[Big boi m5]

Originally Posted by upsidedownfunnel

Even though they might look similar in pictures, the difference in quality is apparent the minute you sit down in a 7 or 8 series. Even a 5 series or X5. A lot of the materials are just a little better and everything seems a little more solid. Things like the material around the shifter, the climate control temperature readout, the presence of some hard plastics in the G20, and even the quality of some of the soft touch plastics is inferior to upper trim cars.

Larger cars have a larger profit margin so it's easier for them to include higher quality parts in them. Maybe it's different in Europe or Asia, but American market cars almost always use cheaper parts that might look the same in pictures in the smaller cars.

I've personally been in both a US 135i and a German 118i and I promise you thé US gets much better materials than the Chevy / Ford level BMWs and Mercs.

I was pretty damn surprised to see a Chevy tier interior with cloth seats in a bmw.

That said, the US 3 series was never as nice as the 5 series but the F30 saw BMW really testing the limits of their customer base. Aside from the seats it was pretty cheap similiar to Porsche circa 1997. The difference being BMW had never been bigger when the F30 launched and now Porsche was on life support when the 996 gen launched.

I'm glad OP seems to imply that BMW has Atleast solve the creaking in a brand new car. It was hilarious leaving my 10 year old 5 series still solid and creak free as a rock and hopping in a brand new 330d Fully loaded only to find it full of creaky plastic.

The good news is really this. The F30 sold like crazy but existing BMW faithful more or less tore it up with criticism. BMW could have stayed the course on the cheap interior and probably gotten away with it but Atleast took it upon themselves to do better.

I