Well I have had my F20 for a month now, so I thought it was about time I posted my thoughts.
Why did I choose the 1 series? Well, it is a company car so had a limited, but good options – my shortlist from the list my were:
3 Series 320 ED
1 Series F20 any current spec
Merc C220 CDI
Audi A3 170hp Sportback Black
We live in Central London and we generally only have one car between myself and the wife, usually a 2 seater sports – Mx5, S2000 etc and I often get a more sensible car though work on long term hire when needed, so I have spent a lot of time with 320ED and A3’s. We basically got sick of the hassle of owning a car in the city so decided to put my car allowance to good use and go hassle free with a company car, giving up a convertible was hard….so we really wanted to retain the sporty feel in cars we were used to, but also sensible enough to use for weekends away etc. So why the four cars above and why did we choose the 1 Series?
3 Series ED – cheap, with the low emissions together with a good *price* it was the most sensible option financially. But neither of us really had love for it, we had one for about a month, she hated driving it and compared to our own car it really felt like Dad’s car!
Merc C220 – I actually liked this more than the 320 even though it was softer, the standard options seemed to be better – I probably would have gone for this if we weren’t so central as she wanted something smaller really. Oh and the panoramic sunroof was lovely, massive plus point going from a drop top.
A3 – I had spent a lot of time in smaller engined A3’s – yeah they are ok. I hadn’t tried a ‘fast’ one and the sportback has a double sunroof option. Tbh I had basically sold this car to myself, the options list was great, decent stereo (Very important!). The I got an S-line on demo for a week – AWFUL!! All that torque and FWD just made me feel like I was being dragged around everywhere, maybe we’d get used to it but we have never owned a FWD car before. Hated driving it.
So that left the not yet released 1 Series. After managing to sell the A3 to myself before driving it, I had to wait to see it in the flesh. So on release day I walked into the MK dealership and sitting in front of me was a Red Sport with sun protection kit and aluminium trim. Visually sold. They had an 118d ES for test – so I took it out for a spin, wasn’t as quick as I was hoping but everything else was perfect (I later found out it was in Eco Pro mode) – sold.
So I got to work Monday and ordered a 120d Sport in Red with the following options
18”s – Just because!
Sunroof – we like natural light
Sun protection kit – so I feel better leaving my bike in the boot and it looks good
M-Sport suspension – personally like a good hard setup, found the 320ED and CD220 so soft compared to sportier cars, and a nice 10mm drop
Folding mirrors – she wanted them – city street parking – but I have to say I love the dimming rear view!
HK hifi – we sit in traffic too much – makes the world a better place.
DAB – I like BBC 1xtra!
Ali trim – cos the car in the shop had it and I liked it!
So how have I found it? Basically it nearly perfect for what we want! The 120d is quick, no doubt, but somehow the mpg is amazing too – a week driving purely in the city – 47mpg from a whole tank. She drove it for about 250 miles on motorways 58mpg average – its really economical (ok it’s the first diesel we’ve owned!). The torque is amazing, though I sometimes feel it is a high geared, I guess that is what gets us the good mpg, in 6th at 60mph you do need to drop down to get a FAST overtake. It looks awesome. Oh and I am so impressed by the Hifi – I have always had after market setups and this sounds better than any I have owned, actually other than some silly hi-end OEM stuff (Bentley/Naim!) it is the best in-car I have heard, and for factory the bass is bloody good! Have a listen to Emika’s new album! The driving modes are actually decent too – I only use Eco Pro (well it makes sense!) and Sport (is Sport+ the same a Sport with ADC off? – seems a pointless extra if so) – the difference between the two is quite shocking – Eco pro is just perfect for cursing around town, response is smooth and the whole thing is easy, while sport is a whole new character – aggressive, fast throttle response really does make it a totally different car. The boot has tons of room (well compared to the MX5!) but for me its way better than the 320 too – since you can drop the seats and pile the crap in, its great. For me hatch beats saloon every day.
What am I not happy about? Well, I have to say I do not like the idrive (screen), I don't have satnav so I don't need a screen – simples. I just find it superfluous. Yes it is nice for track selection but I have used simpler systems that are just effective without the need for a big screen – I seem to be turning it off all the time. I find it annoying that it does not take a digital feed from an iphone – you need to use the 3.5mm jack (guess BMW don't want to pay the licence), this means (for me at least) USB stick sounds better than the iphone as a digital feed and the onboard dac is used for conversion. Also the headlights seem to be dimmer than I would expect – I may ask Park lane BMW to take a look as I personally don't think the ‘throw’ is far enough– but I do drive in town mostly where it is not an issue, if I were a country boy and Xenons solved the problem then they would be a must – still slightly annoying though. If I had realised the amount of adjustment on the seats I would have probably gone for the electric option as it is so annoying after she drives to reset the flipping thing up! And I haven’t figured out if I can tell it which driving mode to start in – would make sense to start in Eco Pro rather than Comfort. I would have liked the *connected* options – facebook, remote locking, internet etc – but it would have been a very expensive choice (Satnav required and not needed). Very occasionally when you change into gear just as the engine turns itself off (stop/start) - you end up in gear with an off engine - in and out of gear or a shale of the steering wheels solves it.
It sounds like I have a lot of issues – but I don't – all are REALLY minor. I love this car so far and she is more than happy too.
I will get some pictures up soon….