[apocalypsbe]

Hi everyone

I'm wondering to what extent you are able to get the right information from BMW, I've been struggling to get some questions answered. Yesterday did an attempt by tweeting @BMW, they now followed me back on Twitter and I've sent them a direct message with my questions.

My dealer often doesn't know about things that I ask (yes I'm a geek when it comes to stuff I want on my car so I dig through the internet and forums to see what's available or possible and then I start to ask questions).

Right now I've got some open questions like:

M performance power kit that is nowhere to be found on the Belgian BMW website while the Netherlands, Germany etc have it featured so I was wondering why? Is it illegal in Belgium, is it not available here, can I get it in installed in Germany and will it then be legal in Belgium

Another questions around ActiveSound which was announced on BMW press blog and supposed to be launched between September 2015 - March 2016 for Diesels (I'm belgian, it's a Diesel country really) also here I haven't been able to get the right information from BMW so far but I have to admit I also lack the contacts, I'm new to the community as well so it might not be a surprise that I'm not talking to the right people.

Anyway, my car is scheduled for delivery in May 2016 so I'm trying to figure out what I want to have up front so that I can have it as complete as possible when it's delivered to avoid having to give it to the garage afterwards to make additional modifications

So if anyone has pointers for me where I could get certain information, or contacts, who I should be talking to (where are the real experts?) please let me know.

I'm interested in hearing stories or thoughts on this topic, is it easy elsewhere to get the right information or are you experiencing the same difficulties?

Kr

Tom

[pjohns21]

Good luck. BMW doesn't care what you have to say now that you've ordered a car. You're lucky if you still have a warranty after they decode your driving habits at the first maintenance visit.

[Arcades]

Originally Posted by apocalypsbe

Hi everyone

I'm wondering to what extent you are able to get the right information from BMW, I've been struggling to get some questions answered. Yesterday did an attempt by tweeting @BMW, they now followed me back on Twitter and I've sent them a direct message with my questions.

My dealer often doesn't know about things that I ask (yes I'm a geek when it comes to stuff I want on my car so I dig through the internet and forums to see what's available or possible and then I start to ask questions).

Right now I've got some open questions like:

M performance power kit that is nowhere to be found on the Belgian BMW website while the Netherlands, Germany etc have it featured so I was wondering why? Is it illegal in Belgium, is it not available here, can I get it in installed in Germany and will it then be legal in Belgium

Another questions around ActiveSound which was announced on BMW press blog and supposed to be launched between September 2015 - March 2016 for Diesels (I'm belgian, it's a Diesel country really) also here I haven't been able to get the right information from BMW so far but I have to admit I also lack the contacts, I'm new to the community as well so it might not be a surprise that I'm not talking to the right people.

Anyway, my car is scheduled for delivery in May 2016 so I'm trying to figure out what I want to have up front so that I can have it as complete as possible when it's delivered to avoid having to give it to the garage afterwards to make additional modifications

So if anyone has pointers for me where I could get certain information, or contacts, who I should be talking to (where are the real experts?) please let me know.

I'm interested in hearing stories or thoughts on this topic, is it easy elsewhere to get the right information or are you experiencing the same difficulties?

Kr

Tom

1. Active Sound is not real. It was said to be real time but it isn't, it's actually a recording that has been put into the car EXTREMELY cleverly. Most of the time, any normal people who doesn't care for this kind of crap won't even notice it. They just believe the car is loud on the inside which is actually just the Active Sound Device aka ASD making you hear the engine better.

2. BMW knows their cars, but sadly you don't buy cars straight from BMW themselves, it's the dealerships. A lot of dealerships salesman are exactly that, they are salesman. They don't know cars, they only know the exact basics to sell you a certain car. Of course there are a lot of agents who actually do know the cars extremely well because they are enthusiasts themselves so they keep up with the news.

3. I'm a bit unsure of what this M-Performance Power Kit is, I am assuming it is the new ZCP package aka Competition Package. I think it has something to do with where you are from (?) I'm unsure on this.

4. If you have any sort of questions, honestly the best place is online here in the forums. Aside from trolls and stupid people some times, there are a lot of helpful people here that will gladly answer your questions. Do NOT believe reviewers or any car review websites that tell you something about any car. Always keep in mind that Car Review people are human, so they will always be biased.

[pjohns21]

Originally Posted by Arcades

1. Active Sound is not real. It was said to be real time but it isn't, it's actually a recording that has been put into the car EXTREMELY cleverly. Most of the time, any normal people who doesn't care for this kind of crap won't even notice it. They just believe the car is loud on the inside which is actually just the Active Sound Device aka ASD making you hear the engine better.

2. BMW knows their cars, but sadly you don't buy cars straight from BMW themselves, it's the dealerships. A lot of dealerships salesman are exactly that, they are salesman. They don't know cars, they only know the exact basics to sell you a certain car. Of course there are a lot of agents who actually do know the cars extremely well because they are enthusiasts themselves so they keep up with the news.

3. I'm a bit unsure of what this M-Performance Power Kit is, I am assuming it is the new ZCP package aka Competition Package. I think it has something to do with where you are from (?) I'm unsure on this.

4. If you have any sort of questions, honestly the best place is online here in the forums. Aside from trolls and stupid people some times, there are a lot of helpful people here that will gladly answer your questions. Do NOT believe reviewers or any car review websites that tell you something about any car. Always keep in mind that Car Review people are human, so they will always be biased.

Active sound is like going from analog to digital. It's gonna happen, 'nuff said. The first BMW documents I read concerning active sound indicated that it was only active in Sport and Sport + modes.

BMW dealers don't know shi* compared to enthusiasts, but the folks in Munich should know their heads from their as*es. You're closer to them than I am. I have extreme disdain for the low-lifes heading up BMW NA in NJ, USA.

No idea. Options are different among various markets. You can have an option or package built with the car, a dealer installed option, an option installed at the port (which seems very unlikely given your location), or a genuine BMW accessory installed by a BMW service center.

The forums are great for information if the person giving you advice is in the same continent, country, and market (haha, the irony of my post). But the dude above me is right, the enthusiast in your location knows more than the sales people at the dealer. Of course, the people in Munich know even more, but you may never reach them, good luck!

[Law]

No, the M Performance Performance Kit (MPPK) is not ZCP.

It is an add on (like the M Performance Differential on the M235i) rather than a package like ZCP.
The MPPK tunes the engine for more performance.
Think of it as an OEM stage one tune.

As for legality, it is certainly legal in North America. If BMW offers it as an OEM M Performance part that you can buy from the dealer, it is safe to assume that it is legal in Europe as well, although i'd confirm just to be sure.
But as far as I know, M Performance parts are engineered within the bounds of legal requirements. MPPK is mild compared to aftermarket offerings like JB4. Even the M Performance exhaust systems are axle-backs that don't affect the function of the catalytic converters and noise increase is mild (presumably to keep them within emissions and noise regulations).

Regarding Active Sound Design (ASD), I'm not sure what questions you have since you didn't specify but most, if not all, F-chassis BMWs have them.
People have even figured out how to code/retrofit different ASD files into different models (i.e., M135i with F80 M3 ASD).

[martin mustang]

For the Performance Pack, one way of finding out is to make sure you can still insure your car and the cost to your insurance for adding the pack, this is the best way to staying legal with it in your car.
Note if like Ireland you find different approaches to this by Insurance companies so shop around, my one is with BMW (Zurich insurance), it was possible to add the pack as it was OEM at no additional cost to my insurance, others simply rejected the option.

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by apocalypsbe

I'm interested in hearing stories or thoughts on this topic, is it easy elsewhere to get the right information or are you experiencing the same difficulties?

The very reason for great web sites like BimmerPost to begin with is to be sources of information that is otherwise difficult to obtain from large corporate entities due to any number of reasons (that we don't need to dwell on at this moment).

Think of Bimmerpost as a big crowd-sourced knowledge base. It doesn't know everything (your region-specific questions being a possible example of that), but it sure does know a whole lot. Asking questions here, just as you have essentially done already by posting here, or searching out answers using the search function or your favorite third party search tool is very frequently the best way to get answers.

[apocalypsbe]

thanks for the replies!

I'm talking about the exhaust when I talk about ActiveSound announced here:

https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/globa...ocNo=P90192266

So then you've got sound inside & outside basically

The M Performance Kit is indeed tuning so would be swap of intercooler and motor management adjustments as far as I know but I have to figure out how to get it and if it can be done in factory beforehand etc

Got a meeting tomorrow with insurance so I'll ask there for effect on insurance

I'm trying different channels now so I'll report back to where I got answers from (or not). I know these type of communities know more (in general) than the basic dealer or salesmen that's also why I reside here

[apocalypsbe]

Contacted @BMW on Twitter

Contacted BMW press group which send me to BMW customer service

Going to contact a driving experience center in Belgium also, need to give them a phone call to check if they got this kind of insight

I'll keep this thread up to date on what works or doesn't, reading from the comments I shouldn't get my hopes up

[apocalypsbe]

Happy to share great news, BMW dealer contacted BMW Benelux and they answered all my questions which is great.

So it looks like in the end, the contacts through dealership worked.

Feedback on my particular questions:

M performance kit isn't "legal" in Belgium so I'm not going to do that
M performance activesound is available for 420D but not yet in catalog so that means that I can get it on my car which will be delivered in May 2016