[megazoid]

We decided to drive around the Sharavathi wildlife sanctuary on a weekend with the 330i and planned to visit few places that looked tad dicey to attempt with a low slung car. But in the end, the drive turned out to be an absolute fire cracker and we managed to take the 330i to most places we had planned.

The place of stay was a small two room establishment in a picturesque location at Nittur (The Aham) with a dirt trail leading to it. We got the 330i to cross the slush and mud, owing to heavy overnight rain, in our quest to reach the location. Otherwise, the roads were outstanding and the car was an absolute delight to drive. I had charged the Gopro and packed everything thinking of the nice driving roads but missed grabbing the camera on the day of the drive. So, the wonderful Chris Harris footage I had in mind went out of the window. Food at the property was simple and tasty and there are nice walking trails around the property that we used in good measure to shed guilt from the gastronomical excesses. The stay itself is quite basic but with great views and silence all around.

A little about the driving part that was the reason to undertake this trip. The car is just fabulous to drive over twisties. Has a fantastic steering and great balance. Can pick up speeds quite well and feels exciting from behind the wheel. The RFT's are a weak link as far as outright grip is concerned. The best bit still has to be the steering without a doubt. On the highways, the cruising ability comes very handy while munching long distances. The only worrisome bit are the rims being prone to damage on the "impeccably" designed road surfaces that pop up every once a while to dish out moose tests. The FE for the thousand kilometer round trip hovered between 9 and 10 for the most part and looked fairly alright considering the drive.

https://youtu.be/SUJ1s8Y5GVc

[megazoid]

The lovely sharavathi backwaters


black and white


quintessential state highway sights


proportions


a deck with a view


superb roads


cascade


saaj / Terminalia elliptica


Baheda /Terminalia bellirica ?


Hanging bridge

[megazoid]

Some more snaps from the trip.


A water body next to the road that looked scintillating


car basking in the hot sun


The tree sure bests the car


symmetry


a countryside setting


filtering sunlight, dry leaves and vast expanse of water


yellow browed bulbul



roads that make all of this worth doing

[megazoid]

Had a decent sized nail embedded inside the rear left tire after the drive. The tire pressure warning kept whining but the tire seemed absolutely alright even when the pressure dropped to a lowly 16psi. On a positive note, this was the only drive where I came back without a wheel speed sensor error warning. Otherwise, the car just revels in being driven hard. On the return leg, got quite a bit of rain and I was not overly cautious but there were no bent rims to worry about after the drive.

Another interesting thing that happened in between was that I went and parked the car on an anthill on a previous drive without a care. A swarm of ants got inside and bred like crazy and started crawling all around inside the car. Got the car cleaned and fumigated multiple times and they still survived for a while. Finally it boiled down to me vacuuming the car daily and in the last few days, the little friends sharing the planet cannot be seen. Had to read a fair bit about how the workers search for food and take it to the queen who needed to be ejected if the surroundings had to be cleared.

[BlackPearl]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing megazoid!

[Dr.AD]

Originally Posted by megazoid

We decided to drive around the Sharavathi wildlife sanctuary on a weekend with the 330i and planned to visit few places that looked tad dicey to attempt with a low slung car. But in the end, the drive turned out to be an absolute fire cracker and we managed to take the 330i to most places we had planned.

Wow! What an amazing travelogue, megazoid! So few words, and the pictures do all the talking! Absolutely fantastic pictures. I am always amazed at how you guys find the most beautiful and the least known places, the best of the driving roads, and reach the most unheard of locations and come back with tons of beautiful photos and stories. This travelogue is just one more proof of that.

Yous car looks absolutely gorgeous, and every single car photo here is top class. I was previously not a huge fan of white cars, but your car is single-handedly changing my opinion of white cars and I have started to (finally) see the beauty in white cars too :-)

[Porcupine]

As they say, a picture speaks a thousand words! Amazing travelogue, amazingly communicated through pictures. The 330i looks pristine! Wish you many more happy journeys.

[sandeepmukunda]

Beautiful photos, love the dynamic range across all shots, i can gale at them for hours, especially the column of trees and the lone biker on the bridge shot.

[sid_deb]

Originally Posted by megazoid

The tire pressure warning kept whining but the tire seemed absolutely alright even when the pressure dropped to a lowly 16psi. On a positive note, this was the only drive where I came back without a wheel speed sensor error warning. Otherwise, the car just revels in being driven hard. On the return leg, got quite a bit of rain and I was not overly cautious but there were no bent rims to worry about after the drive.

Amazing travelogue, enjoyed going through it and the pictures.

Are there any best practices to avoid punctures or bent rims in BMWs? I have also had a puncture in both of my highway runs so far and am really paranoid. Used BMW secure to get a replacement for one of the tyres.

[megazoid]

Originally Posted by sid_deb

Are there any best practices to avoid punctures or bent rims in BMWs? I have also had a puncture in both of my highway runs so far and am really paranoid. Used BMW secure to get a replacement for one of the tyres.

A puncture probability in a BMW is as much as in any other car. Nothing to really worry about. But rims do go out of shape quite easily. Was having a chat with Dr AD from the forum and he quotes his service advisor mentioning that almost all BMWs that come in for service have minor rim deformation but these are nothing much to worry about as long as balancing can do its job.

But its important to inspect the tires (even the inside facing sections) for bulges and deformities periodically or at the very least before a highway run.

Originally Posted by sandeepmukunda

i can gale at them for hours, especially the column of trees and the lone biker on the bridge shot.

Thanks for being kind with the praise. :-)

Originally Posted by Porcupine

The 330i looks pristine! Wish you many more happy journeys.

Thanks porcupine (never thought I would thank one...)

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

Yous car looks absolutely gorgeous, and every single car photo here is top class. I was previously not a huge fan of white cars, but your car is single-handedly changing my opinion of white cars and I have started to (finally) see the beauty in white cars too :-)

perhaps I am the only one clicking pictures of a white car and pasting it all over the place. But the reason may be the F30 shape. Its a rather nice one, which makes any colour suitable.