Drove a 228i

[MarcoZandrini]

Decided to take the plunge and drive a new 228i at the local dealer, BMW of Alexandria. It took them about 45 minutes to find the car as it was the only non-Xdrive in the inventory. The car has the 8-speed auto tranny.

The car felt good off the line when compared to my 2001 330Ci, but it lacked the mid-range punch. Steering was very good precise but it lacked any real road feel. The steering reminded me of the steering in the Chevy LTZ I rented over the holidays. Brakes were fine as expected. The interior felt less roomy than my car which is surprising considering its exterior dimensions are greater than my E46.

Conclusion: my E46, Fritz, will remain my trusty steed for the future, unless I win the powerball lottery. Then, it's Ferrari all the way!!

[TomSolo]

Did the car feel like it was worth the sticker price? That seems to be my problem with newer BMWs. My mom had an X6 a few years ago and whenever I drove it, it never really spoke to me as the $75,000 car that it was. Its kind of the same story with the e90s and at some points even the f80s. Maybe it's just me though.

[MarcoZandrini]

To tell you the truth, no. The Chevy LTZ I rented over the holidays felt very similar. The big thing for me was the steering. Supposedly the new M3/M4 have electric steering that provides excellent feedback.

OT: why did BMW name the 3-series coupes "4xx" and the 4 door sedans "3xx"? Seems bassackwards to me.

[TomSolo]

OT: why did BMW name the 3-series coupes "4xx" and the 4 door sedans "3xx"? Seems bassackwards to me.

Guess they wanted all even numbers to be coupes while odds are 4 doors.

Don't even bring up the X line. Thats just a whole other thing.

[SpeedsterBek]

To tell you the truth, no. The Chevy LTZ I rented over the holidays felt very similar. The big thing for me was the steering. Supposedly the new M3/M4 have electric steering that provides excellent feedback.

OT: why did BMW name the 3-series coupes "4xx" and the 4 door sedans "3xx"? Seems bassackwards to me.

Yeah usually you have to get the M sport package to get a little bit of zing. Also, did you drive the car in sport mode? That seems odd that you felt that midrange was lacking. Performance numbers conducted by magazines don't lie, 228i is a quick little car.

-The naming structure- BMW now offers so many 3 series variants (coupe, sedan, gran coupe, GT, wagon, etc) that they probably decided to differentiate models a bit. Also, they can tweak things around a bit and call it a new model, and sell it for a lot more than a normal sedan version.

If you thought even numbered ones for only coupes, how about 4 or 6 series gran coupe, both have 4 doors?!

[MarcoZandrini]

Yeah, the salesman put the car into "Sport" mode and a second, more aggressive mode. Does the "M" package change the ECU mapping to provide more power?

[maxell0405]

I hate to sound like a curmudgeon, but electric steering really does suck. I hope that the engineers figure out what's wrong with it, and I think they will, but it's a problem for BMW. Steering feedback is a significant part of what makes BMW's worth the extra money, and traditionally it's been so good.

I instruct at the local club driving skills school, so I get to drive students' cars to demonstrate the various exercises. I'm only driving a few minutes, but it's skid pad and autocross, so you find out pretty quickly what they do well and not so well. I drove an f80 M4 and hated the steering. Numb as a Corvette's. The X1 loaner I had when my airbag recall was done was OK overall, but the steering was lifeless. Get to work BMW.

[MarcoZandrini]

I think it's ZF who needs to get to work. It makes the steering for our cars.

[Shaboom1965]

Amazed that you actually saw a front wheel drive model. I've checked many dealers' inventories all over the country on line and couldn't find any. Must just have begun delivering them. I know fwd's are available to order, as that is my plan and to do a factory delivery in South Carolina..

[justinca540i]

Amazed that you actually saw a front wheel drive model. I've checked many dealers' inventories all over the country on line and couldn't find any. Must just have begun delivering them. I know fwd's are available to order, as that is my plan and to do a factory delivery in South Carolina..

I believe you're referring to a different car, my understanding is you're looking at the 228i gran coupe which is a four door. Those are fwd or awd whereas the one OP test drove is RWD but also a coupe so slightly different car then what you're looking at

[MarcoZandrini]

FWD? Never! You can’t steer with your right foot with a FWD car.

[Shaboom1965]

I stand corrected. I'm anxiously awaiting arrival of FWD 228i Gran Coupe for a test drive.