[jaswant]

Originally Posted by yaseenar

Sorry, I think I got the breakup of the discount wrong! As, I am in Bangalore and my family in Kerala has booked the car.

The on-road price including 3 year BSI and Secure insurance was coming around 45L and after discount the price is 41L. So the total discount is 4L.

When I checked the rates in Bangalore, excluding BSI and Insurance they quoted 47L and after discount 45L

47 lakhs for 3 series base model?
Thats way too much, unbelievably high.
I bought a 2013 , 530d at 53.5 lakhs on road mumbai in February.

And they offered me 520d at 44 on road also, of course 2013 model.

But still a 3 series base model more expensive than 520d within a span of few months?

[M00M]

Originally Posted by jaswant

47 lakhs for 3 series base model?
Thats way too much, unbelievably high.
I bought a 2013 , 530d at 53.5 lakhs on road mumbai in February.

And they offered me 520d at 44 on road also, of course 2013 model.

But still a 3 series base model more expensive than 520d within a span of few months?

1. The prices have gone up by 10% in March, April timeline.
2. You bought a year older car so assuming similar discounts next year the cars would be available at a big discount in February 2015.
3. 3 series base model in Mumbai is now 42 in mumbai and 47 for luxury / sportline. Considering he's decided to go for a sportline its on par with mumbai infact hes getting a cheaper deal than you get in mumbai.
4. New 520 d base is 55 in mumbai now.

[arihant jain]

Originally Posted by AlokJain

Can a retrofit of front parking sensor be done on a 320d F30 ? This one is a big miss I think in tight parking conditions..

The car is growing on me like crazy..it has only been a week or so. The car is certainly a Wolf in sheep clothing. Turn the sports mode ON and out comes the wolf . Growl !

I know what you mean I am generally a sedate driver. Recently met a grand I 10 on the expressway. The sports mode is spectacularly crazy. The car becomes something else. love it so much it's worth every penny.

[M00M]

BSI plans increasing in cost from 1st July 14 and a new 3years / 40000 kms plan costing 1.4 lac rupees has been introduced for low mileage running cars.

[lapsi]

While the F30 is a brilliant piece of engineering and absolutely unrivalled in the Sports+ mode, there are a couple of issues with this model:

• Windshield breaking due to design flaw:

The wipers have been designed in such a way that if one tries to lift them, the bonnet/hood causes an obstruction, the wiper slips out from the hand and falls back onto the windshield and breaks the windshield. Even with the slightest slip, the windshield cracks. The glass costs only about 30,000 but since this is BMW, the final bill is almost 1 lakh.

In India, all car cleaners lift the wipers when cleaning the car. It is a standard practice and almost like an indicator that the car has been cleaned. But BMW has failed to take this into account while designing the F30. So every time your car cleaner lifts the wiper by mistake, be prepared to pay a higher insurance premium from the next year onwards.

One good news is that earlier they used to take 4-6 weeks to get a replacement windshield. Now the breakages happen so often that they keep windshields in stock.

Maybe owners should come together and ask that the windshield be replaced under warranty due to the design flaw. Others who have already replaced their windshield should be adequately compensated.

• Rattling sound from roof:

Within a few months of ownership, there is a rattle from the roof. And it is loud. And it is constant. Reminded me of the good old days, when we used to keep even the lowly Premier/Fiat rattle free.

I was given some spiel about some plastic part cracking etc., but the fact of the matter is that this should not happen in a Beamer. This too could be a design flaw.

If Beamers have this problem of the roof rattling, they should give us the option of buying the car without a sun-roof. I, for one, absolutely did not want a sun-roof but was forced to buy it.

While BMW, will not listen to individual owners, all owners facing similar problems should come together to impress upon BMW to provide a viable solution.

Cheers!

[adi_petrolhead]

Originally Posted by lapsi

While the F30 is a brilliant piece of engineering and absolutely unrivalled in the Sports+ mode, there are a couple of issues with this model...

...While BMW, will not listen to individual owners, all owners facing similar problems should come together to impress upon BMW to provide a viable solution.

Cheers!

In my opinion almost all German branded cars have the similar wiper set up. This is not a design flaw. It is to prevent theft of the wiper arm or blades. Theft was common in mercs and older generation premium cars. My Skoda Octavia too has similar set up of wipers. To lift the wiper, it is advised that the wipers be put in the 'service mode'. Turn on the ignition and then turn it off immediately. Then dip the wiper once, and it will do a half wipe and hold in that position. One can then easily lift the wiper and clean the windscreen. This is how it works at least for VW groul cars I am not sure about BMW but at least you can try.

All said, windshield quality is not supposed to be so cheap that the wiper can break it. Yea if you had removed the blade, and the arm slipped and hit the windshield it will definitely crack the windshield. But not along with the wiper. BMW has to make the wiper little softer, or harden the windshield. But it is definitely not a warranty issue. If your wipers are equipped with service mode, same must be mentioned in your manual.

NOTE FROM T-BHP SUPPORT: Please avoid quoting the entire post as it tends to inconvenience small-screen / mobile users. Thanks.

[anandpadhye]

Well, even the VW Polo has same wiper setup. Even if I lift the blades and let go, they hit the windshield, but nothing breaks.

BTW, I don't need to put the wipers service mode, just to clean them or to clean the windshield. i can easily lift them by an inch and clean everything. Service mode will be required only when you want to replace the blades. The motivation for such a design may be theft prevention and also slightly better aerodynamics.

[ajaypjayaraj]

A slip of wiper blades causing windshield to crack?! That is shocking. Because I have witnessed people from premium petrol pumps washing the windshield of both my Yeti and F30 unknowingly pulling up the wiper blades and causing it to slip and fall back but without any breakage. Both Yeti and F30 wipers cant be lifted to vertical position without putting them on service mode. This has happened several times in front of my eyes but never that bad that it caused windshield to break. I don't think the wiper blade back lash would be strong enough to crack a windshield. This is news to me.

[drmohitg]

The wiper blade function is the same across most European cars. Not sure of the reason though. I haven't tried this on my 320d yet but the procedure might be the same as it is for the VW. Here is a post on the same from another online forum stating the same for the F30. I will also get it checked on my car if it works by the evening.

Switch the ignition on and then off. Lift up the wiper switch till it won't lift any more. Let go. Wait until the wipers sweep across the screen twice. They will come to rest in a vertical position. Carefully lift each blade back off the screen and clean.

OK, so here's the missing step in the owner's manual - after shutting off the ignition, you also need to shut off the electronics. Won't work with ignition off but electronics on.

Will try this out on my car and revert back.

My query is when the wiper blades sweep once or twice over the windscreen doesn't it damage the windscreen by causing scratches as it is effectively a dry sweep.

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by lapsi

Even with the slightest slip, the windshield cracks. The glass costs only about 30,000 but since this is BMW, the final bill is almost 1 lakh.

Just checked my 3's repair bill. The windshield is indeed costing 30k only and the other things like the rain sensor and miscellaneous stuff takes the bill to a cool 70k + taxes. I doubt if it still will reach 1L so do ensure that they are not overcharging you.

I would actually like to agree with you on this that the windshield quality might be suspect. My car's screen got a chip off from the first pebble hit that it took. All my other cars have till date not faced this issue even after numerous pebble hits on the road. But then again it might be just bad luck at play.

[ajaypjayaraj]

It depends on how the impact is. If the wiper blade hits the windscreen broad on with the rubber in place, I don't think it would break the windshield of any car. But be it wiper or a stone, if it hits at one point with considerable pressure, I think a glass would crack easily. But when a wiper blade slips from hand it usually falls broad on and of course there is the rubber which absorbs most of the shock. Could be material defect of the windshield of a particular batch of cars produced. It can't be general.

[madhav14]

Guys, I'm planning to buy a BMW 320d early next year. While I was browsing about the model, I came across several forums saying that there is a facelift version coming in 2015, and BMW will incorporate the new generation diesel engine in this car (the one came with the new X3) which is a lot more silent, refined and produces slightly extra power and torque.

Apart from this, there are also some cosmetic changes for exteriors and interiors.

I'm planning to buy in the first quarter, but if the facelift version comes before June or July, I can wait till then as this is my first luxury sedan and dream car, I want to get the best machine possible.

Should I wait? Or go with the existing model? And, is it worth the wait? Can anyone help me out with my buying decision and throw some light on this facelift version with some more details?

[arihant jain]

Hey madhav14 I am a current owner of the 2014 model my car has done 11700 kms. Love the car to bits and the whole experience. My friend faces a similar decision and he has been advised to wait for the new c class which has been launched internationally and has some excellent reviews in fact it is supposed to be a game changer. I guess you should consider that. I know once you make up your mind the wait can be extremely difficult but do the read the reviews. I was blown away by the interior pics check them out. The new c class is scheduled to be launched early next year.

[zulfi hansi]

With the current policy of MB to offer only one variant (high end), even the current C class is only comparable to high line variants of BMW, cost wise if you do not have a problem then you can wait for the new C class, it is certainly a much better car, luxury experience of the next level but even price will be close to 5 series base variant. If you are focused on BMW particularly then wait for the face lift, possibly it might be launched at the time when the new c class will be launched.

[madhav14]

Originally Posted by arihant jain

My friend faces a similar decision and he has been advised to wait for the new c class which has been launched internationally and has some excellent reviews in fact it is supposed to be a game changer. I was blown away by the interior pics check them out. The new c class is scheduled to be launched early next year.

Originally Posted by zulfi hansi

If you are focused on BMW particularly then wait for the face lift, possibly it might be launched at the time when the new c class will be launched.

Yeah, even I've seen the pics of the new C-Class. The interior & exterior design is awesome and it has got good reviews too. This car is also there in my mind but primarily I'm focused on the BMW facelift. (Sheer driving pleasure you know)

If there is any news confirmation that both these cars will launch in the first half of 2015, then I think it's worth a wait.