I’ve now had my 330d SE for nearly a week and done 630 miles (mainly motorway), so thought I’d share my first impressions.
Engine: fantastically quiet and smooth compared to the 123d I had especially at idle. Doesn’t sound like a tractor at all! Haven’t really tried the performance yet as I’m still running in but accelerates very well with even just a light throttle. Did over 50mpg (measured by filling the tank – was indicating 52mpg on OBC) over 450 miles, which I thought was pretty good for a tight 6 cylinder engine and I wasn’t driving slowly.
Noise: very little wind noise but quite a lot of road noise on coarse surfaces (most of the M6!) but not noticeable if you have music playing. On good tarmac, it’s pleasantly quiet. No nasty knocking noises over bumps thankfully.
Handling/grip (18” 225/45 Continentals both ends): very impressed – on roundabouts and motorway slip roads taken at speed no discernable understeer or oversteer – just goes where it’s pointed. Better than the 123d, which at the same speed would have been understeering and then tightening as I came off or opened the throttle. Feels almost too good – a bit clinical – but perhaps I’m not trying hard enough! Not driven any distance in the wet yet.
Transmission: this is my first auto and I’ve found it great - very unobtrusive and great for stop start traffic on motorways. The only issue I have – and this applies to all automatics I guess – is that when accelerating out of a bend it drops a ratio or two, which could unsettle the car. I’ll have to start using manual mode – not tried this yet.
Steering/ride (VSS & Adaptive): The ride in Comfort isn’t as good as I was expecting from what’s been said. It’s much smoother than the 123d (M Sport) and an E90 I used to have but that’s not saying a lot! I also found it a bit wallowy and when coupled with the very light steering I didn’t feel completely in control of the car at speed – to the point of thinking oh s**t I’ve made a mistake buying this car. But luckily when I tried Sport mode I found, for me, it transformed the car. I find that the steering in Sport gives enough feel and the ride is much better controlled while still being comfortable – in fact much like the 123d but without the thumping over bumps. So I set Sport to just Chassis and put it in Sport as soon as I get out of town, which works for me.
Gadgets: reversing camera with the superimposed lines is surprisingly useful; mobile phone (HTC Desire Android V2) integration is good and downloaded contacts very quickly; playlists on a USB stick work well but frustrating that can’t get straight to playlists with a shortcut button; the little orange/green light showing the set speed for the Cruise Control is very useful; adaptive lights still a bit of a mystery to me as it didn’t turn on full beam on a dark little lane but did on a motorway – something I need to experiment with.
And before anyone asks – there’s no photos yet as I had no time over the weekend and then it got covered in that stupid Saharan sand!
Engine: fantastically quiet and smooth compared to the 123d I had especially at idle. Doesn’t sound like a tractor at all! Haven’t really tried the performance yet as I’m still running in but accelerates very well with even just a light throttle. Did over 50mpg (measured by filling the tank – was indicating 52mpg on OBC) over 450 miles, which I thought was pretty good for a tight 6 cylinder engine and I wasn’t driving slowly.
Noise: very little wind noise but quite a lot of road noise on coarse surfaces (most of the M6!) but not noticeable if you have music playing. On good tarmac, it’s pleasantly quiet. No nasty knocking noises over bumps thankfully.
Handling/grip (18” 225/45 Continentals both ends): very impressed – on roundabouts and motorway slip roads taken at speed no discernable understeer or oversteer – just goes where it’s pointed. Better than the 123d, which at the same speed would have been understeering and then tightening as I came off or opened the throttle. Feels almost too good – a bit clinical – but perhaps I’m not trying hard enough! Not driven any distance in the wet yet.
Transmission: this is my first auto and I’ve found it great - very unobtrusive and great for stop start traffic on motorways. The only issue I have – and this applies to all automatics I guess – is that when accelerating out of a bend it drops a ratio or two, which could unsettle the car. I’ll have to start using manual mode – not tried this yet.
Steering/ride (VSS & Adaptive): The ride in Comfort isn’t as good as I was expecting from what’s been said. It’s much smoother than the 123d (M Sport) and an E90 I used to have but that’s not saying a lot! I also found it a bit wallowy and when coupled with the very light steering I didn’t feel completely in control of the car at speed – to the point of thinking oh s**t I’ve made a mistake buying this car. But luckily when I tried Sport mode I found, for me, it transformed the car. I find that the steering in Sport gives enough feel and the ride is much better controlled while still being comfortable – in fact much like the 123d but without the thumping over bumps. So I set Sport to just Chassis and put it in Sport as soon as I get out of town, which works for me.
Gadgets: reversing camera with the superimposed lines is surprisingly useful; mobile phone (HTC Desire Android V2) integration is good and downloaded contacts very quickly; playlists on a USB stick work well but frustrating that can’t get straight to playlists with a shortcut button; the little orange/green light showing the set speed for the Cruise Control is very useful; adaptive lights still a bit of a mystery to me as it didn’t turn on full beam on a dark little lane but did on a motorway – something I need to experiment with.
And before anyone asks – there’s no photos yet as I had no time over the weekend and then it got covered in that stupid Saharan sand!
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