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2Addicts | BMW 2-Series forum BMW 2 Series (F22) Forum 2 Series Active Tourer Discussions 2 Series Active Tourer (2.0 D) 3200km Test Drive (Rental Car)

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      07-13-2015, 08:27 PM   #1
Paul-Bracq-BMW
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Drives: 1981 323i, sports M5, LSD
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2 Series Active Tourer (2.0 D) 3200km Test Drive (Rental Car)

My Fiancée and I went on a 3-week holiday vacation to France and rented a 2 Series Active Tourer for 14 days and I was surprised by how good it was. My car was a 220d in mineral grey with 8 speed auto (with paddles I never used), and the whole suite of interior options such as Navigation, HUD, reverse parking camera, self parking etc... Funnily the seats were not leather but fabric (probably for durability reasons). The exterior was not very much optioned with 17 inch runflats but had front and rear parking sensors and LED daytime running lights and Xenon headlights...

First of all, everybody who saw the car only had good comments about how good it looked. OK, it's a small minivan, but it did look better and more upscale than the other ones out there. Also it is pretty compact, being only slightly larger than a golf. However this compactness has a big drawback in a small boot space...

Inside, the standout features were the very nice fit-finish and upscale look of the cabin and the very, very comfortable seats (with thigh extenders). We did a lot of driving (sometimes 8+ hours per day) and almost never felt anything but comfortable... I remember reading a review of this MPV and the reviewer said the seats were uncomfortable and I still wonder why. Maybe he did not adjust these seats properly (they have tons of adjustments).... The rear seats (used by my parents) also received praise for how comfortable they were and based on how many times they fell asleep in the back, it was proof indeed. Their backseat can be reclined and the bottom can slide forward/backward. Like most mini MPV's the central rear seat is not very comfortable for adults... Since my parents are on the small side, we put these seats as forward as possible to maximise booth space.

Talking about it boot space is not very big: you cannot put 2 large suitcases in there with the original configuration: you have to remove the false floor and the boot cover. After getting rid of these however it liberated enough space for the belongings of 4 persons: 2 large and 2 medium suitcases, and plenty of loose bags containing food, pillows etc...

The driving of the car was quite impressive for a FWD MPV: steering is very direct and sharp (without any apparent torque steer) and the engine quite refined and torquey, sound insulation was excellent for the engine (we could barely hear it inside but outside you know it's a diesel! I did not drive the car very fast because there were many speed cameras in France, but I did take a few curves at reasonable speed and the car was unflappable. I think the chassis is pretty much overkill for and MPV and, dare I say, sporty and BMW like. The suspension of course is on the firm side, but still very comfortable) and there is a little bit of road noise inside the cabin. I'd say that it's firm at low speed, but becomes much more comfortable at higher speed. The result of this is that I was driving way faster than I thought. At 90kmh (the legal speed limit in France for roads), you really feel like driving at 50-60 and at 130kmh (legal speed limit for highways), it felt like 90! Because of that, I had to use the (adaptative) cruise control all the time so I wouldn't be in trouble with the law! About the 8 speed Automatic, all I can say that it was very much transparent and was most of the time on the right for the right speed/corner... In ED mode it tends to go for the highest gear but it's pretty normal. I'd say the car is fast enough to be quicker than general traffic in an effortless way...

Fuel economy was outstanding so was range. I had an overall fuel consumption of 6.4 liters/100km (36,8 MPG US, or 44.1 MPG UK) with a wide variety of driving conditions and elevation changes. On the highway we were always right on the speed limit at 130kmh and likewise on the roads. We easily covered 1000kms (621 miles) before refuelling!! I mostly used ED mode (sloppy but very economical) on the highway and normal mode on the road...

Overall, I'd have to say that I was very much impressed by that MPV and wouldn't mind owning one of these for a daily driver. It's luxurious, has impressive MPG and range and doesn't drive half bad. Of course I'd have a sportier RWD for the week-ends :-)

I realised I only have 1 photo of the car (with me), but do have plenty of pics of beautiful southern France. Here are some...
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1981 323i, 143 Kashmir-Metallic, 0094 Pergament, Sports M5, LSD.
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