03-17-2020, 11:22 PM | #1 |
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Picked up my M340i today
BMW has done a BEAUTIFUL job with this car.
I have had many BMW's. I think over the years they have consistently offered the best quality/performance/comfort and VALUE of all the luxury car manufacturers. Easy to live with, familiar, reliable. We have had multiple 3 series, 5 series, X5's and three M3's. Not since the E39 5 series (we had three) has BMW gotten a car this 'right'. If I had to describe it in just one word, the first word that comes to mind would be SMOOTH. The three series has emerged all grow up this time around. The 2 series has replaced the old three. This M340 has the comfort of 5 series past with perfect driving dynamics. Honestly, it is as close to perfect as they have come in many years... since that ridiculously good e39 530 sport. That car was perfect harmony. The new M340 is perfect harmony. The adaptive suspension is perfectly damped, comfortable, unflappable. The non run flat Pilot sports are the perfect tire. Every bit as good as the old M3, no, better than the old M3 for EVERYTHING but the track. This car can dance. If feels light and planted... It steers beautifully and has very good feedback. The engine is amazing, pulling right off idol all the way to redline. It has zero lag and is perfectly linear. It makes that beautiful straight six sound and is turbine smooth. It is matched perfectly to the 8 speed automatic transmission that rips off shifts that are so smooth and so perfectly executed that you can barely feel them. Far better than the herky jerky dual clutch found in the M cars. Put it in sport plus and it holds gears and downshifts as if it were reading my mind..... choosing gears exactly as I would had I been driving a proper manual. Telepathically good. This could quite possibly be the best drivetrain in any modern BMW. The fact that it is being asked to haul around a relatively light, wonderfully taunt chassis is a recipe for excellence. All this goodness is wrapped up in a fresh, contemporary package that boasts handsome good looks with a confident stance and slick lines. The interior is updated and modern, with a beautiful fit and finish and high quality materials throughout. The new design is not as immediately familiar as BMW's of the past had been, but the learning curve should be quick. The M-sport steering wheel is slightly tweaked from past models but as always is spot on perfect. The thud the doors make when closed is more solid and pleasing than any modern car I can think of. It feel purposeful and well built. The Tanzanite blue paint is rich and brilliant. The tech is a quantum leap forward... the new screen is crystal clear and the navigation map continues to be the very best in the business. There is plenty of goodness baked into all BMW's. Sometimes those individual ingredients come together with a finished product that is more than the sum of it's parts. The M340 is good. Old school BMW good. The best BMW in many, many years. There are more expensive BMW's, faster BMW's, perhaps more prestigious BMW's..... but right now there is no better BMW than the M340. This BMW has perfect balance, figuratively and literally. Perhaps that single word should have been SWEET. Can you tell I love my new car? Last edited by NewM3driver; 03-17-2020 at 11:32 PM.. |
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03-18-2020, 02:32 AM | #2 |
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obviously i am also biased, but I agree with you, that this is the perfect street car. Especially in a place without perfect roads. An F80 or something would just be more jarring and jerky for doing normal non track things.
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03-18-2020, 07:48 AM | #3 |
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Congrats... let's see some pics!
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2023 BMW M3 6MT 2024 Mini Cooper S Convertible '20 BMW m340i... '20 BMW X5 40i... '16 Infiniti Q50 RS 400... '10 Lexus RX 350... '08 Lexus IS 350... '00 Nissan Maxima... '93 Nissan Maxima |
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03-18-2020, 08:57 AM | #5 | |
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I thought the same with my F30 335i when it got offloaded the truck... After spending past two days, 300 miles and numerous hours with the M340i, I have realized how different and how remarkable the F80 is. I totally agree that M340i is better suited for every-day driving and ultimately for what I need. But, as it should be, it is a totally different vehicle from the F80 |
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03-18-2020, 09:21 AM | #6 |
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could not have said it better
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03-18-2020, 09:46 AM | #7 |
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Many of the reasons I just ordered a M340i. Looks like it's going to be a longer wait than originally thought, though.
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03-18-2020, 01:12 PM | #8 |
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03-18-2020, 01:17 PM | #9 | ||
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Yes, BMW's are different across product lines, as they should be... But let's be honest, there is rarely anything special about a vehicle, including F80 (former F82 driver here). They're cars, you enjoy them, then move on to the next vehicle.
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03-18-2020, 01:29 PM | #10 |
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This review means a lot coming from someone who not only has owned the M3 but also drives an air cooled Porsche.
It is a truly impeccable machine that we all are lucky to drive. Enjoy in good health, now move over lol so I can pass 👍. Cheers!
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03-18-2020, 03:21 PM | #11 | |
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For a daily the M340 all day long The 993 is a completely different animal. |
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03-18-2020, 03:33 PM | #12 | |
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I'm pretty sure this is NOT because she has all of a sudden become conscious of slamming doors. It hasn't stopped for the past 5 years. Maybe I need some flashing red LED lights on her bedroom door. Don't even go there...
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03-18-2020, 03:54 PM | #13 | |
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Super glad to hear your thoughts on the non-runflats! I ordered mine with non-runflats but passive suspension rather than adaptive. Your thoughts on the superlative balance echo my original thinking that BMW has made (on paper) a modern E39 M5 in size, weight and performance, if not cachet. If I'm to miss one of those things, that one is acceptable to me. Since family life decisions make it impossible to have my true dream car (said E39 M5), I always felt the M340i could be "the one". Eager to find out in a few weeks! Did you have a chance to compare the M3 suspension to both active and passive in the M340 before ordering? I was a fan of how variable the adaptive was for all situations but always concerned it would be a problem to maintain. For me, I chose passive because I drive a BMW like a BMW
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Gone! "Edna" - 2011 BMW 335i 6MT TiAg / BlackOyster - M-Sport, Premium, Comfort Access, Navigation, Heated Seats, Rollerblinds R.I.P. "Heidi" - 2005 BMW 330xi 6MT BSM / Black - Sport, Premium, Cold Weather, Harmon Kardon, Navigation |
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03-18-2020, 06:25 PM | #14 | |
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I did drive M340's with both the active and passive suspension. Both cars behaved well, however I felt the active dampers were worth the relatively inexpensive cost of admission. I feel a properly specified M340 would have the active suspension, and equally important, NON runlet tires. Now the spare donut tire BMW gives you takes up half the depth of your trunk. My spare, and the surround that held it have already been removed and relocated to the basement. |
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03-18-2020, 06:36 PM | #15 | |
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Likewise, I knew instantly that BMW had made some very dramatic improvements by adding the competition package on the 2017 M3. The overall refinement and smoothness of that car was worth making the change from a non comp pack car. There is a side to the BMW M3 that is boy racer. It is fun 10% of the time, and annoying the other 90%. Hyper, loud, tail happy (OK I'll admit I always liked that). My last M car did rattle a LOT. Far more than it should have for the price. |
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03-19-2020, 06:50 AM | #16 | |
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I heard some stories that removing the spare required buying a new trunk floor cover? Or does the surround sit on top of the existing one? Also, did you end up with the Michelins or Pirellis at delivery?
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Gone! "Edna" - 2011 BMW 335i 6MT TiAg / BlackOyster - M-Sport, Premium, Comfort Access, Navigation, Heated Seats, Rollerblinds R.I.P. "Heidi" - 2005 BMW 330xi 6MT BSM / Black - Sport, Premium, Cold Weather, Harmon Kardon, Navigation |
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03-19-2020, 10:10 AM | #19 | |
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Been using it for 2 years as daily driver and aside from the rattles (I'd say 10% category) the car has been totally awesome. However, the M340i definitely feels like a better compromise for the way I am using it... |
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03-19-2020, 11:32 AM | #20 |
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My m340i has adaptive but runflat tires and i've been a car enthusiast for over 20yrs driving and owning every car imaginable. It's very hard to fault this m340i, a 12 flat 1/4 mile daily driver with great handling and fuel economy. There are no downsides.
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03-19-2020, 11:57 AM | #21 |
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Congrats! If I didn't care about 6MT so much I would have bought an M340i. Enjoy the car in good health!!
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