[ghostrider]

Originally Posted by UD_328i

This one is long over due. I have been meaning to write this for months now, and today happens to be my beautiful red beast's second anniversary!

Congratulations. You're really going to love this car, and I speak from personal experience.

Originally Posted by UD_328i

The rest sounded promising, but the lack of warranty had me on edge.

Don't worry too much about the fact that the warranty's gone. The F30 is a pretty reliable platform - there's enough ownership threads here and to be honest people with Hyundais complain more about quality issues than people with F30s.

Originally Posted by UD_328i

It's been two whole years today driving this absolute dream of a vehicle!

Outstanding. Any upgrades in the pipeline? I'm @iliketurtles and I are both running Stage 1 maps on our car and couldn't be happier. Happy to share details if you're interested.

[iliketurtles]

Originally Posted by UD_328i

This one is long over due. I have been meaning to write this for months now, and today happens to be my beautiful red beast's second anniversary!

Belated yappy car-niversary!

Originally Posted by UD_328i

Before I go any further, I must thank iliketurtles for his seminal work, 'Crossing the thin redline into madness. Meet Red, my old new BMW 328i' *snip*

Thank you for thanking me, and for taking the time to pen your own thoughts too.

Originally Posted by UD_328i

There she was, my own beautiful 'Red' (unless you have dibs on that name, iliketurtles)!

Go right ahead bud, it's a free country last I checked.

Originally Posted by UD_328i

Is this a mid-life (quarter-life) crisis? My brain began to scatter in all directions and kind of developed a mind of its own, if that makes sense?

Why does this feel oh-so-familiar

Originally Posted by UD_328i

I remember ending that test drive with a BIG smile on my face and thinking to myself, this car is MINE. However, I was keen to negotiate to a more suitable price point.

How much did you pay for her finally? You got a super deal all things considered, as pointed out earlier. The value of a pair of brake pads, new RFTs, and 5 services alone are worth about 2.5L in and of itself, conservatively.

Originally Posted by UD_328i

And just like that, I drove out of that showroom in my new old car. I remember that day vividly. Aimlessly driving around Bombay for hours. From Worli to Nariman Point, back to Bandra and then up and down the Western Express highway and hitting the International Airport road. Thrice. It was unreal.

Ah, to be young and hopelessly in love again...long may your romance last.

[Kelly66]

Originally Posted by Moontan

For those of you who have that steering knock when the wheel is fully turned and going over bumps, this is the repair kit I picked up from BMW Navneet on the airport road in Bangalore. It has the part number and price. I got this changed and the problem has not returned.

Hi Moontan, I don't have the knock problem when the steering wheel is turned but I get a slight creek noise (as though it's coming from the rear) when I go over a huge bump at 45 degree angle on 1st gear. Could it be because of this issue since you have said "going over bumps" above?

Once the service center guy said it could be because of the beading wearing out around the boot and tightened the screws a bit but it still seems to be there.

Also, my 4th year warranty will be over my March '21. I am not planning to renew it. Can you let me know place where you get your car serviced?

Thanks!

[Moontan]

Originally Posted by Kelly66

I get a slight creek noise (as though it's coming from the rear) when I go over a huge bump at 45 degree angle on 1st gear.

Also, my 4th year warranty will be over my March '21. I am not planning to renew it. Can you let me know place where you get your car serviced?

I'm always hesitant to have an opinion on a problem when I don't know the car, but I think it's safe to say that it does not appear to be the Steering thrust issue which the fix I posted was for. The creaks that you mention sound like it appears when the car flexes over bumps. I have that too, and here's the strange thing, it comes when the car has not been cleaned that well. Strange, I know, but well documented.

The fix is to clean with a microfibre cloth all door seals but in particular the rear door seals. These run all around all doors and sit flush with the shadowline trim when the doors are closed. Wipe down really well the shadowline trim that's in contact with the door seals as well.

It always works for me. though it will return as this is a dusty land. Others have used teflon tape (very expensive) to fix this, but I just give this area a good firm wipe down.



That's the area that needs a very good wipe down once a week. I usually forget and only tackle it when it comes around. Please remember to also wipe the seals that are on the doors that sits flush on this shadowline trim when the doors are closed. They have felt material on the portion that is in contact with this trim. Do it for all four doors. Takes less than 2 minutes.

Let me know if this works for you.

[rahul_jo]

I have a weird grrr grrr sound coming from the rear left side of the car. On inspection the plastic trim is coming off slightly. Looks like the screw is missing.

Bird bmw did an awful job this time. Can I just glue it back together? Does someone have a quick fix for this?

[gaurav_diavolo]

Hi All. I have two questions from you friends ����*♂️
My 320d (LCI) shows its due for service however due to the lockdown I have only driven it for 5800 kms since last service. Its the fourth service and the car does not need any other work, so this has to be a regular engine oil and filters change. Also the car is not stationary, its doing 20-25 kms daily. So should I go by number of kms this time and get it done at around 10000 km mark. I do not have BSI.

A friend who owns 320d has suggested to order filters from Boodmo (made in Germany) and get a good 5W30 engine oil and get these basics done outside of BMW from a good garage? Is this a good idea?

Attaching a feel-good image of my ride ��

[gaurav_diavolo]

Oh man! Thank you! It has been case with my ride too and i used to think that there is something stuck under the passenger seat. Searched real hard for days but could not find. Got used to the grr grrr sound and thought i will get it checked during next servicing by getting the seat removed. Checked after your post and its exact same issue. Thank you bro!

Originally Posted by rahul_jo

I have a weird grrr grrr sound coming from the rear left side of the car. On inspection the plastic trim is coming off slightly. Looks like the screw is missing.

Bird bmw did an awful job this time. Can I just glue it back together? Does someone have a quick fix for this?

[Kelly66]

Originally Posted by gaurav_diavolo

Hi All. I have two questions from you friends ����*♂️
My 320d (LCI) shows its due for service however due to the lockdown I have only driven it for 5800 kms since last service. Its the fourth service and the car does not need any other work, so this has to be a regular engine oil and filters change. Also the car is not stationary, its doing 20-25 kms daily. So should I go by number of kms this time and get it done at around 10000 km mark. I do not have BSI.

A friend who owns 320d has suggested to order filters from Boodmo (made in Germany) and get a good 5W30 engine oil and get these basics done outside of BMW from a good garage? Is this a good idea?

A

I have a similar question. I have done only 580 km since my last service in Jun'20. At start up I still see 12K for next service. My 4 year warranty will get over in March and I am not planning to renew it so no issues with SA's saying that it will affect warranty in case some fault arises.

Going by this trend, I may just do around 1500 km out the 12K before the next service in Jun'21.

Is it ok to just prolong the service till the km show it's due, otherwise what's the advantage of condition based service, which a major plus point for Bimmers? I am not sure if any other manufacturer gives this feature.

Even the filters won't need a change since pollution levels are down due to Covid

Pls advise!

[ais]

Originally Posted by Kelly66

I have a similar question. I have done only 580 km since my last service in Jun'20. At start up I still see 12K for next service. My 4 year warranty will get over in March and I am not planning to renew it so no issues with SA's saying that it will affect warranty in case some fault arises.

Going by this trend, I may just do around 1500 km out the 12K before the next service in Jun'21.

Is it ok to just prolong the service till the km show it's due, otherwise what's the advantage of condition based service, which a major plus point for Bimmers? I am not sure if any other manufacturer gives this feature.

Even the filters won't need a change since pollution levels are down due to Covid

Pls advise!

Its 12000km or 1 year and the CBS will generate warnings accordingly. Engine oil degrades with time, so get service as per CBS.

[iliketurtles]

Originally Posted by gaurav_diavolo

My 320d (LCI) shows its due for service however due to the lockdown...Should I go by number of kms this time and get it done at around 10000 km mark? I do not have BSI.

Originally Posted by Kelly66

I have a similar question. I have done only 580 km since my last service in Jun'20...Is it ok to just prolong the service till the km show it's due

As ais rightly said above me, if the conditional service system is asking you to get it done (or not), don't second guess it. Just go by its indication.

Originally Posted by gaurav_diavolo

A friend who owns 320d has suggested to order filters from Boodmo (made in Germany) and get a good 5W30 engine oil and get these basics done outside of BMW from a good garage? Is this a good idea?

It's not a bad idea to get the oil change done outside of BMWs network at a trustworthy place. I suggest checking out Liqui Moly. I have no idea how good or bad Boodmo is, but I'd stick with OEM filters. Don't get too experimental, these Germans are finicky things preferring a known diet.

[drmohitg]

My 2013 320d is still running on the stock battery but now it is starting to show its age accentuated by the limited running the car saw in this year plagued by the pandemic. Now ideally, I would have got the battery replaced at the BMW dealer but there is a good chance that I may sell the car next year. So I needed to know if I can get the battery fitted from an FNG instead of the BMW dealer and if this would cause any issues? My neighbour's similarly aged 320d just required a battery change and he opted for the FNG which cost him 20k vs 40k quote from the BMW dealer.

Also the battery wouldn't be covered under BSI right?

[coolboy007]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Also the battery wouldn't be covered under BSI right?

I am not sure about BSI but it is covered under BRI - extended warranty. Had sent my car for the end of warranty check as my 5 years warranty was about to expire and bmw happily replaced the battery as it could not clear the stress test/diagnostics.

You can go in for AGM battery from anywhere but ensure the dealer is able to register the new battery as it is very important for the alternator charging algorithm. Please do not go in for lead acid battery.

Swastik fabs is the official distributor for Varta in India, you can have a word with them, owner is a team bhpian as well if i recall correctly.

[coolboy007]

Paint correction treatment
Was planning on doing this from a long time but this pandemic and work kept me busy. I was not interested in ceramic coatings since the car is already 5 years old now and i do not have plans to hold onto her for another 3-4 years which is what most ceramic coating people suggest. Had a word with lot of detailers but CarzSpa, Gurgaon is where i sent the car for the paint correction.

Black is a pretty tough color to maintain in our country and my neglect had taken the entire sheen off the paint. Infinity Bmw had also done a pretty poor job of repainting my bonnet and there was absolutely no shine with oodles of orange peel all around. Hemant from Carzspa explained every thing carefully and infact suggested me not to spend on ceramic since i do not intend to keep the car for long. For the bonnet, he suggested that it should be okay with sanding and compounding.

Car came back today and what a sight it was, Hemant's boys have done a marvellous job. The bonnet took extra time and effort but now it does not even look like it was repainted, all the swirls/scratches are gone and even the interiors were meticulously cleaned. The price charged was very nominal for a car of this class.






M sport steering
Thanks to Turbanator and Sahil who cleared my doubts about the steering and also pointed me towards our mod Akshay for sourcing this beauty. Infact, i was in talks with him for the steering since April but then the pandemic/lockdowns meant i could not get it till November. The paddles were sorely missed after the remap which has made the car that much more fun.
Akshay told me that the paddles along with cruise control would work on my car. Had received the steering last week but yet to get it installed as some harness which makes the paddles work is missing and he is trying to source it and send it to me. Would report back once every thing is sorted out.

[drmohitg]

Can anyone tell me the OEM battery specification for the F30? Mine is a 2013 320d model.

[Moontan]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Can anyone tell me the OEM battery specification for the F30? Mine is a 2013 320d model.

It should be the same as the F30 328i which is a 95AH AGM Varta battery.