[Fox530]

Hi all,

For those who have one, how are you finding the ride quality in the M340i, specifically when compared to other cars in the range?

I've driven various G20 M Sport cars with run flat tyres and found the ride quality on the standard M Sport suspension to be absolutely fine.

How does this compare with an M340i on Adaptive M Suspension in Comfort mode? It's difficult to tell from reviews and such as some of them claim it's very harsh and transmits every slight imperfection into the cabin and others say it's wonderful!

Are there actually any technical differences between the Adaptive M Suspension on the M340i and Adaptive M Suspension on a regular 320d M Sport or similar?

I will at some point try and drive one obviously but until I get the chance I'd be interested in the thoughts of those of you who actually own one!

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by Fox530

Hi all,

For those who have one, how are you finding the ride quality in the M340i, specifically when compared to other cars in the range?

I've driven various G20 M Sport cars with run flat tyres and found the ride quality on the standard M Sport suspension to be absolutely fine.

How does this compare with an M340i on Adaptive M Suspension in Comfort mode? It's difficult to tell from reviews and such as some of them claim it's very harsh and transmits every slight imperfection into the cabin and others say it's wonderful!

Are there actually any technical differences between the Adaptive M Suspension on the M340i and Adaptive M Suspension on a regular 320d M Sport or similar?

I will at some point try and drive one obviously but until I get the chance I'd be interested in the thoughts of those of you who actually own one!

I own an M440i and can comment on the ride quality about that particular model if you like?

[SilverGrey]

I’m not sure if this helps, but I had an F36 4 series Gran coupe with adaptive M suspension on 18” wheels. In comfort mode it did a great job at ironing out the bumps. When in Sport mode it was supposedly firmer than non-adaptive M suspension. There was a definite difference. I chose Comfort for the majority of the time.

I now have a G20 (a 330i M sport) that came with 18” non-RF tyres as standard. Whilst not as smooth as the F36’s adaptive suspension, it’s not far off. The tyres, I believe, make a big difference.

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by Fox530

Are there actually any technical differences between the Adaptive M Suspension on the M340i and Adaptive M Suspension on a regular 320d M Sport or similar?

Technically similar in design. Difference will be in the calibrations, to match a higher spring rate in the M340i.

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by HighlandPete

Technically similar in design. Difference will be in the calibrations, to match a higher spring rate in the M340i.

Would that argument be the same with regard to an M440i as well then Pete?

[Fox530]

Originally Posted by HighlandPete

Technically similar in design. Difference will be in the calibrations, to match a higher spring rate in the M340i.

Would this have much effect on the ride quality?

Essentially what I'm trying to work out is - I was very happy with the ride/handling balance on the regular M Sport, how different is the M340i?

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by SilverGrey

I now have a G20 (a 330i M sport) that came with 18” non-RF tyres as standard. Whilst not as smooth as the F36’s adaptive suspension, it’s not far off. The tyres, I believe, make a big difference.

Yes tyres, as they can be viewed as the number-one ride control component. And the new lift-related dampers in the G20, (both standard and M-sport passive suspensions) are an improvement over damping in the F3x models. The design concept allows for a more comfortable ride, without losing handling capabilities.

I was impressed with the 318d I had for a few days. M-sport suspension and 18" Pirelli RFTs, one of the best 3-series M-sport models I've driven, just a bit fidgety on typical UK roads.

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by Fox530

Would this have much effect on the ride quality?

Essentially what I'm trying to work out is - I was very happy with the ride/handling balance on the regular M Sport, how different is the M340i?

Not driven an M340i, so no personal assessment.

I'm not understanding some of the comments we read about users not feeling the difference between modes. BMW have increased the difference between Comfort and Sport in the 'G' 3-series, to give a more perceptible variation in the damping characteristics than the 'F' models.

Whether it is simply an M340i 'performance model' issue, where the spring rate is higher, sort of masking the subtleties of the damping maps, hard to know, as some users have a very positive experience and opinion on the difference between modes.

As suspension performance is so individual, best to try an example if you can.

I know from experience when choosing my F11, M-sport doesn't compare IMO, to adaptive. Even a G30 M-sport I tried, which is so much better than the F10 M-sport, wasn't as good as my F11 adaptive, for refinement or chassis composure.

[bmnut]

I've had two F32s and now on my second G22. Obviously they were/are all coupes so the suspension settings will, I assume be different to the saloon equivalents. Every one of the cars had adaptive M sport suspension fitted and my personal experience is that the ride is noticeably much better in the G22 cars compared to the F32 cars. I would assume that improvement in ride characteristics would translate to the saloon versions as well?
All of the cars were running 19" rims and runflat tyres.

[goodbyalfa]

I went from an F36 440i to a g20 M340i. It's firmer no doubt at all, but in my opinion it is never unrefined and is responsibly set up for a 374 hp car when in either comfort or adaptive mode (my go to). In sport mode is firm, but it really does tighten everything up so if you are in the mood, it's quite the change in personality.

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by goodbyalfa

I went from an F36 440i to a g20 M340i. It's firmer no doubt at all, but in my opinion it is never unrefined and is responsibly set up for a 374 hp car when in either comfort or adaptive mode (my go to). In sport mode is firm, but it really does tighten everything up so if you are in the mood, it's quite the change in personality.

More or less my personal findings as well....sort of!

My first G22 M440i did 15000 miles in 15 months and quite a number of long haul motorway slogs as well as a significant number of those miles in urban/city type environments so was rarely ever out of comfort setting as there weren't many opportunities to play with it in sport mode and as for sport +, well that just seemed almost brutal and this car just like the previous ones doesn't even know it has launch control!
Mind you nearly always leaving it set to comfort mode was probably me being a lazy sod and not being arsed to exploit the car's potential!
It just always seemed to feel so damned accomplished leaving it to do it's own thing and just going along for the ride so to speak.
I started to play around with adaptive a bit but then two weeks later sold the car so never really got a chance to evaluate that aspect of the DPC.
The current car has just returned home today from the land of haggis, heather and highland coos, a 300 miles round trip to visit our daughter and on the way home passed the 1000 miles mark so will now start to get opened up bit more. I've promised myself to have a more positive mental attitude towards this one and will start to use adaptive a lot more of the time to see if there really is a noticeable difference!

[beerglass007]

Originally Posted by Fox530

Hi all,

For those who have one, how are you finding the ride quality in the M340i, specifically when compared to other cars in the range?

I've driven various G20 M Sport cars with run flat tyres and found the ride quality on the standard M Sport suspension to be absolutely fine.

How does this compare with an M340i on Adaptive M Suspension in Comfort mode? It's difficult to tell from reviews and such as some of them claim it's very harsh and transmits every slight imperfection into the cabin and others say it's wonderful!

Are there actually any technical differences between the Adaptive M Suspension on the M340i and Adaptive M Suspension on a regular 320d M Sport or similar?

I will at some point try and drive one obviously but until I get the chance I'd be interested in the thoughts of those of you who actually own one!

I've had E90,F30, F36 all in M sport trim and running run flats either 18 or 19s

Then got a M340i with 20" M performance wheels and run flats and lowered 20mm. It was a better ride than my F36 440i with passive suspension

I now have a M340i with 19" wheels and run flats and standard ride height. Again it ride very well and better than any BMW I've owned

I also had a 320d G series with Adaptive M Suspension and was pretty much the same as M340i

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by bmnut

Would that argument be the same with regard to an M440i as well then Pete?

I would believe so. The different spring rates across the model range, will dictate the way the vertical movement has to be controlled.

[Talisman77]

Have driven (iirc) a 320i, in comparison to my M340i it's like night and day. As the others have mentioned, that may not necessarily be due to inherent technical differences versus more impactful causes like the tyres.

In general, I've found the M340i to be sublime in all modes; with Adaptive mode giving a good blend of being comfortable for daily driving mixed with occasionally giving it the beans as required, which then firms everything up as you may expect until your driving style lessens up a bit. In comfort it will happily cruise along and in sport it transmits a lot of the "feel".

Realistically only you will know what you want out of it though so definitely get in one!

[Keith_C]

I've only had PS4S on my 330i and have adaptive and there's deffo a difference between comfort and sport, sport is definitely stiffer. Ride in Comfort is excellence.

My previous car, a 1 series M Sport came with RFT when I bought it, the best decision I ever made with that car was to ditch the RFT and get some decent rubber on there, night and day difference with the ride quality.

I would suggest when the time comes, change the RFT over to a set of normal tyres, the RFT make a difference on ride quality.

[Jimbon1973]

I find the ride the smoothest, most impressive and comfortable of any of my "better" recent cars:
Alfa Giulia, RS3, Alfa 159.
Annecdotal evidence in the fact that my daughter doesn't get car sick for the first time ever in this one!

[Charlie (Wessex)]

19" non RFTs and its all fine with me. Better than non DCC Golf R and E61 M Sport.

[andbrads]

I have a ‘21 M340i with adaptive and 19” RFT.

I find the ride exceptional in adaptive and I coded in Comfort+ which is even better without making the car feel loose or wallowy, it still handles extremely well in this mode.

One thing I find especially good is the rebound damping which seems way better on adaptively damped cars than standard. Usually BMWs jiggle and bob on B roads, and the distinct sound of the seatbelts rattling around in the buckle gives this away. This is notable in its absence in the M340i and it glides along on B roads. Sure enough, if you put it in Sport then the bobbing returns.

By contrast, I recently rented a 430i in the USA which I was interested to
compare to my car. I liked it and was impressed, but still preferred my car. The coupé felt perhaps a touch pointier and more zesty on part throttle, and you Sat lower which I liked. The standard spec steering wheel, whilst uglier, was better as the rim is thinner. However, on the passive set up, the ride was not as good, although still very good. I think the bigger sidewalls helped.

[Trevski220]

I've got 20" wheels with RFT and it's not bad at all! When the time comes to change tires I'll likely no RFT's though

[Randy Johnson]

I'm hoping it is better than my '15 435i. This thing is rough!!!

[vadimo]

compared to F30 320D X Drive with adaptive and 19" RFT, the M340i is big improvement, i am very pleased - there is much much less crushing sound when RFT hits a pothole and car doesn't bounce up and down when going over speed bumps, although maybe the 2cm lowered HR springs help here.

[AndyTo]

Having non-RFT, they are a huge improvement over the RFT, not just ride quality but handling feels better too, not that I'm taking corners anywhere near the cars limits so no quicker, it just feels better. Or could also just be comparing Bridgestone to MP4S?

I would describe the suspension as 'busy' on crappy B road but it's not uncomfortable. The dealer (mr TRL) did recommend taking just a bit of air out the tyres, should be 2.9bar and I have them at 2.7bar and it is surprising that you do notice the difference!