The VRS has gone, mixed emotions

[V6Jules]

I had been looking for a replacement for the VRS (TSI COMBI) for a while as the PCP was coming to and end and as much as I liked the car I fancied a change for something faster, with a nicer cabin. 

 

I was looking at golf R estates and superb 280's but after an unintentional visit to the BMW dealer outside my work to pickup a bit for my wifes old 330 coupe I discovered I really liked the look of the 3 series touring in M Sport trim... a test drive later and some number crunching and I've ended up with a 340i Touring with 7k off the list price and monthly payments that are less than the Golf R estate I was originally looking at. It also only took a month to arrive unlike the long waiting times for the Golfs.

 

I was surprised how sad I felt giving the VRS up as its been good fun and I will miss how light and chuckable it felt compared to the BMW but the Munich monster is just in another league in interior quality, ride quality and overall fit and finish (and so it should be with the price difference) The plastics are nicer with no burrs around the door handle moldings, the boot is trimmed much better in fact all of the carpets are nicer. The 6 cylinder engine is silky smooth, and also sounds fairly evil. The ZF8 auto box is really something compared to the old slush boxes I've driven in the past. I also just love the look of it, find it to be far more interesting to look at than the VRS

 

There are a few things I will miss from the VRS though! the engine was really punchy low down whilst the BMW feels much more laid back at low RPM. 

 

The Colour maxidot is sharper than the BMW equivalent in the F30 series and has useful things like the average MPG for long term/since start/since refuel which the BMW does not (only average since reset) although i am currently too scared to check the MPG haha

 

The adaptive xenons from the VRS were better when dipped than the non adaptive LED BMW headlights and the high beam assist was much better in the VRS and hardly ever blinded people where as the BMW loves to???

 

All in all I'm chuffed to bits with it but I will always have a soft spot for the VRS as I really dont think you can beat it as an all round good car for the price if you are after space and performance. I've attached a picture (bad phone pik as its all ive got atm) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mikey vrs]

Very nice.....those brake discs are huge! 

[ahenners]

The discounts on the 340i M Sport are huge, it makes sense on so many levels. Lovely car OP, congrats!

 

You're right about the Colour Maxidot being better than the full black panel display, though if you have the Pro Nav (which is probably the best infotainment system in any car I've seen) you can split part of it off to show various things that you'd use Maxidot to display i.e. Radio/Media info, MPG/Journey Time, Nav instructions etc... 

 

Not sure what BMW were thinking with those standard LED headlights on the higher 3 series trims; they are in a reflector unit rather than a projector (VRS xenons are in projectors). As such, they don't seem to produce a tight, sharp beam pattern. even though they seem to throw a fair amount of light out in the shorter range. It's odd, because the 1 series gets projector LEDs which look better and seem to produce a better beam pattern. They also don't look anywhere near as good as the Pre-LCI Xenons on the F30s. It's still progress from the standard-fit halogen reflectors on the Pre-LCI though!

[V6Jules]

Thanks, indeed the brakes are monstrous!

Yeah I've got the pro nav and the screen is stunning! Sharp and full of contrast. I'm liking the split screen and often find myself with the weather app on the right side of it. I have the HUD so the nav displays there... What a game changer!

Not tried any other modern bmws but I'm kind of regretting getting the adaptive lights as I hear they are better. I get what you mean about the focus of the beam though, far softer edges that the sharp pattern you get from projector xenon's.

Had a few people flash me as well so guess they could be a little dazzling compared to the old VRS

[Alpha2110]

I had been looking for a replacement for the VRS (TSI COMBI) for a while as the PCP was coming to and end and as much as I liked the car I fancied a change for something faster, with a nicer cabin. 

 

I was looking at golf R estates and superb 280's but after an unintentional visit to the BMW dealer outside my work to pickup a bit for my wifes old 330 coupe I discovered I really liked the look of the 3 series touring in M Sport trim... a test drive later and some number crunching and I've ended up with a 340i Touring with 7k off the list price and monthly payments that are less than the Golf R estate I was originally looking at. It also only took a month to arrive unlike the long waiting times for the Golfs.

 

I was surprised how sad I felt giving the VRS up as its been good fun and I will miss how light and chuckable it felt compared to the BMW but the Munich monster is just in another league in interior quality, ride quality and overall fit and finish (and so it should be with the price difference) The plastics are nicer with no burrs around the door handle moldings, the boot is trimmed much better in fact all of the carpets are nicer. The 6 cylinder engine is silky smooth, and also sounds fairly evil. The ZF8 auto box is really something compared to the old slush boxes I've driven in the past. I also just love the look of it, find it to be far more interesting to look at than the VRS

 

There are a few things I will miss from the VRS though! the engine was really punchy low down whilst the BMW feels much more laid back at low RPM. 

 

The Colour maxidot is sharper than the BMW equivalent in the F30 series and has useful things like the average MPG for long term/since start/since refuel which the BMW does not (only average since reset) although i am currently too scared to check the MPG haha

 

The adaptive xenons from the VRS were better when dipped than the non adaptive LED BMW headlights and the high beam assist was much better in the VRS and hardly ever blinded people where as the BMW loves to???

 

All in all I'm chuffed to bits with it but I will always have a soft spot for the VRS as I really dont think you can beat it as an all round good car for the price if you are after space and performance. I've attached a picture (bad phone pik as its all ive got atm) 

 

340i.jpg

Lovely car, just out of curiosity does it have adaptive suspention, and whats the road noise like?

[V6Jules]

Thanks :-) It does, its really nice to have the options to play with although in comfort mode the throttle response is rubbish, thankfully I can set sport drivetrain and soft suspension in sport mode and save the stiff suspension for sport+. I think you can now spec DCC on the new VRS which you couldn't when I had mine... This might have helped. The road noise is far better than the Skoda although on some surfaces the run flats can still make a bit of a din

[john999boy]

I discovered I really liked the look of the 3 series touring in M Sport trim...

That's not just an M Sport car - that's an M Sport Plus one! :thumbup:

[V6Jules]

I know, the m-sport plus pack has plenty of goodies I wanted including the privacy glass, HK, tasty big brakes which I must say are pretty impressive

[rob_e]

impressive car, good write up.

[Mallettsmallett]

Is this along the lines of the really cheap lease deals that were about for the golf r a while back? Is this lease or purchase and what are the prices typically? Interested if BMW are making some good offers.

[V6Jules]

Is this along the lines of the really cheap lease deals that were about for the golf r a while back? Is this lease or purchase and what are the prices typically? Interested if BMW are making some good offers.

Not sure if it's as "cheap" as the golf deals as I didnt really see them. A Golf R was certainly not cheap when I was looking but with a 6 month waiting list I'm guessing they didn't need to push cheap deals

I have got the 340i on a pcp. The prices are similar to a top spec superb 280 however with a bit less spec but better all round build quality and better residuals.

[sm00thArsenal]

I have got the 340i on a pcp. The prices are similar to a top spec superb 280 however with a bit less spec but better all round build quality and better residuals.

Looks like a great car. Very jealous of the viable alternatives you guys have available over there, here in Aus we don't get the 340i, but even the 330i M Sport Touring that we do get is $85k vs $64k for a maxed out Superb 280. I realise the depreciation factor makes your PCP deals a bit different, but even here there isn't that much disparity in depreciation.

Edited 29 November, 2016 by sm00thArsenal

[Matt Pez]

I know, the m-sport plus pack has plenty of goodies I wanted including the privacy glass, HK, tasty big brakes which I must say are pretty impressive

Got the M Sport Plus on my 5 Series. When you turn up the graphic equaliser with a bit of Metallica S&M playing on the HK, it sounds awesome!

[JungleJames]

Don't want to know about your S&M thanks!!!