F30 320d vs 328i dilemma

[swordfish 30]

Hello BMW family! I am finally at the right stage to enquire another BMW, and currently considering the following cars: F30 320d and 328i. Definitely leaning towards a Jap import mspec auto for both... currently had a look at a 320d and drove it... haven’t had a chance to drive a 328i yet...

Has anyone driven both?

Any noticeable differences/benefits?

Anything I need to look out for?

So far I have noticed that the interior plastics and trims are much softer and prone to scratching/disintegrating.

Also, does anyone know what a yellow/orange sticky stuff in the engine bay might be, doesn’t look like oil, more like some kind of treatment chemical...

Any advice would be very welcome!

[kiwi535 538]

for the diesel be aware that road user charges are 7 c a kilometre and you pay the acc up front when you register the car.Unlike the petrol where there taxes are mostly included in the pump price so the cheaper pump price for diesel isnt as good as you think

[swordfish 30]

Thank you @kiwi535!!! Calculated the price per km for both diesel and petrol and turned out to be about the same. Diesel does 1000km per tank on average, which is impressive. Petrol around 750km, both with good behaviour of course. Tank of diesel plus on road tax is actually more expensive... but the savings on fuel economy makes it about the same, if not slightly better.

After my test drive today I loved the overall usability of diesel in the city! It tends to pull strong from lows!!! I had three reasonably big people in the car and it felt easy and nimble. I actually really enjoyed it. Just trying to make sure that I am not missing out on something unique with the 328i

Edited August 11, 2019 by swordfish

[balancerider 758]

320d is a good engine. the n20 in the 328i is fine but nothing special and the low down torque in the 320d is quite fun. only caveat to that is if you are doing a lot of short / around town trips the DPF can need replacement in the diesel. 

Edited August 11, 2019 by E30 325i Rag-Top
Quote prev post

[qube 3570]

very similar cars but major difference is the low end torque from the 320d. if you do mainly short trips I might just go for the 328i but if you do longer trips then the 320d would be fine.

Alternatively, look for either or and find one in the right spec/colour/price and just pick whichever. 

[lord_jagganath 421]

My 2 cents as a diesel advocate, if you are stuck in traffic more often than you like, I would recommend the diesel. if you do long ks, do the diesel. the Diesel encourages you to stay below 3k Revs, the petrol loves higher revs. the 328i would be a should try at least once kind of deal nonetheless. 

[E30 325i Rag-Top 2959]

Everybody has there own personal tastes and opinions, so a lot of it comes down to what you particularly want from the car. What sort of driving do you do? How many kms per week? Are you all about fuel costs, driving style, engine noise, etc?

I have done considerable kms in both models as both F30 and F31 wagons. As I tow a fair bit, the diesel was a better proposition for me, the low down torque and better fuel consumption (especially comes to the fore when towing).

As others have said, and you have noticed, the diesel has great low down pickup, whereas the 328i you have to rev more to get the best out of it (which doesn't help achieve the book fuel consumption).

Anything to look for, hmm, would be the same between both, no real differences by model. Look for the bells and whistles - professional navigation, head up display, etc. Might not find a Jap import with all the options, and you will find more 328i Jappers than the 320d I would suggest. For me Motorsport versions look a lot better than the other "lines" but Sport line is still quite good.

Whereabouts in the engine bay is the yellow sticky stuff? Without a photo my first quesss would be the spray wax that is used to seal and lubrucate certain areas, compare it with the stuff on the door hinges - if it's wax it will look the same.

Drive both, there is not a lot between them, and Qube says it might be a case of finding the right colour combo and spec and going with that rather than the engine.

[swordfish 30]

Hey guys! Thank you for all your advice so far! Very helpful! 

The yellow stuff is at front sides of the engine bay and close to the front reinforcement bar of the car. Looks like wax that has been dried out and sent. Tried to rub it off with my finger but I couldn’t.

[kiwi535 538]

we used to call that yellow stuff cosmoline i dont know what they use now.The economy of the diesel doesnt really change much,no matter how you drive it.The only thing i found with my 120d is on really tight roads you have to change your driving style a bit in really tight corners,other wise you can go off boost,then you will find the diesel has absolutely nothing I found that in really tight stuff you had to use first(manual).

[GorGasm 563]

I vote 328i.  

[m325i 709]

Save up / wait for 330d - you'll get a big percentage of the difference back at resale

[balancerider 758]

very few 330d's sold NZ new as sedans (pre-LCI only) so probably a pretty shallow pool to choose from. sure I have seen more 335i's than 330d's

[swordfish 30]

Also at least 10k over my budget... I am looking to spend $21k maximum

[Contrails 317]

We had the same dilemma and we went with the 328i.  A friend of ours who works for Auckland City BMW recommended the 328i too. 

More power available in the 328i, consumption was dependent on the driver.  We get 500kms for $100 of 98 with Normal mode. Could get more in Eco with the Start/stop function ON.  The 328i came with some nice options that we liked, White with full tan leather, sunroof very low kms. 

[lord_jagganath 421]

1 hour ago, swordfish said:

Also at least 10k over my budget... I am looking to spend $21k maximum

there's one that could be obtained for that here https://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/bmw/auction-2256238500.htm admittedly doesn't have the sports pack nor m sport bits. there is a NZ new 320d 2014 model for about 24k in Auckland too (if you like I could check that out)

[martyyyn 102]

I had similar thoughts last year, although in e90's.

I went with an 08 320d msport with 6-speed manual and I don't regret it for a second. I've owned everything from 4 pot's to v12's, e30's to e38's to e53's, and this is in my top three.

I can thrash the nuts off it all day long and still do over 1100kms on an $85 tank. Being a nanna has seen it close to 1300kms. I was overtaking Subaru's over the Remutakas last weekend and it's ability over the Paekok Hill is just staggering.

I'm now looking for a 535d F10 for the wife. Diesel has me hooked.

[swordfish 30]

I’ve driven an M-Sport 320d on the weekend and I was very pleasantly surprised! It has so much low rev pull, it felt effortless! The suspension felt super balanced too! Not to bouncy, but very firm and solid. The steering very smooth with decent feedback. Nothing about the car felt wrong! It felt right in all good places to be honest. However, there wasn’t that x-factor like you have in an M3, which was super fun and engaging to drive. And I am not sure if the 328i would offer that instead to be honest!

[Contrails 317]

Have you looked at a F20 135i? It's a hatchback but an awesome hatchback indeed. Kyu had one and I had a 116i. I thought the 116i was a fantastic car, very good on mileage and had enough go at low RPM to pull away at the On-ramp drag races. 

Edited August 13, 2019 by Contrails
Avoiding redicule from the Grammer Police.

[Neal 545]

Have driven a 320d sedan and 328i touring. I think you can’t go wrong with either,

With the 320d I had a back to back timed slalom with my e46 m3. The result was .25 of a second faster in the 320d despite having 100kw less. The torque and less wheel spin was the key difference but was no slug.

Not related to BMW , but my wife brought a cx5 2.2D turbo. We drove the company demos for 2.2d and NA 2.5. We used the demo cars actual fuel consumption figures and based ownership cost on those figures. Basically the 2.2D was close to $1000 cheaper per 10,000 kms to run. So 6.6 litres per 100km average for a1600kg suv with 800 km between with a 150km reserve.

Im also a diesel convert. I’d love a 340d x3 next ?

 

 

 

 

 

[lord_jagganath 421]

https://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/bmw/auction-2275505876.htm price dropped. I'm going to check it out tomorrow

[swordfish 30]

Looks great! I am looking at one here in CHCH, it’s a 2012 m-spec as well. White. Got it checked with the local BMW dealer. All looks good so far...

[lord_jagganath 421]

just tested the 320d motorsport. 2014. smooth, and good to drive. leather is clean, smells clean inside, economy is 6.4;/100kms, with mostly town driving

bad: - there's some nicks on the interior, the carpet on the floor where the foot rest ends is worn through, driver's door is a little rattly due to loose trim, rear bumper is crazed on one side,  bottom of front bumper has scrapes on the underneath, no floor carpets. I think the tyres are non-runflats but are of dissimilar makes. (similar pattern though) (225 front, 275 rear)

I would put another 2-3k in it to be happy tbh. if it were a touring, i would have bought it no questions asked. 

Edited August 17, 2019 by lord_jagganath

[swordfish 30]

Soooo I’ve put in a deposit for a white m-sport 320d ??? yes it is 2012 and a Jap import, and yes it has 120k km, but the overall condition of the car is close to perfect... the usual things, slight marks on the hexagon aluminium trim, worn right driver’s door handle, a few very little marks on the rear headrests, exterior is pretty good too, a few very little stone chips and a little scratch on the bottom of the side skirt... overall it had everything I wanted, sport seats (not the leather ones, I think they are velour and cloth with blue stitching and little m-sport tags on the sides), M-Sport steering wheel, 18inch wheels, Michelin pilot 1s run flats, M-Sport speedo and paddle shifts. I sort of felt sorry for the car, it is at that very fine line between staying perfect as it is, getting serviced properly and still doing another 200k km easy... or knowing that people don’t like higher kms cars here, and that it would probably end-up to be driven to the ground, so I’ve pulled the trigger. I got a 3 year mechanical warranty with it as well. It drove very well and smooth, suspension felt tight. Got it check by the BMW in Christchurch and it got flagged to one of their salemen to be looked at! Lol so anyway... I’ll send some pics once I have it! 

Edited August 17, 2019 by swordfish

[GorGasm 563]

So another ratty NZ new car and a mint jap import. Yet another example of Jap imports being superior and kiwis not giving a damn about their cars.  No floor mats? What sort of feral animal owned it?

 

Maybe I just have high standards...

Edited August 17, 2019 by GorGasm

[NZ BMW 368]

I was in looking at a 2015 320D Auckland City BMW had today. Nice car to drive. I have to agree, a lot of the NZ new cars I have seen are light on options and the interior of this car with 7Xkms on it felt tougher than my 12 year old X5 with 120Kms on it.