320d (F30) questions from a Noob

[HiToKiRi]

As per the subject I'm a bit of a noob when it comes to BMW's so please bear with me.

My current wagon is very luxurious and spacious and even though she's very comfortable, her fuel economy is rather atrocious. Normal city/town driving I'm averaging 11.7L - 13L/100km even while driving like a granny and this is on a 70L tank...so you get the picture. :thumbdo:

I'm therefore now looking at a 320d Lux line and even though the cabin and boot space is quite a bit less than my current ride, with the fuel economy figures on the 320d I realise I have to compromise somewhere.

So here are my questions:

1. The concept of driving without a spare wheel is a bit strange for me so how easy is it to fix a puncture with the "repair kit" that comes with the car?

2. What kind of mileage can I expect from those Bridgestone run flats? AFAIK the 17" rims on the front and rear of the Lux Line are identical so surely I should be able to alternate the tyres every 10000km or so try to extend the life of the tyres?

3. Are run-flats better (mileage and road handling wise) compared to normal tyres or are they merely there for the "peace of mind" factor?

4. The tank on the 320d is supposedly 57L so what kind of mileage should I comfortably get on a tank if I drive more on the conservative side? I'm sure there are a couple of 320d owners here who can help with this one.

There might be more questions to come but these are all I can think of...for now.

Thanks

 

[badboizn]

As per the subject I'm a bit of a noob when it comes to BMW's so please bear with me.

My current wagon is very luxurious and spacious and even though she's very comfortable, her fuel economy is rather atrocious. Normal city/town driving I'm averaging 11.7L - 13L/100km even while driving like a granny and this is on a 70L tank...so you get the picture. :thumbdo:

I'm therefore now looking at a 320d Lux line and even though the cabin and boot space is quite a bit less than my current ride, with the fuel economy figures on the 320d I realise I have to compromise somewhere.

So here are my questions:

1. The concept of driving without a spare wheel is a bit strange for me so how easy is it to fix a puncture with the "repair kit" that comes with the car?

Runflats can be plugged but bmw does not advise doing this. It all depends on were about the tyre is damaged. with regards to the tyre repair kit, I think its a temporary measure and the tyre will have to be replaced.

2. What kind of mileage can I expect from those Bridgestone run flats? AFAIK the 17" rims on the front and rear of the Lux Line are identical so surely I should be able to alternate the tyres every 10000km or so try to extend the life of the tyres?

Not sure about 17's but on my e90 with 16's i got about 60k on bridgestone rfts.

3. Are run-flats better (mileage and road handling wise) compared to normal tyres or are they merely there for the "peace of mind" factor?

Runflats do give a slightly harder ride, handling wise I dont think there is much of a difference.

4. The tank on the 320d is supposedly 57L so what kind of mileage should I comfortably get on a tank if I drive more on the conservative side? I'm sure there are a couple of 320d owners here who can help with this one.

My F30 currently averages abt 5.6l per 100kms. Depending on driving style your range can be as low as 800 or as high as 1200km + per tank.

There might be more questions to come but these are all I can think of...for now.

Thanks

 

[Vicus]

I concur with HiToKiRi.

But I should also mention that economy is not all you will be getting. Dunno if you have driven the 320d F30, but if you have not, I should mention the power as well. You are going to be pleasantly surprised at the grunt this baby has.

 

[badboizn]

Its a good balance of power and economy. :inlove:

 

[Iceman007]

:thumbs:

320d F30 you will not regret it

 

[DieselFan]

I have to disagree about the handling side of runflats, they have no flex in the side wall and mine tend to slip when taking corners and hitting little bumps. I cant wait to get rid of the bridgestones RFTs on the front. I think they are horrible tyres. You can get a space saver from bmw and fit regular tyres. But then you will have to keep it in the boot and have an even bigger tyre in the boot if you have a puncture.

Some guys say you should get your insurance to confirm its ok fitting normal tyres on a car with RFTs. I doubt you'll ever have a problem with a claim because of it. But it's worth doing for piece of mind.

RFTs are just there for the piece of mind factor. But on the other hand on a long trip you could be too far from a large town or city which stocks RFTs.

 

[petrivanzyl]

So here are my questions:

1. The concept of driving without a spare wheel is a bit strange for me so how easy is it to fix a puncture with the "repair kit" that comes with the car?

2. What kind of mileage can I expect from those Bridgestone run flats? AFAIK the 17" rims on the front and rear of the Lux Line are identical so surely I should be able to alternate the tyres every 10000km or so try to extend the life of the tyres?

3. Are run-flats better (mileage and road handling wise) compared to normal tyres or are they merely there for the "peace of mind" factor?

4. The tank on the 320d is supposedly 57L so what kind of mileage should I comfortably get on a tank if I drive more on the conservative side? I'm sure there are a couple of 320d owners here who can help with this one.

1. You don't really want to repair it except in emergency. Plugged a couple of times and have driven a few 100km on totally deflated runfluts:thumbs:

2. Rear < 30000km; Front +- 50000km

3. About the same but less mileage, some would say worse handling. That depends on the specific RFT:fencelook:

4. About 1000km:thumbs:

 

[HiToKiRi]

Thanks for all the inputs all. Much appreciated.

I definitely won't be driving with "plugged" run-flats. I'm also one of those that believes if a tyre has been damaged it is compromised.

I was really just trying to get an idea of how quick/easy it is to fix a puncture with the repair kit if I get stranded next to the road as compared to just changing the wheel for the spare on a more "traditional" vehicle.

I concur with HiToKiRi.

But I should also mention that economy is not all you will be getting. Dunno if you have driven the 320d F30, but if you have not, I should mention the power as well. You are going to be pleasantly surprised at the grunt this baby has.

I most certainly have yes. She does go nicely that's for sure...makes my current wagon feel like a donkey. :=):

 

[cOlDFuSiOn]

Some good feedback thus far. :=):

My take on the F30 320d is as follows:

1) Consumption in town (stop/go traffic) and then having fun on the backroads home it gets me 7.6l/100. Open road is a different story - depending on how conservatively you drive you are looking at anything between 3.8-5.2l/100.. Heck I have a post on here (Petri's thread I think) where I got 2.8l/100 (IIRC) on a 50km stretch of road.. The N47 is a very nice engine, BUT it suffers from heatsoak after long trips through hot areas, needs a proper IC and some decent remapping to get some good power. Being honest here, when you get her off the hiway after a few hundred KMs she is dead in town.. Spray down the IC and wait a while and she's back to normal.

2) RFTs... Hmm, well I have had 3 make sidewall bubbles on me on the F30 alone.. That said I got about 40k out of the rears with lots of hooning too.. (The fronts always get the bubbles) .. Repairing a RFT should not be a problem as long as it's a nail, etc. heck I even attended a fanatics charity event with a blown out sidewall in the F30 - hiway and all it held up.. :thumbs:

3) Handling wise I dunno, my F30 surely does love to kick the tail out in the corners but when you want to corner clean and fast when there's a GTI on your tail which just can't get past she's no ship.. Very agile car in the right hands! :rollsmile:

All in all, I prefer both the F30 and the F20 to their predecessors, yeah they are not perfect, but my o my.. They are well balanced cars and if tuned a bit worthy TLGP toys too .

Hope this helps :thumbs:

 

[sash]

I have to disagree about the handling side of runflats, they have no flex in the side wall and mine tend to slip when taking corners and hitting little bumps. I cant wait to get rid of the bridgestones RFTs on the front. I think they are horrible tyres. You can get a space saver from bmw and fit regular tyres. But then you will have to keep it in the boot and have an even bigger tyre in the boot if you have a puncture.

Some guys say you should get your insurance to confirm its ok fitting normal tyres on a car with RFTs. I doubt you'll ever have a problem with a claim because of it. But it's worth doing for piece of mind.

RFTs are just there for the piece of mind factor. But on the other hand on a long trip you could be too far from a large town or city which stocks RFTs.

Is it wise to mix rft and non rfts? i know abmi0000 had some bad handling issues when using mixed tyres?

 

[Bevan]

PM Sent

 

[DieselFan]

I have to disagree about the handling side of runflats, they have no flex in the side wall and mine tend to slip when taking corners and hitting little bumps. I cant wait to get rid of the bridgestones RFTs on the front. I think they are horrible tyres. You can get a space saver from bmw and fit regular tyres. But then you will have to keep it in the boot and have an even bigger tyre in the boot if you have a puncture.

Some guys say you should get your insurance to confirm its ok fitting normal tyres on a car with RFTs. I doubt you'll ever have a problem with a claim because of it. But it's worth doing for piece of mind.

RFTs are just there for the piece of mind factor. But on the other hand on a long trip you could be too far from a large town or city which stocks RFTs.

Is it wise to mix rft and non rfts? i know abmi0000 had some bad handling issues when using mixed tyres?

Haven't found any negative effects from it. Front have Bridgestones Potenzas and Rears have Contis SC3.

I would expect only negative effects to be had if mixing left and right.

 

[HiToKiRi]

So I'm THIS close to sealing the deal on the 320d but I'm rather taken aback by the fact that the best interest rate the dealership can get me is -0.5%.

Maybe I'm being ignorant here but from BMW financial services I really don't think this is good enough. Most BMW owners I know are sitting between -1.0% and -3.0% so why should I accept -0.5%.

Any advice here?

 

[KarshS]

PM Sent

for what?