Monthly Update for March - 2016 BMW 340i xDrive Long-Term Road Test

Edmunds.com

Monthly Update for March - 2016 BMW 340i xDrive Long-Term Road Test

Daily commuting and a weekend road trip made up the bulk of our BMW's time on the road in March.

Read the full story here

DLu

So I got myself a 340i xDrive -- BMW still offers stick with it, while nothing else in the class does anymore. One thing jumps out at me -- both the GT-R and the F30 are ridiculed as cars that make driving like a video game. I am curious (as I have never driven a GT-R) if they both have a similar degree of relatively unexciting handling?

SadButTrue

@Dlu -- The GT-R has some video-game elements (literally! you may recall that the infotainment screen's software was designed by Polyphony Digital, the maker of the Gran Turismo game series), but "unexciting" is certainly not a term I'd use to describe its handling. With the F30, what stands out to me is its numb steering, even by electric-power-steering (EPS) standards. It's still a highly capable car; the steering is the primary reason why it's less involving to drive than its (non-EPS) E90 predecessor, in my opinion.

Josh

DLu

Thanks for the quick reply, Josh!

My first experience with a BMW was a (then) new 328i in 2009. Boy, I was smitten! I was like, "I finally figured out what all the fuss was about!" Now, it seems like the 3 series, S6, GS350 FSport (examples of what I actually had driven) all feel about the same. I guess the ATS-V and Giulia are on the short list of 5-passenger cars that still offer good feedback. Perhaps the XE too. I am still pretty happy with the 3 -- BMW can still tune magic into the chassis.