[elantracrdi05]

Disclaimer: All views are personal. Read at your own free will since I would do the same. I do not intend to cause any harm with my biased comments. Any car / dealer spoken in a negative connotation would be a function of my personal experience and of course a bias due to rationalization of my purchase. I tend to ramble on so please excuse and feel free to skip a few paragraphs!

A rather long story of previous ownerships:
I owned a Santro upto Sep 2010 post which I decided I needed a bigger, more economical car since my driving was a minimum of 20,000-25,000 km / year and petrol bills were going insane. I chose a pre-owned Elantra crdi 2005 with the optional leather pack. The car was bought from Mahindra First Choice in Delhi having done 50,000 km over 5 years of ownership. I thought that they would have done a thorough job of checking the car’s road worthiness before a sale. That was not to happen though.

Within a week of buying the car, the front and rear brake pads had to be changed, the tires were changed and so was the front suspension. After that, within a month, the AC cooling coil and filter was changed (even after that AC was ineffective). At 68,000 km, the car’s engine seized and I spent another good deal of money to get it back on road. While I was pleased with the car as a whole, the maintenance of a lemon was too much to stomach. Coinciding with a change of job (and hence the more important disposable income), started the hunt for a ‘nice car’.

Shopping decision:
Shopping for a new car is never easy. The wife was completely against a used car given the previous ownership sorrows. I mentally made up my mind for a budget of INR 18-20 lacs. The choices for cars in this range were rather limited given my choice of fuel as diesel, an Auto box for a comfortable drive, and I really wanted peace of mind.

• Choice1: Skoda Laura – I actually quite like the car – it’s the ownership stories that scared me away from the car. I never really went to check it out.
• Choice2: VW Jetta – Again, really liked the looks of the car with the A4 rear and the clean bodywork. At an on-road price of 20 lacs +/- 50,000, it was the logical choice. The space was nice, the car was nice but I was peeved at the lack of features. The highline DSG was devoid of Climate Control, Sunroof, Leather and Xenons (4 features which I was keen on having).
• Choice3: New Elantra – Didn’t know when it would have been launched but knew that it would be loaded to the gills. Also, expected it to save me a few lacs too.

The Jetta was so bare that I thought that for a few lacs more, I could even look at the BMW 320d corp ed. It too had no xenons, no leather, no sunroof and yet still gave a dual zone climate control. The list price of the Jetta was 18.xx with no discounts and the price of the 320d was 25 lacs less 2.5 lacs discount. The differential was now 4 lacs which was palatable but I am getting ahead of myself here.

The budget increases:
As with all purchase decisions, one seldom sticks to self made rules on budgets. Once the Jetta was out of the picture, I happened to venture into the Skoda showroom to check out the Superb. It was beautiful – the interior was a five star hotel lobby with acres of space and quality oozing from all angles. I pictured myself driving one but the absolute lack of interest from the sales staff was a deal killer. I wasn’t offered a guided tour let alone a test drive. Damn those guys. Also, I did have the old Jetta ad in mind where the person pulls up at the hotel and the darbaan opens the rear door. I would have felt like a driver in that car. The true genius of that car is the rear seat and I am not someone to go and get myself a driver anytime soon.

C 250 CDI
A friend was joining me for a coffee in Connaught Place and we were overlooking the Mercedes showroom. At that time, the new C had just been launched and I had read a few reports on it. We decided to go in and check out the C250 cdi.
The dealer experience: We were welcomed with a young gentleman who was promptly told that we were just looking since my decision still had 3-4 months pending. He was enthusiastic and stated that they had no qualms with us looking at the car and if we so desired, we could pull the car out of the showroom for a drive. I declined the drive at that time but we proceeded to hear an hour and a half’s worth of the car, its heritage, its features and its superiority over its German brethren. I give the guy at least 9/10 on effort and enthusiasm.
The car: I step in and the first statement screaming into my head - damn the leather was nice! I saw the panoramic sunroof and my pal just smiled as if he had landed in heaven. I would be lying if I didn’t want the car at that very instant. Then reality struck and I positioned the driver seat exactly how I would drive, got out and tried fitting in the back. I am 5’11’’ and not very thin. The back seat was quite a squeeze. Then started the feature tour. 204 hp the guy says. 500 nm, Auto-park, Safety assist (whatever they call it), both front memory seats, 5 full alloy wheels, COMAND system, yada this yada that - I was back in school, dreaming of owning this car and I was reminded of Nicholas Cage saying in Gone in 60 seconds in the Ferrari showroom – ‘Doors will open, Champagne will fall from the heavens etc. etc.’ It was genuinely a nice place to be in. Alas, the budget was wayyy over. At 36.6 lacs on road, it was too much to go for. And since it was new, no discounts either.


Audi A4
Took the wife and kid for a jaunt to the Audi showroom in Gurgaon. Let’s see the A4 please I told her (this was back around Diwali – no facelift yet). We walked in just as some rather well walleted gentleman was taking an R8 V10 out for a test drive. After that, do you really think I was interested in the A4? Well, bear with me.
The Car / Dealer Experience: I was shown a business edition A4. The leather even though fake seemed nice. There was an MMI which the guy did not tell me that it was a down-sized feature. The seats were nicely bolstered around the love handles. The rear seat was actually much better than the C250. And then came the bad news. 143 bhp. I asked why only 143 when the Passat with the same engine was a 170 bhp. The Q5 and the new A6 were 177 bhp. The response was nothing short of pathetic. I was told ‘Sarrr, but aap chala ke toh dekho. It is so smooth and the torque is very nice also. This 143 will seem like the same as the BMW and the Mercedes’. Yeah right. And then came the deal breaker -“What? It is only a FWD? Isn’t Audi famous for its Quattro?” The CVT gear box didn’t help either.
Speaking with the sales staff, I asked the typical Indian question (Not kitna deti hai, the other one – Kitna discount ) I was told the 2.0tdi with the WCI package would be available for 34.xx and there is no discount at all. It was unfortunately an outright reject. Also, the sales staff was a bit high handed. They made me feel like I was being done a favour. Even though I was offered a test drive, it was more a matter of checking the boxes on a to-do list. Me no like. Also, I am so not spending that kind of money per bhp I said to myself.

BMW 320d
But the new model is around the corner I was told. The new is going to be so much better than the old, they said. Did I listen? You all know the answer. I will go back a few steps and let you all know a sacrilegious fact. I did not test drive any other car.
The research on this car though was clinical. Top Gear’s UK website, Autocar India, Team-bhp.com, Car n Driver US, everything stated just one thing. This is the car to beat in the executive saloon segment. It is the legend. It is what it is supposed to be – the driver’s car.
I actually think that the brand was by itself going to result in a positive bias. I rarely hear anyone at our age group say that the BMW is an old man’s car whereas the same is often heard for a Merc. I decided to go to the CP showroom to check out the car. They have barely any space in that showroom so all they had was a corp edition. The features list was provided and so was the effortless gyaan on why it is what it is. I will like to thank the sales staffer’s name, he sports a generous pony-tail. Kudos to the guy. He knew exactly what he was talking about. Spent a lot of time with me and told me that he himself had bought a used 320d corp ed and that since they didn’t have a test mule at that time, I was welcome to try his. It was nice to know he loved his job and also his car.
I informed the wife that the decision was getting closer since BMW was offering a 1.5-2 lac discount on the corporate edition. We were still 3 months away from the planned March purchase.

The month of February 2012
I managed my savings well enough to pre-pone the decision by a month. Then came the stern ultimatum from the spouse – ‘You are not buying anything till you are able to sell your white elephant. There is no knowing how long it will gather dust at home’.
In the mean time, a trip to the BMW showroom in Gurgaon happened for me to show the wife what I wanted to get. The Bird Auto guys are nicely trained. The first thing they did was show my daughter (all of 4 years old) a toy BMW car and told her to play. Then they gave her a drawing book with a full box of crayons. I quietly noticed the smile on the better half. Now she can concentrate. Me and the sales guy start taking turns to explain her the car.
Kitna deti hai? She asks – Madam is old school! The guy enthusiastically states, Ma’am if you drive it well, it will easily give you 11-12 in the city. She says – Bas? I sheepishly tell her that it is a powerful car and it will not give me 16-18 like a Skoda Laura or 13-14 like my Elantra. She is not convinced.
We sit in a corp ed model. She likes it! Yay I say to myself. We are offered a test drive. She declines even though I want to say Yes. I choose to go with the flow. A happy decision is one where the wife is as convinced as the purchaser – I wisely think.
After the 20 minutes of sales talk by the advisor, she notices a black 320d parked just outside the showroom area. “Is that for sale?’ The sales advisor says that it is being prepped for delivery but it is the Exclusive edition. An older person is checking it out with an excitable 18 year old son excitably jumping around it like a Labrador. I get conscious on whether I too look like that to the other junta around.
After asking for permission from the gentleman who is soon to take delivery, my wife and I step in. The saddle brown leather adds a few lacs to the perceived value immediately. I smile. She says, “yeh wala is sooo much better na? “ She matter of factly adds – “If you can get around 3 lacs for the ‘khataara’, you can afford this na?” I am shocked! And my entire world stops for a moment of realization that I am getting permission to look at the top end version of my dream car. All additional features are explained by the ever helpful advisor. I look at the spec sheet and realize that the Exclusive edition is really loaded if compared to the Corp Ed.

The discounts: Corp Edition is available at an ex-showroom of 25 lacs less 2.5 lacs discount. The Exclusive Edition is available at an ex-showroom of 32 lacs less 4.5 lacs discount. The difference is now 4.5 lacs between the cars – This is do-able! What do we get for the extra amount? The rationalization begins:

1. Xenons – I will pay at least 50,000 extra for this
2. Leather – I will pay at least 100,000 extra for this
3. 10 Speaker system + 6 DVD Changer in the trunk + 12 gb internal hard drive – I will assume its worth at least 50,000 extra for this
4. 225/45 R17 vs. 205/55 R16 – 50,000 extra for this
5. Sun-roof – I want it and will pay 100,000 for this
6. I-drive – Yeh to banta hai! Will pay another 50,000 for this
7. Memory seats – Nice! Will pay another 20,000 for this

There are other minor features such as the interior anthracite trim and the lights package which I think are ok to do without so no additional value there.

The sum total of the extra features – INR 420,000 – it is worth it, I tell myself.

We finally take a test drive of the Exclusive Edition. This was the first time I drove a German…ever! I was floored. The wife saw my happiness and was happy too. She then suggested that since we do a lot of road-tripping, the X1 may make sense – Also roads are dirt tracks near my apartment so it will be more comfortable. I was not too keen but appeased her all the same. I drove the X1 and the first thing I remember telling the advisor was how horrible the steering was. It was like driving a tractor. Then, the ride quality – it was no better than the 3! Then the space – it was only an enlarged hatch. Again, was it my rationalization or was it true? You tell me.

The Purchase:
The car is booked on the same day by paying a completely refundable 1 lac on 17th Feb 2012. Loan paperwork will take 3-5 working days I am told and the car will be ready in 2 weeks. My choice of Saddle Brown leather is not available in the Vermillion Red Colour so I settle for Oyster / Black rather than Beige. I still try my luck and ask whether they can source a Saddle Brown for me from somewhere else – No luck.

The pre-condition – My car needs to be sold. ASAP! I call a few dealers (booking day +1) and show them the car. ‘Boss – the car is not in manufacture – I will pay 2.25 lacs.’ (The wife will kill me). I call a friend the next day (booking + 2 days) to recommend a car dealer and am sent to a guy in Gurgaon the same morning. I am offered 2.6 lacs on the spot. My quote is 3.25 lacs. We negotiate. I am given a final offer of 2.9 lacs after 30 minutes of haggling and a mock drive-off. Received a token of 20,000 + promise of balance by the evening. Sure enough, at 5:30 pm same day, the person takes delivery, we sign all the paperwork and NOCs and I am richer by 285,000 (290,000 less 5,000 commission). On 22nd Feb, I receive a call from BMW Finance – the loan is approved! Now the wait – the sales advisor has promised delivery on Sunday – I am gunning for Friday since my parents arrive on Saturday for a family function. They have no clue that my old car is no more and there is a new arrival on the anvil. 3 agonizing days of travel by Delhi Metro – What will people say? Traveling by Delhi Metro one day and arriving by BMW the next!
I took delivery of the car as coerced on the coming Friday. It is home! The pre-delivery inspection was very thorough and I was just about able to maintain my patience as the person rattled off about the features, how to do this and how to do that. After about 2 hours, I was the proud owner of a 3!

Ownership Experience

After the rather long drawl on how I got here, here goes my experience. While I would have ideally liked to write this down within a week of getting the car, a combination of laziness, work pressure, enjoyment of the car at every given moment has caused this rather delayed write-up. A trip to meet a fellow T-Bhpian (Rishi) on a Sunday and a call from him today has led me to finally get down to it. While there are numerous write-ups by various members, I hope I am able to do justice – please excuse any gaps in the knowledge of my vehicle – I understand that there are many who have significantly higher understanding of the same. Also, I am happy to receive further inputs from such members of this community.

Add-ons
I purchased a 100,000 km 5 year BSI Ultimate service package for INR 312,701 which included among other things all routine services, consumables and labour. It also includes all brake pads and discs. This by itself is paisa vasool if you ask me. Even if the service costs + brakes cost me 2-2.5 lacs over the 5 year period (I will probably reach 100,000 km before 5 years), the balance cost for extended warranty is just completely worth it for peace of mind. There is another add-on purchased but please humour me with the rest of my write-up.

The Interiors
Some say that the interiors look dated. I am not one to disagree with those who have seen the high life. This interior was no where near as special as the one I saw on the C250 CDI. That said, I think the simple layout and the iDrive are just bang on. I know the new 3 is better. But would I have been able to wait and also pay an additional 5-6 lacs for the new car, the answer is NO. The leather has a beautiful finish and the front seats are just so comfortable when you find the spot. I have the Oyster / Black theme which as feared gets dirty very fast – I make it a point to wash hand after a KFC meal so that I don’t add to the smudges! The rear is cramped but I personally found it to be marginally better than the C250 but worse than the A4. Others may disagree – this is how I found it on my seat driving position and then going back to sit behind. The finish on the doors again exudes excellent quality. The dash layout is simple, clear and a nice old fashioned analog.
The boot and engine bay interiors are also very nicely done. I love the fact that they have the dampers on the bonnet – it is a thoughtful feature. The boot may not have the same cavernous space as the good old Octy, it is shaped rather well and can swallow quite a bit of luggage.

The Features
The car is loaded – I will not like to live without Xenons now that I am used to it. My Aveo is running with new bulbs but I keep fiddling between low beam and high beam to ensure that they are on. That is actually the massive difference in illumination. The sunroof was always a child’s dream come true – feel free to call me a child. The sound system is just staggering – with clarity and bass to true effect. I ran a Pioneer 2 DIN head unit with a 4 Channel Amp and a 12” Sub in my Elantra. This actually is clearer and produces excellent bass as well. The memory seats really help (though that was initially since a lot of people sat in the drivers seat during the first couple of months and hence the need for a memory to get back to my sweet spot). The iDrive is a joy to use – seeing Rishi’s Navigation equipment add-on has got me thinking though! The Parking system is excellent on accuracy with the green-yellow-red bands. Note to other users of the same system – Are you also feeling that it takes time to respond? I drive very very slow in reverse since the system takes time to start showing the greens / yellows. The Bluetooth is excellent and my BB gets paired for phone calls easily. Still haven’t been able to read texts though I read somewhere that it is possible. Experts – please help. I-Drive shows Doordarshan  Will never use it except to show-off to people that it is shows TV.

Seats
Front seats: The way I sit into the car and the placement of the armrest and the door armrest is excellent. I personally felt that the power window button placement was too far ahead and more often than not, I end up lowering the rear window when approaching a parking attendant at a mall. It took me a long time to get used to it.
Rear seats: They are slightly more upright than I would have liked but then I don’t foresee myself sitting there ever. Space is at a premium for those over 5’10”.

Engine
Does one really need to say anything? I think little more is possible from a 2 liter diesel but more on that later. I smile every single time I am at the front of a red light queue. It has that boyish charm that only the Bimmer could give. The torque is amazing and the responsiveness of the engine on hilly roads is simply to die for. The acceleration is quite brutal and overtaking is such a breeze. The gap between the truck on the left and the car in front on a highway seems so much larger when you have the power. In my opinion, this makes it safer to overtake if you are mature enough to not go overboard.

Gearbox
The 6 Speed is well mated and is frugal if you want it to be. If you are driving along sedately, it will shift into 6th as low as 75 kmph. I have driven a Cruze AT which refuses to shift into 6th below 100-110 kmph. The downshifts are great and if great is not good enough for you, just flick it into DS! That becomes a snarler! I did try the manual for kicks but the AT is quite nice and I am happy to laze around without my left hand doing any work.
In slow moving traffic, sometimes, you need to be careful because on more than one occasion, you are just a few feet from the next car (to avoid another butt-in) and the gear shifts to a lower cog giving you a bit of scare leading to a quick dab on the brakes.

Chassis and Handling
Again, who buys this car if not for the way it behaves on a winding road. For those of you who only have heard about its legendary capability need to call me for a drive. Just reach a curve and gun it (after ensuring its safe of course). The first few times I did it, the hair on the back of my neck rose and I felt like I had been caught by the principal of a school believing in corporal punishment. The car just said ho-hum and went about the curve as if nothing was special about it. No drama, no squeal – Just spectacular control. I have heard about people having done 200+ in such cars and I am sorry to report, I am not about to try anything like this anytime soon. My comfort lies on the safer side of 140-150 and that is all I do. At that speed, I know the car will keep me safe if someone decides to do something stupid. The curvability the chassis offers is spectacular. Period.

Tires and Road Comfort
The Achilles heel of the car is the tires. If there was one – just one thing I could change about the car, it would be the RFTs. The car does bounce about on the good ol’ Gurgaon roads. As stated earlier, the roads near where I live are so bad that an odd squeak has crept in into the dash. I plan to get it checked when I go for my first service. The grip that the tires give is superb but come-on, where is the comfort? I have no other issues in this department.

Suspension
The car does have a stiff suspension. While the highway drives are nothing short of awesome, the city drive is a bit hard, in no small part due to the tires. The stiff suspension does have its benefits – coupled with the short front overhand, the car has not yet bottomed at any mall ramp or at any speed-breaker. I am very happy with that.

Brakes
The ABS I personally felt kicked in a bit too quick in this car as compared with other ABS kitted cars I have driven. Other than that, the bite and feel is brilliant.

Driving experience
I have now driven the car about 8,000 km over the past 3 ½ months and I only look forward to drive it more and more. This is my only car (the other being my wife’s exclusive domain) and I do drive it carefully without overdoing the BMWness. My daily drive is very sedate along a hilly and curvy road which has speed cameras coupled with a trafficky last few kilometers before I reach office. The proof is in the car computer showing me another 4,800 km before the first service whereas I believe the more spirited brotherhood has taken the car in even at 4,000-6,000 km.
We drove from Gurgaon to Udaipur, a month after the delivery and man the car wow-ed me. I arrived in Udaipur fresh after spending 8 1/2 hours in the car having done 650 km with only a breakfast stop. The mile-munching ability was very endearing to me since I love to drive.

The Kitna Deti Hai bit
Driving in city has consistently returned me 12-12.5 kmpl. The highway drive to Udaipur and back, a total of 1,350 km returned me 11.5 kmpl due to the constant acceleration / deceleration required on our 'wonderful' highways. A more sedate highway drive to Chandigarh and back returned me 13.5 kmpl. I am not one to complain given the cost of diesel in Gurgaon at 40.14! On a separate note, if you do choose to drive spiritedly, the FE drops dramatically – I will not be surprised if it gives no more than 6-8 kmpl if you’re pushing the car a fair bit.

Things I miss

• Better tires
• Cruise-control – Come-on! BMW have this as an option, charge us a bomb and yet do not give it. Unforgiveable
• Navigation – Will try and get this done soon. I am currently broke.

Last but not the least: My second add-on

I had ordered a Race-chip module a couple of weeks back and I went to meet a fellow Bhpian yesterday to install it. We installed it at the base setting and the car has noticeably improved in the lower down torque curve. While I felt this may have been psychological, I was reassured when this morning, I was driving on my regular route to office which includes climbing a hill near Gurgaon. While the car always downshifted into 5th even if I crossed 100 kmph, today, it maintained a lazy 6th even at 80-85 kmph. The car feels less strained even in city traffic and it's as if someone made the car a 100 kilos lighter. The stock mode (base setting is at a 4) means a 6% increase in power. That means I am now driving a 195 bhp 320d. I am loving it! The settings allow up to a 27% increase with peak rating at 220+ bhp with 440+ nm torque, though I hear that the car can go into limp mode if I get too greedy. For now, I am happy at base settings.

With that my experience comes to a close – I will spend time on uploading some quality photos of the car and keep you all waiting till that time with some average quality phone cam photos. Hope you enjoyed reading the experience.

Feel free to agree / disagree with anything you like. Look forward to your comments.

[noopster]

Thread moved out of Assembly Line into Initial Ownership Reviews section. Thanks for sharing!

Honest and well-written review of a beautiful car: that is one magnificent beast! Is that a new shade on the Bimmer? Haven't seen too many in that shade of red.

You did absolutely the right thing by opting for the higher-end variant. Can just imagine the look on your parents' face when they arrived o the weekend! Not to mention the colleagues who saw you take the Metro the previous day

Wishing you many million miles in your new baby!

[rishi_kapoor]

Thumbs up dude! Finally, I have been waiting for this review

Looking forward to detailed RaceChip review. All the best, enjoy your drive.

[sameerg001]

Congratulations on your latest acquisition, looks damn HOT in red color, nice choice i must say . Good to see that you got yourself exclusive instead of Corp. which lacks too many feautres.

BTW are you planning to add space saver at the rear, for all those long highway drives ?

Do post some interior pics along ( specially rear ) along with more exterior shots.

Wish you wonderful miles ahead, drive safe.

Cheers
Sameer

[ninjatalli]

What a lovely ownership thread. Only complaint is the lack of pictures! That is a rare color (the main reason I opened this thread - red 320?) we need more pictures.

Btw I believe your handle is quite mis-leading!

[SmartCat]

haha! Serves you right for not thinking through before you chose the username "elantracrdi05" on team-bhp!

And technically, you have upgraded from a Santro to a BMW. Were you saving up all that money for buying a house, and ditched the plans at the last minute to buy the beemer?

Meanwhile, I would vote this among the best ownership reviews of any car - very well written. Comments & questions -

- Interior pics needed.

- Hydraulic steering unit on the X1 is like that of a tractor eh? How is the steering on the new electric unit of the 3 series?

- How bad is the ride quality really? I have seen many owners complain about the ride quality, but it doesn't seem to be a deal-breaker, is it?

[androdev]

Congrats sir. That is a good choice, esp the top end.

Originally Posted by elantracrdi05

The Bird Auto guys are nicely trained. The first thing they did was show my daughter (all of 4 years old) a toy BMW car and told her to play. Then they gave her a drawing book with a full box of crayons.

That is very thoughtful of them!

An older person is checking it out with an excitable 18 year old son excitably jumping around it like a Labrador. I get conscious on whether I too look like that to the other junta around.

Funniest thing I have read recently!

The sum total of the extra features – INR 420,000 – it is worth it, I tell myself.

It sure is. BMW corp editions are too basic IMO.

[Akshay1234]

Brilliant review. Been waiting for it even since you mentioned on the new 3 thread that you booked this car. A couple of points -

Is it really a DVD changer in the boot?
The abs kicks in early because the run flats grip is nothing spectacular, and also because of the car jumping around on the stiff suspension.
I can view text messages from my bb on I drive, there is an option in Bluetooth settings of your phone to enable it to send messages and another option in Idrive too, will check and tell you tomorrow.

Beautiful colour you have got there, and the interiors too are gorgeous. If I may suggest, change the chrome grilles to bmw performance glossy black ones, will go really well with the colour. I've just picked them up for mine among other things.

The second thing, I suggest you remove the race chip. I've heard that when your car goes for service and the diagnostic tool is connected, it uploads ecu values to the central bmw server, and if by chance you have a warranty claim later on these will be checked and your warranty dishonoured. That'll be 3 lacs of Bai down the drain.

If anything, try a car with the bmw performance kit, i assure you the difference in car behaviour is worth the price.

Enjoy the 3

[bigron]

Congratulations . The car looks fantastic in that colour. Ironically , i saw the car in the same color in my sector few days ago in chandigarh. Wonder if it was your car ?

[dockap]

Hi and congrats on getting your BMW. wish you and your family many happy and safe miles on it. With the 100,000 km 5 year BSI Ultimate service package i am sure you will have a tension free ownership experience.
Why do you want a race chip? my neighbor owns the same colour and model BMW and i have driven it and in sport mode( i hope i am saying the right word) it just pushes you back into the seat when you squeeze the accelerator. you end up with a silly smile on your face .
The omission of sat navigation may be forgivable in such a expensive car but the omission of cruise control is criminal on BMW's part ( my BMW neighbor drove my XUV and he looked crest fallen when he noticed cruise control and sat navigation in a vehicle which costs less than half of his car value)

[suhaas307]

What a brilliant ownership review! You've nailed it!

And you've just acquired a car that will go down into the history books as one of the best drivers' cars of this century! You can be sure of that!

It's very refreshing to see a BMW in a colour other than grey/black/white. Sure, these colours are great and suit the car well too, but a BMW in this particular shade of red exudes a certain charm. It's very nice colour.

From a Santro to an Elantra and now a BMW 3-Series. You must be over the Moon, certainly! I wonder what your neighbours might be thinking now!

Oh, and did I mention that your review was very well written? So well constructed that we could just as well use your review as an example/format for which other reviews may written on.

Thank you for your contribution and a hearty congratulations on your latest acquisition. *thumbs up*

I hope I find myself moving your thread to the long-term ownership threads section very soon.

[Sahil]

Congrats !

The BSI 5yr/100k costs 3.12 lakhs now for the 320d !! To think I paid 2.5 lakhs for it for the 525d over 4 years ago, it indeed was a sweet deal ! The 320d package at that time was much cheaper, def well below 2 lakhs.

[R-Six]

Great choice of ride and what an excellent review!! Thank you for sharing! I think this color is a new one? I don't remember seeing this shade on the BMWs.


R-Six

[_raVan_]

Very well written review and excellent choice of color! I wonder what was the reaction of your parents when they saw the car for the first time Congratulations on your purchase. Do post more of the interior snaps and ownership report as you crunch miles in it.

[Samridh]

I can't really tell you how much I liked this review of yours. Not only was it honest to the core, it gave us a laymans perspective of (amongst) the big 3 germans. I think the colour is spectacular and I wish you all the best in your driving endeavours. I could 'exactly' relate to the feeling of such an upgrade. I was even about to shed a tear (probably beacuse I know I want that car and I know one day I shall have one). But to get a smile on my face (and probably yours), I have added your thread in my favourites as "Santro to BMW in 3 easy steps" (the third and the intermittent one being the lemon err elantra)....... hahahaha! And since we probably stay quite close by (Gud-Gaon), can I drop in one of these days just to get a sneak peak??