
I must admit, I went a little fast and furious the other night when an Accord V6 coupe pulled up to the usual offramp 3 lanes that turns into 2 stoplight intersection. I hit this intersection off the freeway every night coming home, which is usually late, like anywhere from 10-midnight. Inevitably, 3 cars end up at the red at the same time. If you are in the far right lane, that lane ends and merges into 2 so people always try to beat eachother there. whether you are in the center lane where you are trying to beat the guy merging or vise versa, it is stop light racing open season, seemingly all ages/genders at that interesection. The stage 1 320 got smoked quite a few times at that light, I will admit, the last time being by some dude in an A4 with tinted windows and exhaust, so likely APR tuned as well... So some kid, early 20's with his friends pulled up in the center lane in a black Accord V6 coupe and I was in the right lane that runs out and has to merge. We both started out when the light changed like normal but he started speeding and so did I so he floored it, and so did I, and I pulled ahead of him by a few car lengths by the time the lanes merged and then he proceeded to ride my ass all the way up the hill. The V6 Accord is pretty quick but FWD, and I think he was in a manual, which made it pretty easy to beat him.

Yeah, I'm 38 years old.
 
#47 ·
I must admit, I went a little fast and furious the other night when an Accord V6 coupe pulled up to the usual offramp 3 lanes that turns into 2 stoplight intersection. I hit this intersection off the freeway every night coming home, which is usually late, like anywhere from 10-midnight. Inevitably, 3 cars end up at the red at the same time. If you are in the far right lane, that lane ends and merges into 2 so people always try to beat eachother there. whether you are in the center lane where you are trying to beat the guy merging or vise versa, it is stop light racing open season, seemingly all ages/genders at that interesection. The stage 1 320 got smoked quite a few times at that light, I will admit, the last time being by some dude in an A4 with tinted windows and exhaust, so likely APR tuned as well... So some kid, early 20's with his friends pulled up in the center lane in a black Accord V6 coupe and I was in the right lane that runs out and has to merge. We both started out when the light changed like normal but he started speeding and so did I so he floored it, and so did I, and I pulled ahead of him by a few car lengths by the time the lanes merged and then he proceeded to ride my ass all the way up the hill. The V6 Accord is pretty quick but FWD, and I think he was in a manual, which made it pretty easy to beat him.

Yeah, I'm 38 years old.
:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :thumbup:

YGPM :angel: :eeps:
 
#58 ·
:thumbup::thumbup:
 
#59 ·
Looks good!!
 
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