Brought home a BMW 330Li GL LCI: Driving, features & other observations

The car has a low stance. So the Kushaq will be the vehicle of choice whenever we take parents out.

BHPian msnarian recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

This beauty came home this month and I haven't stopped grinning since!

The story/garage so far:

As most people here, I have been dreaming of cars and motorcycles ever since I was in primary school. In fact, most of my margins in school notes were filled with doodles of anything with wheels! When I started earning decent, I finally had the opportunity to buy my first car, a Honda Brio. Fast forward to today, our garage has the good old Honda along with a Skoda Kushaq 1.0 TSI, a Triumph Street Twin 900 and the latest to join the stable - a spanking new BMW 3 series - a BMW 3GL - a 330LI G28 M Sport LCI to be precise.

Honda Brio:

The Honda Brio is an absolute joy to drive. It's now been exactly 11 years (Oct 2012) and has done a decent 80000 km. It recently went through a bodywork repair and a complete repaint and is the engine is a complete beauty. I have left the car sitting for more than two months and it still cranks without drama after two months of remaining untouched. We replaced the suspension recently and it's on its third set of rubbers. I intend to keep the Brio till end of its life. Fantastic chuckable car for city drives. I recently drove the Brio for 50km straight across the city and though I got tired (mostly because of the clutch in bumper to bumper traffic), the car is an absolute joy and still wheelspins when I shift from the first to the second gear when launched hard!

Last month, the Brio got into a minor accident when it was driven by a call driver and we had to repair the bumper. We also decided to give the Brio a fresh coat of paint. For those interested, we got the bodywork done at TINKR. The founding team is extremely knowledgeable and passionate. Shahrukh used to run the body shop in Kun BMW Chennai and an absolute gem to work with! Highly recommended for anyone in Chennai looking to get bodywork done. They also get insurance sorted if needed. For those interested, Shahrukh is reachable on +919626655722.

Note: I am sharing his details because of their impressive services that I experienced first hand. I am sure will be useful to members of this forum - I have absolutely nothing to gain from this. I took Shahrukh's consent before sharing his number too.

Triumph Street Twin 900:

I have dreamt of motorcycles since a child and a long time dream was to one day own a superbike. We bought the Street Twin 900 just before the pandemic. The motorcycle has seen its ups and downs especially because I haven't ridden the motorcycle as much as I would have liked. It's great for city rides and the occasional long ride. But with a kid, we hardly get to take the motorcycle out. It is still a joy to ride and I plan to keep it for a long time.

Skoda Kushaq:

There was a need for a bigger car once the kid came into the picture. We also needed an automatic because the manual was tiring to drive for long stretches especially in city traffic. The car has its niggles - especially the noisy nature. The brakes are super noisy and give out an obnoxious, loud grinding sound especially when you are manoeuvring in super low speeds. Skoda just hasn't been able to resolve this and they claim that's the nature of the car. I have seen other owners of the Kushaq complain about this all the time. It's mostly annoying and our entire street knows when we are taking the car out.

But it's is a brilliant car + engine + gearbox and we really enjoy driving the Kushaq. Super practical when it comes to space + creature comfort features and it's got enough power on tap with fantastic dynamics for some spirited driving.

Prospective third car:

We have reached a point now when both my partner and I are expected to show up at work in the post-WFH era. We both need our own rides, and the kid needs to be chauffeured from school. We have briefly considered a few cars over the past 2 years.

Tata Nexon EV - The Tata showroom experience was a nightmare. We entered the showroom and it was overflowing. The same sales person was attending to multiple people at the same time. There was a big fight going on in the delivery bay between the showroom folks and a family who had come for delivery. We took the brochures and left in a hurry knowing we would never come back.

Hot hatch (i20) - We very briefly considered a hot hatch like the i20 N-line, because the driving will mostly be within the city. But it didn't quite feel like an upgrade. We didn't even test drive any.

BMW X1 - We drove the diesel and it was good. But the interiors were super outdated and they refused to give any kind of discount which was very surprising, considering the car was badly due for a new generation.

It was a no brainer for us to look beyond the X1 - plus we were also keen on a RWD (with the only exception being a Volvo). The RWD parameter also meant we skipped the Audis though the interiors and technology were mouthwatering.

Mercedes C - The baby S had just launched and there were absolutely no discounts. The C200 was okay to drive and didn't feel special. But the interiors were stunning and made one feel super special and luxurious.

Mercedes A35 - We very briefly considered the A35 (the yellow looks insane!). But they had just stopped production and there was a demo car available. But it sat waaaaaay too low and the ground clearance was a big question on Indian roads.

BMW 3 - We have been evaluating the 3 for quite some time. We test drove the car multiple times - both the pre-facelift and the LCI version. It always left us grinning. The team at Kun BMW (OMR) were so nice that they would insist we test drive the car even though we made it very clear that we were in no hurry to buy! We test drove the 3 over two years and the team would always indulge us. I think this worked out really well in their favor.

Full marks to Sabarish - he is not with the dealership anymore, but he is a wonderful catch! Whichever car dealer hires him will be super lucky to have him selling their cars! Our sales consultant, Ashraf is also another gem. He too indulged us with test drives over the last 6 months even though he knew we were not actively evaluating. More on Ashraf later.

The serious buying phase:

By now, I had to go to office everyday and my partner also had to go to office everyday. We badly needed a third car now as she was Ubering to work everyday since the kid needed the Brio to be chauffeured to and from school.

With the Brio sorted and with an extension in life, we were certain that if we ever needed a third car, it had to be from the luxury/sports segment. My partner always had a thing for Volvo and would longingly suggest we get one of the sedans. Much to my relief, Volvo stopped manufacturing the S60 in India. Fantastic car, but I didn't want a FWD for this big car purchase!

We worked out the finances and figured we can make a big car happen and my partner was kind enough to agree to finance half the car.

Stuttgart or Munich?

I called up the sales manager of Titanium Mercedes showroom and we set up an appointment to check out the C220d. My partner decided to take an Uber auto instead of driving and our kid dozed off with the wind on his face. She arrived five minutes before I could, and was met with suspicious and half-dirty stares. I arrived 5 minutes after she did and even as the sales manager rushed with a smile to greet me, I stared in disbelief at my partner - she was standing in the middle of the showroom, carrying her bag and our kid who was blissfully asleep on her shoulder.

The folks at the showroom had apparently quizzed her on her intentions, and hadn't even offered a seat or a glass of water.

We half-heartedly checked the car out and surprisingly got a good deal right off the bat. But with the borderline humiliating experience, we quickly exited the showroom and I texted the sales person at Sundaram Mercedes. He got back promptly with similar discounts. (They haven't followed up since.)

Armed with this quote, we drove straight to the BMW showroom.

There were no discounts given initially. I shared the Mercedes quote with them and asked them to better that. Somehow, the BMW folks managed to figure out that we were finally ready to make a purchase. Consistent follow up from them was key.

And each time, they called, I was able to get a lakh shaved off from the OTR. I wasn't able to get much done on the ex-showroom price. But a few lakhs off was good enough. I am sure the OTR was jacked up in order to give the sales team a good negotiating cushion, however it helped me a LOT that I initiated the conversation with 10 days to go for the quarter to end.

And the final price we sealed the deal was close to the Mercedes deal. In hindsight, I am pretty sure I could have gotten another lakh shaved off if I had negotiated for some more time. They were clearly in a hurry to close the deal before Sep 30.

Interestingly, the only variant on offer was the M Sport variant. And of course the regular 330i has been discontinued in India.

Full marks to Ashraf for ensuring the deal closed. I literally had him on speed dial throughout the buying journey and he was super patient and involved during the process.

C vs 3:

For someone evaluating The 3, there is a strong probability they are also looking at the C Class. There are also some key differences between the C and the 3.

Where the C Class loses:

• Rear AC controls. Very weird the C doesn't ship with these since Mercs are considered chauffeured cars.
• No rear USB charging point - again, weird for the above reason.
• Rear space feels cramped.
• Boot space is super limited and is occupied largely by the spare.

Where the C wins:

• Electric steering - both reach and rake. You can also store steering position in seat memory settings. Very cool.
• Window shades. The 3 loses out on this.
• Electrically operated rear shade. The BMW lacks shades in the. back as well. I can't even imagine why they left such a minor feature out for a luxury car.
• Sunroof seems larger in the C Class - but that's largely because the cabin is shorter in length.
• I quite like the Merc's instrument cluster. BMW's seems very crowded and noisy.
• I also quite liked the driver seat in the C class. Seemed more sportier and hugged the driver.

PDI:

I have written before about the PDI drama that unfolded. I do not want to repeat the story all over again. But long story short, someone from their team messed up. But the dealer immediately owned up, and made up for it by inviting me to the yard to witness the unloading. They made sure I was completely satisfied with the PDI. Full marks for the honestly.

Here are pictures from the unloading:

Accessories:

Surprisingly, the accessories team had no clue about accessories for the 330LI. They completely denied having black grilles for the 330LI facelift. I had to send them delivery pictures from last month in Bangalore as proof. They claimed there were no official accessories brochure for the LCI - all they shared was the pre-facelift brochure - accessories of which should technically fit the LCI version. After much follow up, they agreed to procure the black grille for around 18K, but I had lost interest by then. I think I will just vinyl wrap the grille in the future whenever I feel like a change.

Same for the BMW ISOFIX child seat - it just wasn't available and the accessories team wasn't too enthusiastic. Surprising since I would assume the 3 was a fast moving product and I always thought accessories were high margin goods.

Continue reading on BHPian msnarain's BMW 330Li LCI for BHPian comments, insights and more information.