[CEF_Beasts]

Was longing for a much needed vacay, decided to stay at JW Marriott, Juhu for 2 days.

Since the hotel is right at the beach, got to visit the beach after quite a few years.

The view from our room:



Some pictures of the beautiful sunset. With 50 Shades of Orange, Pink & Blue going on:















Doggo enjoying the views as well:



Spotted this splendid Red Z4 M40i at Arbab Bandra (my car parked on the right), and another HP regd Red one staying at JW itself:



At Bandra Bandstand, with the Navy’s last decommissioned Sea Harrier:

[CEF_Beasts]

Finally caught the stray cat in action sitting peacefully on the bonnet. The cat near the driver’s door of the BR-V is the same one that was sitting on the bonnet. It jumped down as soon as I reached near the car.

Starting the car, the slight grumble of the B48, caught the attention of both the stray cats, as they continue to stare on.









Our daily driver, the Fortuner, crossed the 1,00,000kms mark in 8 years and 8 months, a first for any of our cars to reach this milestone. It will continue service till we find a suitable replacement for it.





Took Blue Bolt out on Sunday, to stretch his legs on the Mum-Pune Expressway. Drove to Sunny Da Dhaba for lunch. Crossed the 4000 kms mark as well.

Moderate traffic and smooth tarmac, allowed to cruise peacefully at 100 kmph for most of the journey. Although I noticed the RFTs have become particularly noisy already.

While climbing the ghat section, an inattentive and careless Innova Driver decided to merge from the left-most lane to the right-most lane without any indicator or seeing his ORVM. I was beside him when he decided to come in, had to slam hard on the brakes and the horn otherwise he would’ve ripped my front bumper apart. The horn blaring didn’t even make the guy twitch, he just merged as if he was deaf. My dad was riding shotgun and both of us had our hearts-in-our-mouths.

I was quite angry at him, wanted to stop and whack him. But then my dad told me it could be a Govt Employee’s car so let him go. I reduced my speed, so that the moron went as far as possible from my sight.

Continued our otherwise peaceful drive to Sunny’s.

At Sunny’s parking lot, with a special parking given for the car, where no one could park besides our car. Gave the security an extra tip for providing the parking. This meant no dings from other cars banging their doors against our’s while opening them

Filled XP95 for the second time and there is a remarkable difference in smoothness, performance and fuel economy. Touched 120kmph for the first time, on the way back, just to check the speed chime.











Did an airport run in the night as well, with the boot being loaded with proper luggage for the first time. I couldn’t find the button to remove the parcel shelf, so had to keep a bag on top of one another to make them fit. Otherwise I am mighty impressed by the boot-space. Sadly forgot to take a picture of the same.

[CEF_Beasts]

Sunday is the outing day for our family. Other 6 days everyone is busy in work.

Today’s plan was initially centred around a highway drive to Radisson, Karjat. Plan didn’t materialise due to it being a long and hectic work week ahead. Hence decided to drive around Mumbai.

The car has been performing flawlessly, although I noticed two issues recently.

First stop was Bombay Coffee House at Ballard Estate, Fort. If people are into Bombay’s Car Scene then they might identify this place from Horsepower Cartel’s videos and posts:





















Used the car’s inbuilt oil measurement as well to check the engine oil level:



I didn’t know the car has an Attention Detection System till date, it hasn’t ever popped in the Instrument Cluster. Well we haven’t driven over 200kms in a stretch, so that can be a reason as well:



The camera + parking sensors deserve a special mention, it’s damn precise and helps in parking the car accurately! :



Evening Sun over Marine Drive:



View of the sea, beyond the Sea-Link from the top-most floor of Taj Land’s End



The energy flow meter is quite similar to the one we find in Hybrid cars (of course minus the battery driving the wheels). Here the engine is sending power to all 4 wheels, courtesy the xDrive system:



Here with the foot off the accelerator, the battery getting charged:



And the xView which shows the altitude, Compass, and tilt/aperture/departure angles:

[CEF_Beasts]

Drove down to Radisson Blu, Karjat for lunch yesterday.

Most resorts/hotels on knowing someone has driven down just for lunch, act really surprised, in this case it was the security guard at the entrance

The roads at the end, basically leading to the hotel were in pretty bad shape! The last bit really tired me out and on reaching back home, I needed a 30 min deep nap to get that tiredness out.

The property was really well made and spacious. But that last mile connection definitely needs to be improved.

They have only one restaurant, and there was a wedding ongoing, so were almost told to go back since the restaurant was full. But the restaurant was almost empty

Had a sumptuous lunch, they had a widespread buffet on offer.

Some pictures on the property, there was a massive swimming pool as well, didn’t click pictures of the same for obvious reasons:

















Just outside the resort, clicked some pictures of the serene surroundings:











And some pictures of the car in the same setting.

Coming to the drive, the ZF8 gearbox + B48 engine are a match in heaven! Last leg was on an undivided single lane road, and just part throttle was enough to get the car to downshift and fly by.

The entire drive was done in Comfort mode, there was no requirement of Sports Mode/extra power. The suspension was soft and was taking everything in its stride. The adaptive suspension is definitely a boon.











The setting sun, on entering Powai:

[CEF_Beasts]

A late night drive to BKC for coffee.

The darkish colour is a dust magnet and a layer of dust is always visible on the car if it hasn’t been washed for even a day. Makes the colour look dull when in reality it’s not.

In terms of the drive, the driving pleasure is right up there with the best. The high ground-clearance ensure no underbelly hits and occasional potholes don’t affect the car negatively. Although the RFTs have become surprisingly noisy in just 4500kms.

The B48’s mid-range torque is very lusty and addictive, almost diesel-like. Overtakes can be executed with just a slight dab on the throttle.

My mom is 5’2” - 5’3” and she finds the backseat very comfortable. No lack of under-thigh support for her. Meanwhile my dad and I keep alternating between the driver and co-driver seat. The front seats are extremely comfortable but ventilated seats are sorely missed. On long journeys I tend to get a sweaty back due to the leather seats, cooled seats would’ve definitely solved the problem.











Spotted a Red Bull being driven very sedately on the way back, a huge thumbs up for not honking/flashing the high beam to pass anyone and respecting other drivers on the road .

[CEF_Beasts]

Inching close to the 5000kms mark (48xx kms done, 1000kms done in ~3 months).

Was busy with some competitive exams so the car was not used much other than within Mumbai commute.

The last highway drive was done roughly a month ago. Longing to stretch the B48’s legs, never get the chance to do that within Mumbai.

A late night coffee run again to BKC yesterday. Some pictures clicked in the parking lot.











Spotted the XC40 Recharge for the first time, looked classy in-person in that blue colour:




Love the Phytonic Blue shade, depending on the lighting, the colour changes its hue accordingly. Sometimes it looks like navy blue, midnight blue and carbon black in very poor lighting.

[CEF_Beasts]

Happy New Year 2023 to all!!

[CEF_Beasts]

The car has crossed the 5000km mark and is performing flawlessly.

Fuel Economy continues to hover between the 9 to 10 kmpl range. The car’s diet is a mixture, sometimes we fill regular petrol and where ever available we fill XP95. The 5000km mark was crossed with XP95.

Had a gala time at the BMW JoyTown festival last Sunday. Met many like-minded enthusiasts who had a deep interest in cars. But it was the parking lot opposite the venue that really shook me! All kinds of BMWs lined up perfectly.

A few friends who drove and sat in the car last Sunday were amazed by the smoothness and refinement of the B48 30i engine. Even though I feel there is some diesel-ness in the engine around the 2.5-3K RPM mark, in the way the engine rides the torque wave!













Although the car has hit the 5000km mark, a picture from the day when it did hit the mark with a full tummy of XP95 :

[vinj14]

Hey,

I've recently added a 2020 x3 30i to my garage. Its been a month and i'm absolutely loving it. I did notice that your car has the sound insulation pad on the underside of the bonnet. Strangely mine doesn't and even some youtube reviews highlight the fact that it doesn't come with the car. Did you get this as an accessory? Just curious to know.

Attaching some pics of my car







Want your opinion on a few things.
Have you thought about removing all the chrome and replacing it gloss black? I'm seriously considering it. Found some pics of what it may look like and i'm really tempted to go all black.


What do you think about it?

Sorry to hog your thread like this. Hopefully, I'll find the time to start an ownership thread soon.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by vinj14

Hey,

I've recently added a 2020 x3 30i to my garage. Its been a month and i'm absolutely loving it. I did notice that your car has the sound insulation pad on the underside of the bonnet. Strangely mine doesn't and even some Youtube reviews highlight the fact that it doesn't come with the car. Did you get this as an accessory? Just curious to know.

Congratulations and Welcome to the X3 family. Which car did you upgrade this one from?

I missed the point of sound insulation topic. How does the under bonnet insulation pad help in sound insulation? Are we talking about cabin sound?

Mine is deathly silent inside the cabin with zero creaks or noises even after completing 2 years of ownership. In fact, sound insulation never crossed my mind till date.

Originally Posted by vinj14

Want your opinion on a few things.
Have you thought about removing all the chrome and replacing it gloss black? I'm seriously considering it. Found some pics of what it may look like and i'm really tempted to go all black.

Don't think twice. If you have the appetite for cosmetic mods, that would be a perfect one. It would look gorgeous with chrome removed and black added.

I see tons of folks do that and it's really a subtle mod and makes the car look better.

Some folks even de-badge the cars here (especially the M performance ones) to make it look a sleeper.

Hope to see your ownership thread soon. Cheers and Enjoy the car. !!

[vinj14]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Congratulations and Welcome to the X3 family. Which car did you upgrade this one from?

I missed the point of sound insulation topic. How does the under bonnet insulation pad help in sound insulation? Are we talking about cabin sound?

Mine is deathly silent inside the cabin with zero creaks or noises even after completing 2 years of ownership. In fact, sound insulation never crossed my mind till date.

Oh! My car is extremely silent as well. Just noticed that his car had the under bonnet insulation pad while mine and many others don’t. Was wondering why that’s all.

Thanks. Ideally would have loved to get the m sport body kit but BMW informed me that it isn’t available as an accessory for my car. So de-chroming might be the way to go for now..

This car replaced my 2018 audi a4 tfsi.

[CEF_Beasts]

Nothing major to report, just sharing some pictures clicked over the past two-weeks for everyone’s viewing pleasure:





















A cute lil’ stray kitten has come over to protect the car when it’s parked, I don’t know what is it with cats and this car in particular! We used to park our Fortuner in the same parking spot for the last 7 years and not once did we see a cat lurking around, I guess this is the nature’s way of protecting the car from rats

[CEF_Beasts]

Originally Posted by vinj14

Hey,

I've recently added a 2020 x3 30i to my garage. Its been a month and i'm absolutely loving it.

Attaching some pics of my car

Attachment 2415263

Attachment 2415262

Attachment 2415261

Hey vinj14, congratulations on acquiring the X3, glad to know that you're enjoying the B48 30i as well! Great colour choice indeed, what I see on the road are majority white and blue X3s, the Sapphire Black and Sophisto Grey are very rare colours on the X3 atleast in India .

I did notice that your car has the sound insulation pad on the underside of the bonnet. Strangely mine doesn't and even some Youtube reviews highlight the fact that it doesn't come with the car. Did you get this as an accessory? Just curious to know.

The sound deadening material under the hood is stock and came with the car, it wasn't added as an accessory on my car. To my best knowledge, MY21 onwards, all X3s got the sound deadening material under the hood irrespective of whether it was a 20d or 30i. It should be possible to obtain one as an accessory from your dealer.

Want your opinion on a few things.
Have you thought about removing all the chrome and replacing it gloss black? I'm seriously considering it. Found some pics of what it may look like and i'm really tempted to go all black.

What do you think about it?

A full blackened out X3 will definitely look mafia-spec, considering your car is already black. In my case though, since the car is only a year and a half old, I would like to retain the stock look for a few more years. The MSport trim/kit not available for the pre-LCI X3 in India doesn't make matters any better, there are just way too many parts to be blackened in case one decides to go ahead with it!

If you like the full blackened-out look, you can definitely go ahead with it!

Sorry to hog your thread like this.

Hey, not at all! The reason for creating an ownership thread is so that other members can share their insights and help other users as well .

Originally Posted by vinj14

Ideally would have loved to get the m sport body kit but BMW informed me that it isn’t available as an accessory for my car. So de-chroming might be the way to go for now..

Since the pre-LCI X3 was never offered with the MSport trim in India, BMW India will not source the same for anyone interested to convert theirs. Although in case of the front bumper, you can check if the pre-LCI X4's MSport bumper fits or not, since that was offered with the MSport trim stock in India.

[Harsha89]

Hello X3 Owners,
I recently bought a pre owned BMW X3 30i (2020). The tyre currently are Bridgestone Alenza RFT which make a loud droning noise and significant cabin vibration beyond 100 km/hr which I concluded was due to heavy tyre wear at the rear. I wish to switch to tubeless tyres but unable to find it anywhere near me. Online search shows Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tubeless - but it’s mentioned as a car tyre, So I’m having doubts if it would suit this vehicle.

Please suggest plan for tyre change - Go for RFT again or buy the Michelin PS4 tyres ?
Sorry to hijack your thread @CEF_Beasts, there was no other official thread for the X3 30i which was active.

Thanks guys ����

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by Harsha89

Please suggest plan for tyre change - Go for RFT again or buy the Michelin PS4 tyres ?
Sorry to hijack your thread @CEF_Beasts, there was no other official thread for the X3 30i which was active.

Thanks guys ����

Timely question. I just started researching new tires for my car.

Current tire is Pirelli RFT's which have done 24,000 miles (~39,000 kms) with zero puncture.

Last weekend, I did a 425 miles day trip and return drive of almost 150 miles in torrential rain and at night. For first time, I felt the grip of the tires wasn't the best. Hence, I am in processing of changing tires in near future.

Firstly, I will replace RFT's with Tubeless. That is given. Please consider doing the same.

Secondly, being a performance X3, my choices are clear and only between these two.

1. Michelin Pilot Sport 4S

I spotted a sample tire at Costco and on offer of $150 off on 4 tires. Total price for 4 tires in my size is $1100 for stock size (245/50/R19)

Delicious thread pattern...lol!



2. Continental Extreme Contact DW06

Need to research price and compare with Pilot 4S

I assume both these tires are available in India. Select your poison between these two exceptional tires.

Cheers and Hope this helps.