[eflatminor]

Originally Posted by Wheelwright

Do you mind sharing where I can obtain this "active sound defeat kit" ? Thanks.

I just ordered an ASD-defeating harness along with a new audio amplifier from bimmertech. I'm sure they'll sell the harness alone if you're not interested in the amp.

Here's another source I've not used:

http://technicpnp.com/products.html

[eflatminor]

Originally Posted by midlifecrisis

Door handle pull too far forward to control door swing - for a couple of bucks they could have put a detent in the armrest.

+1 on that!

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by pjohns21

All I'm saying is I had fun in my 2013 320i xDrive without Servotronic (allegedly still electric, yes) at $34k. I'm not having fun in my 228i xDrive with staggered, summer tires (OEM of course), especially at its $49,000 price point.

You've got AWD for one. That kills front end feel with the unsprung weight, additional axle inertia, and AWD weight in nose.

Did you ever consider a RWD M235i? Something tells me "no" because there is a pronounced difference in steering weight when in Sport mode, and teamed with the stiffer shock setting in the various Sport modes allows for genuine "feel". Does it feel like an old hydraulic rack? No, but there is feel and liveliness there. I know what the front end is doing, when it's starting to push/slide, when I hit a bump, etc. I drive tons of cars rental cars for work and nearly of them use electric racks. None of them come close. I've also driven lots of a newer performance cars and the M235 rack is one of the better ones. Reviews by most auto authorities have said the M235 rack is one of the better ones and professional driver Randy Podst notes that the M235 is his favorite driving/handling BMW's in the past 10 years.

Perhaps you should have gotten an M235 RWD 6MT. I promise you'd be far happier.

[pjohns21]

Originally Posted by XutvJet

You've got AWD for one. That kills front end feel with the unsprung weight, additional axle inertia, and AWD weight in nose.

Did you ever consider a RWD M235i? Something tells me "no" because there is a pronounced difference in steering weight when in Sport mode, and teamed with the stiffer shock setting in the various Sport modes allows for genuine "feel". Does it feel like an old hydraulic rack? No, but there is feel and liveliness there. I know what the front end is doing, when it's starting to push/slide, when I hit a bump, etc. I drive tons of cars rental cars for work and nearly of them use electric racks. None of them come close. I've also driven lots of a newer performance cars and the M235 rack is one of the better ones. Reviews by most auto authorities have said the M235 rack is one of the better ones and professional driver Randy Podst notes that the M235 is his favorite driving/handling BMW's in the past 10 years.

Perhaps you should have gotten an M235 RWD 6MT. I promise you'd be far happier.

The performance differences between AWD and RWD are negligible, and it's simply not the issue i'm alluding to here. You may be right that the systems are different between the M235i and the 228i in terms of steering (between base and base systems, not between base and VSS, of course). As I said, I will always trade the benefits (?) of RWD for AWD for the significant decrease in time to 60 and my ability to accelerate on a snowy winter's day in Chicago. Same goes for the manual, I'm just not interested. I have only driven the M235i on a track before them driving my 228i on public roads, so I didn't really think about the comparisons between steering feel since the driving situations were so different. Besides, the M235i is a lot heavier than the 228i up front and it uses more gas, no thanks. I will say that the brakes on this F22 are 10x better than the sorry excuse for the ones that were on my F30 that shuttered and vibrated when stopping at any speed above 70mph (and yes, they were replaced multiple times and still did the same thing in a few hundred miles). These brakes are how BMW brakes should always be- more powerful and capable the faster you go (to a point, of course).

[Stiggy]

Originally Posted by eflatminor

+1 on that!

I agree about the door handle but find that reaching for the bottom pocket works well.

[eflatminor]

Originally Posted by Stiggy

I agree about the door handle but find that reaching for the bottom pocket works well.

I'll have to try that. A few weeks back, the wind was howling and when I opened the door, it flew from my hand and smacked the car next to me. I couldn't reach the handle in time because my hand naturally went for were a hole in the arm rest should be. Nothing!

[BentZero]

idk why the door handle has never bothered me at all. :/

[Beartato]

Originally Posted by pjohns21

Besides, the M235i is a lot heavier than the 228i up front and it uses more gas, no thanks.

While you're mathematically correct, we're talking 200 pounds and a couple miles per gallon. I'd almost argue the 228i is only slightly lighter than the M235i and only gets slight better mileage, but that's not really what you were going for with that line, eh?

[Sir Thomas Bombadil]

I hate that it spends most of its time in a parking garage while I spend the vast majority of my day either at work or asleep.

[SteveInfante]

Originally Posted by Stiggy

I agree about the door handle but find that reaching for the bottom pocket works well.

The lip of that whole pocket has a texture on the inside of it. I'm pretty sure that isn't by accident as nothing that BMW does in the design of their cars is by accident. I always use this method as well after the first time my door flung open and hit a brick wall. I had my whole body trying to hold the handle at the time. Didn't matter. I weigh 215 pounds. It was windy.

[Luv2]

Originally Posted by 23fizzer

i know this is a little off topic (but as the OP i'm taking the liberty )

how easy it is to code in different things? as a rule i don't like messing about with my cars especially when they're brand new out the box.

Mine is a 2016, and it dips the mirror on passenger side when in reverse.

[selmeralto]

Originally Posted by SteveInfante

The lip of that whole pocket has a texture on the inside of it. I'm pretty sure that isn't by accident as nothing that BMW does in the design of their cars is by accident. I always use this method as well after the first time my door flung open and hit a brick wall. I had my whole body trying to hold the handle at the time. Didn't matter. I weigh 215 pounds. It was windy.

Yes, the doors when open are highly susceptible to wind gusts.

I was in the passenger seat at the dealer's being shown the various features of the car. It was a windy day and the edge of the door hit a brick wall. I had owned the car about 5 minutes.

I used the dealer $25 new customer parts coupon to buy touch-up paint.

[BMW335iOn18s]

I'm officially annoyed with the soft engine/tranny mounts. Seriously, they're way too soft. I can get most shifts perfect, but it's the 10-15% of shifts that are a little jerky that drive me nuts.

I'm waiting for RealOEM to update the ETK so we can check to see if the M2 has different (I.e. Stiffer) mounts.

[BillD1953]

I just turned 3,000 miles on my 2016 228i 6MT bare bones (heated seats backup camera only).
Great fun car....seems a bit sensitive to wind on the highway, the car rides a bit hard with the Pirelli P7 runflats....oh......and I dislike the passenger door not unlocking when I open the driver's door.

[krhodes1]

Originally Posted by BillD1953

I just turned 3,000 miles on my 2016 228i 6MT bare bones (heated seats backup camera only).
Great fun car....seems a bit sensitive to wind on the highway, the car rides a bit hard with the Pirelli P7 runflats....oh......and I dislike the passenger door not unlocking when I open the driver's door.

You can set whether it unlocks one door or both in the settings menu. I have mine set to both. At least, I am assuming that a non-tech package car has the same settings for this - my '11 3-series which is almost as barebones as your car has it too.

[nike001]

Originally Posted by BMW335iOn18s

I'm officially annoyed with the soft engine/tranny mounts. Seriously, they're way too soft. I can get most shifts perfect, but it's the 10-15% of shifts that are a little jerky that drive me nuts.

I'm waiting for RealOEM to update the ETK so we can check to see if the M2 has different (I.e. Stiffer) mounts.

One of the few things I liked better on the M2 I drove. That, and the lack of body roll and steering directness.

Other than that, the M2 was only marginally better than my 235 imo. Stiffer mounts would close the overall gap even more for me

[BMW335iOn18s]

Originally Posted by nike001

One of the few things I liked better on the M2 I drove. That, and the lack of body roll and steering directness.

Other than that, the M2 was only marginally better than my 235 imo. Stiffer mounts would close the overall gap even more for me

The M2 shifted better?

[djarchow]

I have had my 2016 m235i for about a week. My last car was a 2011 335is with the DCT. I realize the 2 series is designed to hit a lower price point than the 3/4 series and so there were some obvious cost cutting choices made, especially in the interior. I hate that the center armrest in my car is sensetec vs. the dakota on my seats. All my previous BMWs had a leather center arm rest. The new sliding armrest is nice though I wish it was covered in leather.

The AM/FM reception in my car is far worse than my 335is or my 2008 335i before that. In my old cars, I could still receive one of our local stations almost 140 miles away. My m235i loses the station 50 miles from home.

I can notice the numb steering vs. my old car but it is only an issue if I am really driving hard. I am also not thrilled with the new M steering wheel vs. my old M wheel. Size, diameter, firmness all seem to be about the same, but the new covering (I am still not convinced it is leather) seems cheap compared to all my previous ones. I really liked the dimpled leather on my 335is wheel and the best was the Alcantra one on my 330i zhp.

All in all I am very happy with the car. The things I don't like are pretty minor compared to the things I love.

[Anthony235]

Anyone know if there is a way to have the climate control stay off when starting the car?

I know you can do it via coding, but is there a way to do it using the existing controls?

It's one of the things gets on my nerves every time I get in the car.

[Liquidpaper]

My one gripe is that it is SO HARD to get rubber under the car. I get that the M2, 3, 4 have widened bodywork making it easy to get rubber under the car, but why is it easier to fit wider rubber under a standard 3 or 4 series over the 2?

I mean, I don't need it THAT much wider, but you're really stuck at 255 section in the front (with camber plates) and about 265 in the rear (with proper offsets). Any wider in the front and you rub, and any wider in the rear and you run into rolling diameter problems/rubbing the wheel well and fuel line.

[BillD1953]

Originally Posted by krhodes1

You can set whether it unlocks one door or both in the settings menu. I have mine set to both. At least, I am assuming that a non-tech package car has the same settings for this - my '11 3-series which is almost as barebones as your car has it too.

I'll look again but I dont think there is an "unlock all doors" function option

[nike001]

Originally Posted by BMW335iOn18s

The M2 shifted better?

My comment was mostly about overall stiffness. The M2 I drove was DCT.