Congratulations Paul and best wishes with it. Aesthetics wise, I think red exteriors and interiors look particularly good with some contrasting black to both break them up and give emphasis. It worked on my last and present cars and yours looks judged to perfection.
Have to be honest and say it turned out better than expected. Apparently the business manager actually asked my salesman if he was going to let me order in that colour scheme but has conceded that it has turned out superb and better than anyone could think. Everyone who saw it at the dealership has been very positive about it. In the metal it is nuts, everything just works. I knew that it would be mega but I did have a wobble a few weeks back but am so happy with it. Only thing I don’t like too much at the present is the ID8.5 screens as to me it isn’t as intuitive as pressing buttons. In particular the HVAC settings for adjusting fan speed and vents is just pony, that has frustrated the hell out of me and isn’t progress. Just penny pinching when physical buttons are so much better. I remember something similar HVAC related on the original E60 and BMW did a u-turn with the lci and fixed that nonsense!!! Just did it the wrong way round with this lci update lol. And the wheels, oh my. I liked my previous bicolour 825 wheels as they worked with the dravit but these 826’s are epic in bicolour if probably a proper arse to clean
The HVAC touch screen stuff drives me nuts too. It's unnecessary and makes something simple too fussy and takes your eyes off the road. The voice assistant comes to the rescue but the touch screen pendulum has swung too far. If you try to make something clever too clever it becomes stupid.
Congrats that does look great! When you first mentioned the spec with red on red I thought that may be too much but it works and looks epic
Thank you all for the nice comments. Have 122 miles now and a few little observations. I want my HVAC buttons back, I understand it is all about cost cutting but it is so much easier to select the vent position cabin temp and fan speed from a physical button. My old car was an October ‘21 build rwd model so interesting to compare driving characteristics. The suspension seems so much nicer. My old car only had 26k on it so could hardly say it was tired in the slightest. This just seems more compliant. Rides the rougher roads better and just seems better damped. The steering is also seems nicer, has more feel and turn in seems sharper which I wasn’t prepared for as I thought the xdrive might make my old rwd one less corrupted if that makes sense but I guess because it is in RWD mode until the front wheels are required to do some work then maybe this is just a step up. Now the engine. I have barely even pushed the car as it has so few miles but it seems more eager. The torque figure is the same apparently but it seems it comes in lower down and with a (fair) bit more oomph. It feels more like my old f10 m5 the way the torque was delivered than my g80. I am assuming the mapping has been fiddled with as it is 530 rather than 510bhp but I don’t know what that feels like yet as it hasn’t been over 3500rpm lol. Going to start taking it further up the revs to around 5500rpm (until the RIS is done) over the next hundred or so miles so will be interesting to see how it feels when pushing it a bit harder. Has been fun so far comparing the first gen rwd against the lci xdrive. Got to say I am loving the lci - just wish it still had buttons!!!!!
Gone a bit further up the rev range and bloomin hell this thing is sodding quick. Can’t wait to fully unleash it. I thought my old rwd one was urgent but this is definitely quicker. No idea how or why but the shove is instant and the pull is really felt. It simply cannot be put down to xdrive over rwd as I rarely saw the traction light flicker as it had so much grip but this I can tell is a proper monster. Maybe red is faster, I dunno but the butt dyno doesn’t lie. On another note the weather looks crap for the weekend which is a shame as I wanted to wash it as it is already a bit dirty with a fine layer of dust and the only time you really get to know your car is when you give it a scrub lol.
Is the red showing the dirt/dust more than the DG did? Possibly the torque has been re-figured for the xDrive, making the grunt feel more urgent?
The dravit was awful for showing the dust and dirt. Toronto looks clean until you get really close. Sitting in it and looking over the bonnet I can see a very fine film on it. In the dravit one this was far more noticeable. I think Toronto does a better job of hiding the dirt. But the weekend looks terrible weather wise so at best I will only do the wheels as I have made a solemn promise to keep on top of the wheel cleaning and not allow any hint of brake dust to build. Re the power and xdrive, I truly have no idea but it definitely feels different and not just 20bhp different, it feels F90 M5 quick. In fact I would love to see a Carwow vid of a lci g80 against an f90 as I reckon the g80 could come out on top!!!! A YouTube channel I quite like called remove before race used some timing box to time a G83 lci 0-60 and done it in 3.08 which is nuts and that is probably 150kg more than mine I would guess. The CS version has been clocked at 2.8, this is getting in to serious quick car territory. Honestly cannot wait for a few thousand on the clock to really work it but that will be some months off yet I think. Just cannot get over the differences between the original first gen rwd and the lci xdrive. Even using voice commands for the id8.5 which is making life easier now lol.
All sounds good. I guess different software mapping and four wheel drive will make a big difference and how the power is delivered to each axle will make you feel a difference as well. Enjoy Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
A few miles under 300 now and it is really getting under my skin now. I have done a full u-turn on id8.5. Actually very good and using voice commands make it pretty simple. Still struggle with finding some stuff through the menus but am getting there. Pushed it a little harder today and holy mother of god it is lively!!!!! Certainly a fairly big step over the first gen, but I have found my first problem , I have gone from four valve caps to three . BMW parts department was shut today and when I asked if they could give me one from a showroom car I was met with a scowl, so, I did something that I am not proud of!!!! I went to Halfords and bought a set of black ones but actually feel a bit dirty about using Halfords tat on it so I have ordered a set of M ones off amazon in black. So, I am one of the few purchasers of M branded items off Amazon that can put it on a legitimate M .
That made me chuckle. I’ve also got some (genuine) M aluminium valves caps on mine. Just has to be done.
Trawling through the BMW classifieds this afternoon, I've found a G21 M340d that has a very similar spec to your G80..! https://usedcars.bmw.co.uk/vehicle/202501278437599?quoteref=b8602739-6da3-4ace-b3eb-9413c55a15e0
I like that but I prefer mine lol. Always liked Melbourne red but I think that because there is so much red on the seats it clashes a bit on that car. I have a lot of black on mine with the centre panels etc and the carbon trim which I think works really well. So far everyone who has seen it in the metal loves it - or they are just being really polite
They've already stopped the M340d in the G21 for UK customers. They'll be no UK diesels in the new 3 series. My neighbour adores his M340d. Would only change it for an M3 or Alpina touring
