Pictures I have bought a 2016 X3 xLine

[Centurion]

There comes a day in every man’s life when the dream of owning a sports car gets relegated to the bottom of the priority list. It’s a day when a big leap towards fatherhood is taken. For me, it’s the day I purchased a BMW X3 ahead of baby due in June. It's an F25 X3 Deep Sea Blue xLine xDrive20d.

I know you’re about to spit at the screen in disgust, so let me cut to the chase about why I bought an X3 instead of the automotive darling that is the Mercedes GLC.


Mercedes GLC Sport 220d AMG Line Automatic

The good

• Call it the Christiano Rolando of SUV’s. You can’t fault it from any angle: It’s Luxurious, athletic but slender.
• Standard equipment is generous and upgraded trim comes with extras.
• The gearbox and engine are powerful but very refined. BMW need to step up!
• It’s a brilliant all-rounder that’s strikes the perfect balance between comfort and agility.

The bad

• Although the cabin is the feast for the eyes but quality is lacking in certain areas.
• The belt line is high and makes the car feel less spacious than it is.
• It isn’t the most engaging car to drive.

BMW X3 xLine xDrive 20d Automatic


The good

• It a blast to drive for a car of its size and can be pushed hard with confidence.
• The interior fit and finish is very good. Coming from a 2012 F30 3-Series, I’m very impressed. Even the transmission runnel is nice to touch and doesn’t sound hollow when touched. (@martinbo would be pleased)
• Visibility from the front seats is excellent as the sitting position is high and the windows large. It’s an SUV in every sense.

The Bad

• To put it gently, it’s a BMW with challenged looks.
• A new model is due production in August 2017.
• Standard equipment is poor and every little feature is an option.
• Some might find the suspension firm over pothole ridden roads.

Both cars are brilliant and the decision was black and white. Do I want a off-roading city cruiser or a sporty car on stilts? Although me and my other half admired the GLC it didn’t make us fall in love. Stepping out of it, I wasn’t desperate to take it home. The X1, X3 and X5 test drives on the other than, had us craving for more road.

I have only had the car for one day but so far we love it! Owning a car with a beige interior is an enlightening change. The cabin is like a Breakers hotel suite: Bright and homely. The exterior is gorgeous too. Pictures don’t do deep sparkling blue colour or diamond cut rims justice.

Here are some quick snaps I took with my phone today.

 

[Rainer271]

Congratulations for buying this baby and I wish you and your wife all the best for the other baby.

 

[Cashmere]

Congrats on both the car and the baby! I'm really happy for you
I like the colour scheme on the X3, enjoy it

 

[Yaz]

Congratulations luw. It seemed like yesterday you were in HS

 

[Rolf]

Congratulations for both babies (car and little one), wishing you and your wife wonderful times ahead, cheers!

 

[donkeykong]

Congrats on all fronts!!

 

[Zafiro]

Congrats !
My father is thinking about replacing his X1 with X3. Same engine as yours.

 

[Gianclaudio]

Congrats Luw on the baby, the car and that beautiful brick house <3

 

[fortuner]

Congrats God bless you on both fronts.

 

[Centurion]

Congrats !
My father is thinking about replacing his X1 with X3. Same engine as yours.

He would enjoy the X3. It's a bit more lofty than the X1 but provide similar road-connectedness. Flat-out the 2.0 B47 engine does a good job at getting the car to the next traffic light in a hurried manner. However it's clear that if I bought the 30d, there would be more menacing thrust above 50mph.

My advise is to stay clear of the M-Sport as the other trims are sporty enough and don't need M Suspension. If you can't help yourself, insist on a model with Variable Damper Control and with 19 inch rims and not 20 inch ones. Some dealers might be able to track down an M-Sport with M Suspension deletion.

Congrats on both the car and the baby! I'm really happy for you
I like the colour scheme on the X3, enjoy it

Thanks! We almost bought a white one earlier this week but lost it to another buyer. We were miffed but knew that when these things happen in life it's for the better. The deep sea blue is much more special and the car also has power folding mirrors which the other one didn't - it is a must-have in the UK.

Congratulations luw. It seemed like yesterday you were in HS

Tell me about it. Time flies!

 

[Monster]

Congrats Luw, great color combination too! The car looks pretty well optioned. Is there anything you wanted but didn't get? Also, was the cost of servicing a factor when you were deciding on which car to get?

I am glad that you said the GLC's interior quality isn't as good as it appears to be. It seems like the journalists around the world were all fooled by the perceived quality of the C-class/GLC.

Also apply paint sealant while the car is new, it really does make a difference.

 

[trader1]

Congrats! Doesn't look aesthetically challenged to me , fine choice ..my brother just got an x5 5.0 over the competition . He had the same feeling about interior quality too and I agree

 

[Centurion]

Congrats Luw, great color combination too! The car looks pretty well optioned. Is there anything you wanted but didn't get? Also, was the cost of servicing a factor when you were deciding on which car to get?

I am glad that you said the GLC's interior quality isn't as good as it appears to be. It seems like the journalists around the world were all fooled by the perceived quality of the C-class/GLC.

Also apply paint sealant while the car is new, it really does make a difference.

Almost all reviews of the GLC are very positive. Although the interior looks more modern it isn't on the same level as the outgoing Mk.II W212 E-class which feels very well put together. The door panels in the GLC don't feel particularly solid.

The X3 ticked most of the options from our bucket list which were:

• Automatic Gearbox
• Professional Media
• Power Folding Mirrors
• Reversing Camera
• Heated Seats

Given how little body-roll the car exhibit during swift change in direction, sports seats would have been absolutely fantastic. If money was no object, Variable Damper Control would have made the ride perfect. Minor road imperfects are well absorbed by the wheels that good amount of profile. However pot holes and hard bumps could be tackled more gracefully above pedestrian speeds.

Overall, the car is great as dealers are offering good discounts on the X3. I'm happy to have gone with it instead of the X1 which was a strong contender but gets expensive once you choose a decent engine and add options.

Lastly Xenons would have been cherry on the cake both for their brightness and how they pimp the looks. However, in the past hour I have ordered Philips X-tremeVision H7 halogen bulbs from Amazon. They are very white and will give me the near Xenon brightness for £37.

 

[PC Valkyrie]

Congratulations about the X3 and upcoming baby. Second only to the Macan, the X3 is probably the SUV that drives most like a sedan. My family loves our X3 xDrive 28i. My wife does not like to drive large vehicles and tends to corner pretty fast (relatively speaking) so a decent handling small SUV like the X3 fit the bill perfectly. I personally like the BMW interior "look" over what Mercedes has done recently, although the Mercedes interior LOOKS a lot more luxurious.

 

[LaArtist]

congrats on the baby

not the bmw as much

 

[Monster]

in the past hour I have ordered Philips X-tremeVision H7 halogen bulbs from Amazon. They are very white and will give me the near Xenon brightness for £37.

I have them on my car as well, they give out mostly white light and the spread and range is definitely very similar to xenon lights.

 

[JHF]

Congrats

 

[martinbo]

Good news on all fronts Luw and thank you for the excellent analysis. Congratulations and best wishes for the safe arrival of your little one.

Personally I still view the X3 as being right up there in its class: excellent engine and transmission, good standard ground clearance allied to tidy handling and impressive fuel economy. So congrats on the new car and many, many happy miles.

Our favoured BMW dealer screwed us over by selling a demo X3 from under our noses despite our OTP being in play. Needless to say, I didn't buy my F30 LCI from them. Otherwise, the wife would be driving that instead of the current Forester XT (which has proven to be very good off the beaten track at least). The GLC is an enticing prospect but the X3 is definitely better value for what you pay. Oh, and that colour + X-Line = .

All the best to you and yours!

 

[Centurion]

This weekend I hardwired my BlackVue 650, the dashcam I have owned the past 3 months. What's best about it is the discrete design, omission of a screen but inclusion of WiFi for viewing footage and managing settings on my phone. It has been a necessary purchase because of badly behaved drivers in London. E-Class Coupe and E87 1-Series drivers are by far the worst!

You might wonder why I hardwire the dashcam to car battery instead of using the cigarette lighter. The reason is continuous recording even when the car is parked. I hardwired it using Power Magic Pro which is a discharge prevention device. It won't stop the discharge that comes out of you after a burrito and a beer, but it will prevent the car battery from being drained by the dashcam.

Unlike the F30, the F25 has two fuse boxes. One behind the glove box and one in the right rear of the car. To hardwire, I simply connected one cable to a fuse for constant power e.g headlight and a cable to a fuse for ignition power e.g radio.

 

[Giannis]

Where did you pass the cables in order for them to reach the rear fuse box?

I see that the cable goes behind the rear view mirror, so you removed the roof trim, or you run the cables just behind the plastics all the way to the trunk?