[marakbai]

Hi guys,

At long last I'm looking at getting back into the brand.

I may have a line on a 2016 X4 35i with 16,000Km's on it going for $56K

Do you think this is a good deal?

M Sport, Premium Package, Lights Package, HUD, 20" wheels etc.

Torn between this and a loaded X1, or similarly equipped X3

Any thoughts? Comments?

Thanks!

[Tjalle]

I don`t know about the price, but:
-X1 won`t give you the six nor the 8-speed. There are also some hints of not feeling of a "real" BMW. Probably not as good AWD as your current.
-X3 is looks and rear space.

I have described in "Subjective evaluation of 35iM......... ", what you can do to make the X4 look and feel more of a coupe - not a SUV-coupe on stilts.

[Scandic24]

Originally Posted by Tjalle

I don`t know about the price, but:
-X1 won`t give you the six nor the 8-speed.

Of course you can get the 8-speed Steptronic gearbox on the X1. Or am I missing something here?

[Tjalle]

Scandic, my reading from various sources, is that X1/Mini has a Japanese 6-speed auto.

The ZF used in "all other" BMW:s is north-south - X1 is transversal.

I will doublecheck- or anybody knows?

[Tjalle]

I checked on the X1 site: it is a Japanese Aisin gearbox - 8 speed.
There are a lot of complaints on the site.

[ggalanis]

Originally Posted by marakbai

Hi guys,

At long last I'm looking at getting back into the brand.

I may have a line on a 2016 X4 35i with 16,000Km's on it going for $56K

Do you think this is a good deal?

M Sport, Premium Package, Lights Package, HUD, 20" wheels etc.

Torn between this and a loaded X1, or similarly equipped X3

Any thoughts? Comments?

Thanks!

The price for the X4 seems a bit high because that's the price a brand new one without options retails for. So you are saving the price of the options that the used one has, if any. I would negotiate that down if I were you.

I had a X1 loaner for 2 days this week and my initial impressions were that it felt like a more powerful mazda3, with much better steering and great traction. I had fun stopping to a standstill on a flat wet road and flooring it... no wheelspin. Just quick acceleration.

The engine feels powerful but obviously not as torquey as the M40i, or even a X4 35i, but I would still say the car was fast. When pushing hard, you can hear some nice engine / intake sounds but the exhaust sound doesn't really make it into the cabin. From the outside, it sounds good but not very loud.

The cabin had good space up front, especially due to the lowered centre (where the shifter is).

The leather felt nice, and to me felt better than in my car.
The seating position felt a lot lower and thus I preferred that to my car, who even at the lowest setting gives a SUV seating position.

The transmission was an 8 speed, but not the ZF we have elsewhere. It was very smooth, responsive and essentially behaved like the ZF. It has a more traditional lever, and I actually disliked it... I guess I got used to the joystick.... And now prefer it over a regular one.

GG

[marakbai]

Originally Posted by ggalanis

The price for the X4 seems a bit high because that's the price a brand new one without options retails for. So you are saving the price of the options that the used one has, if any. I would negotiate that down if I were you.

I had a X1 loaner for 2 days this week and my initial impressions were that it felt like a more powerful mazda3, with much better steering and great traction. I had fun stopping to a standstill on a flat wet road and flooring it... no wheelspin. Just quick acceleration.

The engine feels powerful but obviously not as torquey as the M40i, or even a X4 35i, but I would still say the car was fast. When pushing hard, you can hear some nice engine / intake sounds but the exhaust sound doesn't really make it into the cabin. From the outside, it sounds good but not very loud.

The cabin had good space up front, especially due to the lowered centre (where the shifter is).

The leather felt nice, and to me felt better than in my car.
The seating position felt a lot lower and thus I preferred that to my car, who even at the lowest setting gives a SUV seating position.

The transmission was an 8 speed, but not the ZF we have elsewhere. It was very smooth, responsive and essentially behaved like the ZF. It has a more traditional lever, and I actually disliked it... I guess I got used to the joystick.... And now prefer it over a regular one.

GG

Thanks for this; considering my current car is the Mazda 3, it's funny you made that comparison.

I'll see if there's any better to be done on the X4 rate then if not I'd seriously consider the X3 or X1 ... I felt the X3 might be a bit big and boring, but reports seem to say it has the same driving dynamics o the X4.

[ahfa1987]

What are you really looking for? Performance? Overall appearance? Capacity? Trunk space, cabin space? Because I feel that these 3 vehicles (x1,x3 and x4) clearly all have a difference focuses and targets different types of buyers.

Im no expert but my thoughts to these cars are:

X1
- wont even consider that it is an entry level to the SUV class, it is someone that wants to drive a bmw suv but dont want to spend a dollar more than they have to. Have a minimum requirement in what they are driving and clearly just want the brand of the car. ( dont get me wrong im sure it is probably better than a lot of other branded SUVs out there and not to hate on the 1 owners) but to the Bmw brand, like I said i wont even consider it being an entry level nor a true form of SUV. But if you simple want the brand, and aren't expecting much, also more importantly want to save a chunk of change than Im sure this is what you can lean towards.

X3
Now this is what I call a suv, this is an entry level suv and one of the biggest sellers for bmw suv across north america (from what I have heard and been seeing) it is cheaper than the x4s but yet more trunk space, more capability, more rear room and overall space. I would say this is definitely the bigger bang compared to the X4. To add an extra bit of fun Im sure you can look around for some 35i models rather than the 28.

X4
Finally your x4, with the coupey rear that slopes down for that sporty finish, you are obviously going to sacrifice some rear and trunk space. However, if you are coming from a 2dr coupe or a sedan and you aren't the type of people that routinely fills up your trunk to the top, this should not be a problem for you. Again, I feel that the X4 is definitely geared towards the car people that wants somewhat of a family car however still want that sporty driving dynamic within it. Dont quote me on this one but I believe the X4 would be lighter all around than the X3 with its back and overall body kit, therefore you will obviously feel the hp and torque difference on that note. Similar to the X3 you can choose the 35i for some added fun rather than the 28. And as you might know, they even came out with the m40is for the x4 now if you are really keen about performance and want the most out of it.

All in all, they all definitely fall under different price points whether is brand new or used (the x1 being the lowest and x4 being the highest)
You should consider which car you are geared towards to before making option decisions, if option is not as important as your actual vehicle then you can also potentially save a lot too.

Hope this helps, good luck man.