[AdiSinghV12]

Okay. So finally I'm posting my first ownership thread on Team-BHP. Feels great!

I've been researching from quite a while and planning for an upgrade of my not-so-fun to drive Hyundai Fluidic Verna 1.6 which I bought 6-months back and finally made up my mind that it's gonna be the 320d E90 LCI. Thanks to all the valuable suggestions and comments I received from my fellow BHPians on my other thread. But since my buying is postponed till Diwali, I decided to take my mom's BMW X1 and plan to use it unless I get the 3er. And YES!! she agreed to give it to me

The car is a sDrive20d CE Alpine White and has black interiors.

Initial Purchase & Dealership Experience-

The sales person from Navnit Motors who sold us the old 5er called mom and told her to have a look at their latest SAV. We were in the vicinity and I was pretty excited to see it in person from the time I saw the Brown Pre Production X1 on this forum for the first time. She wasn't really interested but when I insisted, she decided to accompany me to the showroom. There was a Red X1 highline variant, a 320d Performance edition and a shiny Interlagos Yellow Z4. All my excitement for the X1 went away and I hurried to the Z4 who was sitting topless thinking she is all mine While the sales person who called us was busy explaining the features of the X1 to my mom, another sales girl came to me and gladly explained me all the features of the sexy roadster and promised me a TD (which is still due). All this while, mom was busy checking out the X1 with the other sales representative. I finally got out of the Z4 when the coffee arrived and went back to the reality. I was there to look at the X1. After a small discussion over coffee, we went back home. It was me who was excited about the car in the beginning but it was vice-versa now. The TD was arranged after a couple of days and four people went on the TD. Everyone was quite comfortable it seemed and on the next day, the booking amount of the car was paid. I was pretty elated since a new Bimmer was going to be a part of the family but had to wait for another 2-months before the car was finally delivered in September 2011 during Ganesh Chaturthi. The OTR pricing was around 32L inclusive of 3yrs/60,000kms BSI.

What's Hot-

• The Blue-Bangle Badge
• The striking front end of the car
• Brilliant steering
• Punchy 177bhp Diesel Motor.

What's Not-

• No corona rings
• No front parking sensors
• No automatic sunblinds

The car looks aggressive and a typical BMW from the front and my personal favourite is the striking front end of the car.

The tail lamp has sharp lines and one can clearly make out the E90 LCI 3-Series connection.

The rear of the car gives it the urban crossover look or the SAV look as the BMW folks would call it


As far as the Drivetrain is concerned, The 2000cc Inline-4 engine of the X1 loves to be revved (has a sweet diesel-exhaust note) and churns out a good 177bhp and 350nm of torque and has a good power to weight ratio of 117bhp/tonne. This, mated with the lovable, well-weighted hydraulic steering and 6-speed auto gearbox justifies the Sheer Driving Pleasure tag. Though some people would complain that the steering is a bit hard for city driving but personally I love it. And I'm sure so will the other die-hard Bimmer enthusiasts. The turbo kicks in after a second or so and the kick felt is simply amazing! Takes around 8.4 secs to hit the ton. As far as the F.E is concerned, the on board computer showed 10.1kmpl when I received the car and after resetting it, it now shows 7.2kmpl(Driving her a bit hard and in DS mode most of the time) I'm glad despite all the cost cuttings done by BMW, they haven't altered any safety features and the fun-to-drive factor is still there. The ride is a BIT harsh, courtesy the Pirelli runflats but this is not something you're hearing first time on a BMW ownership review! The rims that comes on this variant are 17" star-spoke 317 with Pirelli 225/50 R17 on all 4 tires. The tire pressure suggested by the salesperson was 30 on all four for a nice, comfort ride but maintaining 30psi in front and 32psi. The grip is just too good!

Coming to the interiors, it looks like a typical BMW from inside, but instead of iDrive, you'll find some extra storage space which is handy.


The front seats are quite comfy and are fully electrically adjustable including memory function for the driver's seat. The rear leg room is OK too. The grade of leather used isn't top notch but is quite satisfactory. There is automatic climate control with dual zones and the AC is powerful enough to turn the cabin into Antarctica in few mins. The BMW professional audio comes with single CD changer but has the USB port(small feature but important for me. Too bad the 3 CE doesn't have it and I'm not aware of any alternative of the same) The sound is quite good and the bass is pretty punchy too. The Boot space is 420 litres which is adequate, but the seats can be split 40/20/40, which could be quite useful for some people. And BMW has used clever rubber banjo cords in the rear to keep small objects secure.

It had 2900 kms on the ODO when I received the car from mom. I haven't done any long drives and missed the opportunity to be a part of the last Deutsche Drive organised by fellow BHPians Akshay1234 and others, but took her out last night for a spin in the city with my friends and did struck the double century mark with ease on the sea link in the Manual mode and it was one of the best moment of my life! The car'd be used by me until I get my 320d(YES I still want it. I love that car too much!) and since my college has yet not started, the usual usage of the car would be joy rides and occasional outing with family.

Do let me know if anyone need any particular information or more pictures. The pics attached were clicked at the time of delivery and after getting her home and the registration wasn't done so she had the temp number which was provided by the dealer.


***UPDATE***

Almost completed 4,000 kms. The car was driven around 2900 in 9-10 months when mom had the car but its been around 20 days since I got my hands on this and drove over 1000 kms, courtsey, joy rides and a Lonavla trip, which I had a couple of days back. Just loved the way she performed on the ghats. The average mileage I got after returning to Bombay was 10.8kmpl which is quite good considering it was driven in the triptronic mode most of the time and at high rpm's. The ride was pretty good as I've changed the tire pressure of the front tires to 30psi and the rear ones to 32psi after repairing the puncture that happened few days back(seemed to be a bit harsh previously). Planning to add a sprint booster to improve the throttle response, and also get the LED interior lights.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

[AdiSinghV12]

Thanks GTO for moving it to the Initial Ownership Section.

Got the exterior detailing done on the car from a nearby shop. Looks brand new. Will post pictures soon. Looking for Carbon Fiber accessories (Grille and mirror caps) but they seem to be hard to find in Mumbai. Life'd have been much easier if I was in Dilli #Autopsyche \m/ Though will be ordering the Sprint Booster from Bimmian next week and thinking of getting the roof CFed or matte wrapped, not sure how'd it look. Never seen a X1 with black roof. Suggestions?

[Akshay1234]

Are you gonna use this, or you still getting a 3?

Don't wrap the roof etc, will look a bit out of place. First thing change those no plates to the embossed ones. Paint the rims gunmetal or black, it will look good. Also get the parts of the front and rear bumper which are in black, painted body colour. That really adds to the looks believe me.

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

Are you gonna use this, or you still getting a 3?

Don't wrap the roof etc, will look a bit out of place. First thing change those no plates to the embossed ones. Paint the rims gunmetal or black, it will look good. Also get the parts of the front and rear bumper which are in black, painted body colour. That really adds to the looks believe me.

I'll be using this till Diwali and then get the 3. I love that car a lot, Haha. Even this will be there but this'd be the general car and the 3er would be my personal ride. & Thanks for the suggestions bro! The embossed plates, I'll get it tomorrow itself and will get the black parts painted in white soon.

[abishek2222]

Originally Posted by AdiSinghV12

get the LED interior lights.

That's a good idea, very noticeable improvement in the interiors with the led.
Getting the black bumper bits painted may be a good idea since it's almost 18 months and my car needs sonax exterior polish every 3 weeks or else the faded dirty plastic is showing like an eye sore. I Was always curious how a full black interior would look, Thanks for the pics.

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by abishek2222

That's a good idea, very noticeable improvement in the interiors with the led.
Getting the black bumper bits painted may be a good idea since it's almost 18 months and my car needs sonax exterior polish every 3 weeks or else the faded dirty plastic is showing like an eye sore. I Was always curious how a full black interior would look, Thanks for the pics.

Yup! Saw a 3er with LEDs and then made up my mind that I just had to get em in my car... Will happen as soon as I visit the workshop. & BTW I read your ownership thread... Nice writeup and Awesome number you've got I know the feeling of driving a car with a VIP/Distinct number (My Verna had 0007 DL reg) Let's hope I'll get the same in my next car.

[abishek2222]

Originally Posted by AdiSinghV12

Yup! Saw a 3er with LEDs and then made up my mind that I just had to get em in my car... Will happen as soon as I visit the workshop. & BTW I read your ownership thread... Nice writeup and Awesome number you've got I know the feeling of driving a car with a VIP/Distinct number (My Verna had 0007 DL reg) Let's hope I'll get the same in my next car.

take a look at this
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post2834655

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by abishek2222

take a look at this
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post2834655

Great! But it comes as a set of 4? I remember I inquired about the same from Arush Paaji (Autopsyche) and he said, that the set he has includes the following - Number Plate Light, Reverse Lamps, Dome Light (Front & Rear), Map Light (Front & Rear), Vanity Light, Foot Well Light, Courtesy Door Light, Trunk Light, Glove Box Light.

[abishek2222]

Originally Posted by AdiSinghV12

Great! But it comes as a set of 4? I remember I inquired about the same from Arush Paaji (Autopsyche) and he said, that the set he has includes the following - Number Plate Light, Reverse Lamps, Dome Light (Front & Rear), Map Light (Front & Rear), Vanity Light, Foot Well Light, Courtesy Door Light, Trunk Light, Glove Box Light.

the other set of BMW bulbs as i remember works for the car with IDrive, this it is the set that is for Corp edition. i had checked this with the mechanic who counted the number of interior lights bulbs.The box says interior light kit.do you have a Foot Well Light, Courtesy Door Light?

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by abishek2222

the other set of BMW bulbs as i remember works for the car with IDrive, this it is the set that is for Corp edition. i had checked this with the mechanic who counted the number of interior lights bulbs.The box says interior light kit.do you have a Foot Well Light, Courtesy Door Light?

Nope! But the set I'm talking about is the aftermarket LED kit which 'adds' the foot well light as well as the courtesy door lights, etc even on the CE. Its like LED Aftermarket 'Lights Package'. Costs around 13.5 grands including installation. Tremendous value for money IMO!

[abishek2222]

Originally Posted by AdiSinghV12

Nope! But the set I'm talking about is the aftermarket LED kit which 'adds' the foot well light as well as the courtesy door lights, etc even on the CE. Its like LED Aftermarket 'Lights Package'. Costs around 13.5 grands including installation. Tremendous value for money IMO!

Put up some pics , of how its installed and the bulbs themselves.If you plan to get it done.

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by abishek2222

Put up some pics , of how its installed and the bulbs themselves.If you plan to get it done.

There you go! This is a set which was installed in a Corporate 320d. Should be the same for the X1 I reckon. The car has BSI so I'm not sure whether installing this'd effect it in anyway or not as this is an aftermarket mod. Though I'll confirm once and get back to you. Cheers!

[abishek2222]

Originally Posted by AdiSinghV12

Attachment 987832
This is a set which was installed in a Corporate 320d.

The same thing also exists as an official BMW kit, but then There is no provision for visor ,foot well ,door courtesy or map lights in a corp edition X1 at least mine does not have them, If you are able to fit all of these do let me know exactly how.

[AdiSinghV12]

Originally Posted by abishek2222

The same thing also exists as an official BMW kit, but then There is no provision for visor ,foot well ,door courtesy or map lights in a corp edition X1 at least mine does not have them, If you are able to fit all of these do let me know exactly how.

There isn't but its possible to add it aftermarket. Even the CE 3er doesn't have them but seen quite a few CEs having the door courtesy light, etc fitted aftermarket. Though I'll once again have a chat with him and give you more info...