This thread is long over due… As many of the active forumites know, I had gotten married last year and had sold off the 335i in lieu of my new apartment... Having used the 330i as a daily for the better part of 5 years and covering 100k in mileage during this time, I really got tired of the long commute and more so, the associated running costs.. As decent as the 330i was on fuel, it really added up over the time period and being a daily, it was subject to the harsh exposure of daily duties. Given the convenience of staying closer to work, I knew that I would be really unhappy to use the 330i for the short commute to work and decided that the car would be used purely on weekends, when I would have a chance to hit the highway and let the car stretch its legs. We had been using my wife’s Polo for daily duties and I have to say, these cars are just such great run around vehicles but really not built for the fast lane of the highway :fencelook:
We decided her Polo would be given to her parents after the wedding, once we had found a replacement vehicle. She is a huge Mercedes fan and had her sights set on something from the Stuggart based manufacturer. With me being an ardent fan of the Bavarian built cars, it wouldn’t do for me to be in a Mercedes that I don’t particularly like.. I quite fancy the AMG’s but these make no sense in the real world driving we would be doing, 90% of the time.. She didn’t have much criteria other than the car being an automatic, not overly low and needing to be faster than her Polo.. Which is easy enough when you come from a 55kw engine..
Initially I had looked at an F25 X3 3.0d as a replacement, as I needed the bigger power plant, but given the 5km round trip, it just felt like it would be over-kill for the short commute.. I then looked at an E84 X1 but I hated the manual climate controls that seem to come on most of them, my wife also didn’t like the look for some reason. An F30 320d, seemed like a sensible interim choice but after looking at the classifieds, I couldn’t justify spending double for an F30, which would be shortly replaced by the G20. Furthermore, having owned an E90 and living with an F30 in the family for 5 years, I knew the F30 isn’t double the car the E90 is.. I had my eyes set on an E90 320d Motorsport but was quickly reminded that the car can’t be too low, especially since my wife would use the car and isn’t used to cutting driveways or going sideways over speed bumps.. :hammerhead:
Looking at the classifieds and not finding something that ticked all the right boxes in a particular year model was frustrating… I wanted a post April 2011 model, for some peace of mind, as I had read that the earlier models were said to have suffered from cases of timing chain failure.. As luck would have it, a family member was looking to sell his E90 320d.. I had to make a call as to whether I would take it or keep shopping.. I knew which was the most sensible choice and so, I had taken delivery earlier this year.. Given my penchant for the F30 design, especially in Motorsport guise, not sure how long I will keep the E90. For now though, it will do daily duties and get my wife used to the BMW driving dynamic. I have a few mods in mind to personalize the car but nothing over the top.. Something more along the lines of OEM+, but maintenance is high up on the priority list..
Here is the latest acquisition to my garage, a 2011 E90 320d Exclusive in Space Grey, with just over 130k on the clock..
Updates to follow... :ty:
We decided her Polo would be given to her parents after the wedding, once we had found a replacement vehicle. She is a huge Mercedes fan and had her sights set on something from the Stuggart based manufacturer. With me being an ardent fan of the Bavarian built cars, it wouldn’t do for me to be in a Mercedes that I don’t particularly like.. I quite fancy the AMG’s but these make no sense in the real world driving we would be doing, 90% of the time.. She didn’t have much criteria other than the car being an automatic, not overly low and needing to be faster than her Polo.. Which is easy enough when you come from a 55kw engine..
Initially I had looked at an F25 X3 3.0d as a replacement, as I needed the bigger power plant, but given the 5km round trip, it just felt like it would be over-kill for the short commute.. I then looked at an E84 X1 but I hated the manual climate controls that seem to come on most of them, my wife also didn’t like the look for some reason. An F30 320d, seemed like a sensible interim choice but after looking at the classifieds, I couldn’t justify spending double for an F30, which would be shortly replaced by the G20. Furthermore, having owned an E90 and living with an F30 in the family for 5 years, I knew the F30 isn’t double the car the E90 is.. I had my eyes set on an E90 320d Motorsport but was quickly reminded that the car can’t be too low, especially since my wife would use the car and isn’t used to cutting driveways or going sideways over speed bumps.. :hammerhead:
Looking at the classifieds and not finding something that ticked all the right boxes in a particular year model was frustrating… I wanted a post April 2011 model, for some peace of mind, as I had read that the earlier models were said to have suffered from cases of timing chain failure.. As luck would have it, a family member was looking to sell his E90 320d.. I had to make a call as to whether I would take it or keep shopping.. I knew which was the most sensible choice and so, I had taken delivery earlier this year.. Given my penchant for the F30 design, especially in Motorsport guise, not sure how long I will keep the E90. For now though, it will do daily duties and get my wife used to the BMW driving dynamic. I have a few mods in mind to personalize the car but nothing over the top.. Something more along the lines of OEM+, but maintenance is high up on the priority list..
Here is the latest acquisition to my garage, a 2011 E90 320d Exclusive in Space Grey, with just over 130k on the clock..
Updates to follow... :ty:
raise:
