[stealthwang]

was it a brand new microfiber? you may have used a contaminated cloth. i've been able to dust mine without problems.

if you want to remove those scratches check out novus 1 & 2 plastic polishes

[virtguy]

Originally Posted by stealthwang

was it a brand new microfiber? you may have used a contaminated cloth. i've been able to dust mine without problems.

if you want to remove those scratches check out novus 1 & 2 plastic polishes

New, but had been washed (in liquid detergent). They're the same type of cloths I use for cleaning monitors and removing Zaino with no swirls. Dusting probably would have been fine; I was trying to remove a finger smudge.

Thanks for the novus tip, I'll give it a shot.

[Jeff231]

I hate that I didn't get it in a manual.

[tinyTIM]

^^ I also hate that mine is not a manual. I guess HATE is too strong of a word, but I would prefer the 6-Speed manual. Will be turning 49 soon and this is my first automatic transmission. It is a pretty fantastic transmission though and I am adjusting to life without a clutch. Some other minor nitpicks that have been mentioned already:


- No synch for the climate control
- Wheels (Like them but so hard to clean and would prefer Feric gray)
- Gauge Cluster lighting (Not a fan of BMW amber lighting)
- Seats are fantastic but I wish they looked a little sportier. They look a little plain. Would look nice with alcantara inserts like Audi S4 seats.

The above things are very minor and I really love the car so far. Picked it up in September of 2015 and just turned 5000 miles over the weekend.

[DanATL]

1)HK Sound sucks. I just ordered new speakers F&R and will see how that goes. AM/FM reception is poor also.
2) Active Exhaust Sound. The droning is driving me crazy. Just received my active sound defeat kit and will install this weekend.
3) I thought I needed the HK sound so considering the color combos I wanted had to compromise and get the crappy P7 run flats since that was what I could find in stock at the dealers in a four state area at the time. Also means I got the square tire setup. Next stop is Costco for some PSS.
4) No temp gauge. I have a fake gauge telling me my current HP and torque output but no idea if the engine is warm yet.
5) Steering wheel feels cheap. mostly the plastic at the bottom of the center spoke but leather feels kinda thin.
6) Carpet, mats and headliner feel cheap.
7) The car gongs at me whenever I start it. Can't tell if that's the seat belt gong or the lawyer gong to accept the iDrive warning. Did figure out how to turn the gong volume way down though.
8) Too much tire to fender gap. Some 10mm spacers will help but I don't want to lower the car.
9) Combination of tiny gas tank, 14mpg and a pessimistic low fuel warning the car always seems to be low on gas.
10) Could use a front camera in addition to the rear to help keep me from scraping on those concrete parking stops. Well, that would be an upgrade.
11) Throttle response in comfort mode goes from none to all. Need to be in sport mode to drive smoothly in traffic.
12) Rear seat back just looks like a flat slab. Ugly.
13) Car wants to trap me inside and listen to music when I turn off the engine. Preferred behavior....turn off engine, doors unlock/radio stays on, open door with one pull, radio goes off.
14) Door grab handle too far forward to reliably not hit another car or garage wall with the door. Easy solution is to hollow out that black blank behind the window switches.

That may read like a long list but those are pretty nit picky things. Overall I love the car and have a blast driving it.

[Merc for hire]

Stock exhaust not loud enough
iPhone audio play back often gets stuck
Comfort mode throttle response too slow for proper manual driving

[pjohns21]

A RWD M235i DOES NOT CHANGE THE STEERING FEEL GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF THE GUTTER AND YOUR AS* OUT ON THE TRACK! #shouldhavegotanATS

[Sportstick]

Originally Posted by pjohns21

A RWD M235i DOES NOT CHANGE THE STEERING FEEL GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF THE GUTTER AND YOUR AS* OUT ON THE TRACK! #shouldhavegotanATS

Not true.
I've driven them and felt it.
The extra weight up front and additional mechanicals can be sensed.

This has been true on BMW as well as MB and others I have A-B'd for comparison.

Not everyone may be equally sensitive to the feeling.

Not interested in the track.

[Wheelwright]

Originally Posted by DanATL

2) Active Exhaust Sound. The droning is driving me crazy. Just received my active sound defeat kit and will install this weekend.

I also get annoyed by M235i bassy/boomy droning sound which is present even under the slightest of acceleration, I swear even el-cheapo Nissan Note is quieter when cruising. I am not 18year old, I only want to hear the engine when I really step on it.

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

[pjohns21]

Originally Posted by Xiaoxi

> xdrive
> original BMW driving experience

or

> complains about numbness
> orders a Tesla

BMW has had AWD vehicles since the 80's and very little was ever published about the horrific loss of the original driving experience until the F30 was invented. You can't play a RWD vs. AWD argument here.

[pjohns21]

Originally Posted by Sportstick

Not true.
I've driven them and felt it.
The extra weight up front and additional mechanicals can be sensed.

This has been true on BMW as well as MB and others I have A-B'd for comparison.

Not everyone may be equally sensitive to the feeling.

Not interested in the track.

There is no steering feel. Weight in the chassis, yes. I'm talking about what is translated through the steering to the driver, nothing. I'm throwing the car into the corner and expecting DSC and the s001s to do the work for me, no skill involved, I don't like it. Doesn't matter AWD or RWD sorry, done both.

P.S. Get a Lexus if you don't care about the track. Or a Tesla. Or a BMW in 2016 since they're essentially the same as luxury vehicle. There is no soul left in a modern BMW, post E90, sorry! And the weight difference is less than 200 pounds to achieve almost a 1/2 second increase in time to 60mph.

[pjohns21]

Originally Posted by Wheelwright

I also get annoyed by M235i bassy/boomy droning sound which is present even under the slightest of acceleration, I swear even el-cheapo Nissan Note is quieter when cruising. I am not 18year old, I only want to hear the engine when I really step on it.

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

It's better than sounding like a lawnmower, you should take a ride in a 2013 320i! At least you'd have steering feel since, for some odd reason, I did not have Servotronic...

[Sportstick]

Originally Posted by pjohns21

There is no steering feel. Weight in the chassis, yes. I'm talking about what is translated through the steering to the driver, nothing. I'm throwing the car into the corner and expecting DSC and the s001s to do the work for me, no skill involved, I don't like it. Doesn't matter AWD or RWD sorry, done both.

P.S. Get a Lexus if you don't care about the track. Or a Tesla. Or BMW in 2016 since they're essentially the same as luxury vehicle. There is no soul left in a modern BMW, post E90, sorry!

We can agree we have different experiences, sensitivities, and enjoyment of daily driving. A small minority of BMWs, even in their best years, ever saw a track. I tried it a few times starting with my 1977 320i...open wheel Formula Fords/Dodges were more fun even back then and I've run that course by this time. No interest in a numbed, overwrought Toyota either, nor a F10 5 Series, the numbing of which preceded the F30. Not everyone sees the world of driving in the same manner.

[pjohns21]

Originally Posted by Sportstick

We can agree we have different experiences, sensitivities, and enjoyment of daily driving. A small minority of BMWs, even in their best years, ever saw a track. I tried it a few times starting with my 1977 320i...open wheel Formula Fords/Dodges were more fun even back then and I've run that course by this time. No interest in a numbed, overwrought Toyota either, nor a F10 5 Series, the numbing of which preceded the F30. Not everyone sees the world of driving in the same manner.

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.

[Sportstick]

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, especially at its $49,000 price point.

That would be disappointing. $49k is a lot of content. I only managed to reach $46k sticker with a bunch of packages including THP and paid about $42k, as I recall. How was your test drive model equipped?

[pjohns21]

Originally Posted by Sportstick

That would be disappointing. $49k is a lot of content. I only managed to reach $46k sticker with a bunch of packages including THP and paid about $42k, as I recall. How was your test drive model equipped?

When you drive a F30 for 3 years with no lumbar support and only heated seats and a moonroof to entertain, you tend to go a bit overboard with the following purchase. I paid 42k so I'm good, but still. I needed M Sport, premium, tech, lighting (since no fog lights with M Sport), HK (because although the amp and wattage are the same as the F30 HD prof. system, you're short two tweeters), EB-II paint, cold weather (Chicago), and driver assistance (parking- Chicago). Doesn't matter, the car is soulless.

[Beartato]

Originally Posted by DanATL

9) Combination of tiny gas tank, 14mpg and a pessimistic low fuel warning the car always seems to be low on gas.

Bro you're driving it wrong.

[BentZero]

Originally Posted by Jeff231

I hate that I didn't get it in a manual.

I got it for you if that makes you feel better.

[an4691]

Originally Posted by Sportstick

If you compare that R&T review to the early Jakopnik review, it just reminds us that automotive journalists are not speaking down from the heavens...just a bunch of ordinary folks who have jobs we'd all envy! I've worked with many of them in my past career, and they are interesting, diverse, sometimes quite odd, and love to argue among themselves. None objectively right, nor wrong, but always glad to tell us the "truth"!

Having read everything I could find about the 2 Series and 228i in particular, R&T is clearly an outlier from the vast majority opinion. But, as we'll be seeing on the news today, you can always find someone to say/support/believe almost anything. Meanwhile, buy and drive what you like, and avoid the rest, whatever they are.

Do the 228i and 235i have different steering systems ? (Let's assume the228i has the M Sport and Track Handling packages)

Now I'm not very experienced with bmw or rather cars themselves since the 235i is my first car but I do get some feedback from the steering wheel. It may not be extremely direct like but it isn't exactly what i would call "numb". I would really like to learn more about this.

[907flyfisher]

I haven't seen this mentioned before. The on/off button for the heated steering wheel is in a terrible location. You can't see whether the light is on or off. It's annoying when I've had enough heat and I turn it off. It's takes a while to cool off. So, I forget that some times and wonder if I turned it off or not. So I have to check if the light is still on. It's a little pet peeve of mine since I'm on my 4th Bimmer and it's annoyed me on all of them.

Why doesn't BMW just put the button on the dash like most all of the other controls?!

[pjohns21]

Originally Posted by an4691

Do the 228i and 235i have different steering systems ? (Let's assume the228i has the M Sport and Track Handling packages)

Now I'm not very experienced with bmw or rather cars themselves since the 235i is my first car but I do get some feedback from the steering wheel. It may not be extremely direct like but it isn't exactly what i would call "numb". I would really like to learn more about this.

Sign up for ZipCar and take a pre 2013 3-series (i.e. E90 chassis designation) out for a spin, world of difference... It's magic. And if you don't have ZipCar go to a dealer and test drive a used one. There is servotronic or variable sport steering [with servotronic]... Both electric, but I have only driven the regular servotronic unit. As I have said, I had a 2013 320i without servotronic but still electric (verified with dealer and car documents) and there was a wonderful amount of steering feel. The wheel was also the base wheel which later was replaced with the sport wheel (non M) as standard... The 228i does not pull better figures on the track than a 328i with similar equipment, which is sad. A lot of the hype in the reviews is what everyone wanted the 2 to be, it isn't, sorry.

[eflatminor]

Trunk/boot lid does not pop all the way open. Wife still has an old Taurus and we love that feature. When your hands are full, it's great. When you're looking for your car in a parking lot, it even better.