Riaad
Events Organiser
There isn't much of a story behind this purchase other than pure impulse 
Had been searching since 2023 for a clean F25 LCI 30d (for my dad), probably viewed 5 of them but none of them were in a condition which justified the price (in my opinion) and eventually settled on a pristine Forum Example F10 520d.
A bit of background...My SO has a company Lease vehicle which serves well as our runaround, whilst my 330d does the office commute. However there has been some restructuring which seemed like it would be non sensible to retain the lease vehicle. That said, it was meant to be a 6 month lease...18 months down the line and we still have it, but for the last 12 months we knew it could go at anytime. In order to not get caught out with out having a second vehicle, I started another one of my wanted threads : https://www.bmwfanatics.co.za/threads/f56-jcw.100275/, things weren't going to well with this and in June 2024 this GEM of a F25 30d popped up.
Specs : 2018 F25 X3 30d (2017 build date but first registered in 2018)
Space Grey Metallic with Saddle Brown interior
117k kms
Pro Navigation
Harmon Kardon
Reverse Camera
Style 310m wheels
Sports Auto
Extended Cluster
PDCs
Xenons
Pretty much fully specced, I think just the 6WB cluster is missing.
As usual, I start off with an interior clean up, It was in excellent condition to start with, but really stood out after the clean and Gyeon Leather Coat.
The engine bay was fairly dusty - so this took some effort.
Next was maintenance items: Oil Service (took out a black oil plan, still the best deal out there) and whilst the car was at JSN, I had them replace the fuel filter. Also fitted an OEM airfilter and replaced the cabin filters (all 4).
Next up was the tires, these vehicles should not have come with 'low profile 20s' imo, I decided to explore upsizing to the G01 spec
F25 : 245/40/R20 & 275/35/R20
G01 : 245/45/R20 & 275/40/R20
After scouring the interwebs and checking with other F25 owners, things were not all that simple. Some owners experienced issues with the fronts catching at full lock. Regardless I was determined to go with the G01 spec, and compared the Bridgestone Alenza to Michelin Latitude 3. Interestingly, the Alenza was slightly higher than the Michelin even though the profiles were identical.
Proceeded to fit the Michelins and did a few tests in the car park - happy to report there is no rubbing issues (however clearance is minimal). In terms of ride quality, Its a significant improvement. I would say it compares to F25 spec with non rft (the latitude 3 is RFT).
Also, I feel like the upsized profile suits the car better and looks good imo.
Next up, was time for a detail + ceramic coating (Sbo - Detail Logic did a fantastic job yet again, previously had him detail the 520d).
So far we have done a trip to Nelspruit and Durban, and the 30d just eats up the miles, perfect long distance vehicle !
Some eagle eyed members may recognize the pics below😆
And that is about it...
Had been searching since 2023 for a clean F25 LCI 30d (for my dad), probably viewed 5 of them but none of them were in a condition which justified the price (in my opinion) and eventually settled on a pristine Forum Example F10 520d.
A bit of background...My SO has a company Lease vehicle which serves well as our runaround, whilst my 330d does the office commute. However there has been some restructuring which seemed like it would be non sensible to retain the lease vehicle. That said, it was meant to be a 6 month lease...18 months down the line and we still have it
, but for the last 12 months we knew it could go at anytime. In order to not get caught out with out having a second vehicle, I started another one of my wanted threads : https://www.bmwfanatics.co.za/threads/f56-jcw.100275/, things weren't going to well with this and in June 2024 this GEM of a F25 30d popped up.Specs : 2018 F25 X3 30d (2017 build date but first registered in 2018)
Space Grey Metallic with Saddle Brown interior
117k kms
Pro Navigation
Harmon Kardon
Reverse Camera
Style 310m wheels
Sports Auto
Extended Cluster
PDCs
Xenons
Pretty much fully specced, I think just the 6WB cluster is missing.
As usual, I start off with an interior clean up, It was in excellent condition to start with, but really stood out after the clean and Gyeon Leather Coat.
The engine bay was fairly dusty - so this took some effort.
Next was maintenance items: Oil Service (took out a black oil plan, still the best deal out there) and whilst the car was at JSN, I had them replace the fuel filter. Also fitted an OEM airfilter and replaced the cabin filters (all 4).
Next up was the tires, these vehicles should not have come with 'low profile 20s' imo, I decided to explore upsizing to the G01 spec
F25 : 245/40/R20 & 275/35/R20
G01 : 245/45/R20 & 275/40/R20
After scouring the interwebs and checking with other F25 owners, things were not all that simple. Some owners experienced issues with the fronts catching at full lock. Regardless I was determined to go with the G01 spec, and compared the Bridgestone Alenza to Michelin Latitude 3. Interestingly, the Alenza was slightly higher than the Michelin even though the profiles were identical.
Proceeded to fit the Michelins and did a few tests in the car park - happy to report there is no rubbing issues (however clearance is minimal). In terms of ride quality, Its a significant improvement. I would say it compares to F25 spec with non rft (the latitude 3 is RFT).
Also, I feel like the upsized profile suits the car better and looks good imo.
Next up, was time for a detail + ceramic coating (Sbo - Detail Logic did a fantastic job yet again, previously had him detail the 520d).
So far we have done a trip to Nelspruit and Durban, and the 30d just eats up the miles, perfect long distance vehicle !
Some eagle eyed members may recognize the pics below😆
And that is about it...
