[The Beast]

So we finally collected the car aka 'Mini Beast' this morning

I am so happy with how it came out

Initial thoughts;

I'm glad I got rid of the Fineline Wood and replaced it with the Brushed Aluminium. The Brushed Aluminium in the F48 is nicer than that I've had in previous BMW's, it's got a finer finish.

The rear bumper treatment of the M Sport looks a lot better in the metal than in pictures.

I had all the badges removed bar the little M Sport ones on the wings, I think the car looks so much cleaner without those huge badges on the doors.

I've been quite impressed with the sound system considering it's not broken in yet.

The seats are fine, not sure what people are complaining about... however need some more time in the car for final judgement.

The latest version of iDrive is awesome, so clear.

The Mocha leather is very nice, adds contrast to the interior, but still easy to maintain.

The pano roof is a must, makes the cabin really airy and bright.

My SA was great, anyone looking to buy a BMW in the Midlands go and see Tom Hawthorne at Benham BMW, he is detail orientated and nothing is too much trouble. I changed the spec so many times!

And finally, why the name... My kids like to name our cars and some years ago I bought my wife a 1 Series and myself a X5. The kids named them 'Beauty And The Beast', hence my user name. The F48 reminds them of 'The Beast' so they have named the F48 'Baby Beast'.

So here's some crappy iPhone pictures, not sure why some have come out sideways

[IM2C]

Congrats! Looking good!

[pbjjj]

Congrats!!

[Bill_P]

Congrats The Beast on your new arrival

I see you have allready had a selection of damp, drying and dry roads - plus some welcome sunshine. If not 4 seasons in a day at least two seasons

[M-Nick]

Congrats, beautiful little beast

[Bluezed]

Congratulations Beast.....it looks awesome.
Somehow I've been anticipating the arrival of this particular car more than when I was waiting for my own!!

[The Beast]

Originally Posted by Bill_P

Congrats The Beast on your new arrival

I see you have allready had a selection of damp, drying and dry roads - plus some welcome sunshine. If not 4 seasons in a day at least two seasons

Thanks, yes the weather has been crazy this week. Sunny this morning, cloudy later, then torrential rain, followed by sleet and now sunny again

[hart4bmw]

Congrats !! Great car !! Welcome to the club

[ando]

Awesome build. M sport looks great. Congrats.

[The Beast]

Originally Posted by Bluezed

Congratulations Beast.....it looks awesome.
Somehow I've been anticipating the arrival of this particular car more than when I was waiting for my own!!

Thanks dude

[Vogit]

Congrats: look forward to hearing your driving experiences.

[The Beast]

Only done 30 miles so far... I love this car

Ride seems really nice, firm springs but soft dampers in comfort. So much better than the A Class as expected. Not tried sport yet, thought I'd give it some time to bed in!

I love the Harmon Karden, suits the type of music I listen to

Black grilles really set off the M Sport, especially in white

MW is lovely, subtlety different from my AW F10, in fact my car looks a bit drab next to the F48 time to get it mopped and sealed I think

Don't like the gear lever, much prefer the electronic one in my car and our previous car. Seems prehistoric and out of place...

Indicator stalks require quite a bit of pressure to activate constantly, I can do this with one finger on my F10 but these require more force

Speed limit camera is standard

More random thoughts to come

[KPD]

Awesome. That black grill makes it look predatory and... Beastly. As intended, I'm sure. It's fantastic.

[PF1]

Congrats Beast Thanks for sharing your pics and initial thoughts. Looks similar to my car but with subtly different paint finish - MW looks slightly matt, very nice. Take some interior shots when you get a chance - haven't seen MW M Sport with mocha leather yet.

[hanizh]

Congrats Beast ! Very nice baby
Post some interior pictures please

[The Beast]

Originally Posted by KPD

Awesome. That black grill makes it look predatory and... Beastly. As intended, I'm sure. It's fantastic.

Thanks, yes I thought that the chrome surround didn't suit an M Sport in MW. The black makes it look like it's 'nostrils' are flared and give the front end a more purposeful and aggressive look that I personally really like. Reminds me of my E70, in fact this is the first X car since my E70 that has an aggressive front end imo. The X3 has always been bland and the new X5 is tamer than its predecessor imo...

Now do I continue to 'pimp' it out like my car by adding more black detailing or leave it be. As my wife will be driving it my current thinking is to leave it as it is

[The Beast]

Forgot to say a massive thank you to all of you that helped me refine my order, either via direct feedback or from me reading your posts and feedback on your experiences. Much appreciated

Nick

[DJ Orange]

Great photos Beast! One of few to show the folded exterior mirrors which I included last week. Disappointed to hear that it may delay my delivery time but better to spec up what I want instead of regretting!

[The Beast]

Originally Posted by DJ Orange

Great photos Beast! One of few to show the folded exterior mirrors which I included last week. Disappointed to hear that it may delay my delivery time but better to spec up what I want instead of regretting!

Totally agree, get what you want so you have no regrets. It's definitely worth the wait!

[The Beast]

So my wife went to her parents house today and left the F48 with me.

I decided to go for a drive and came back hours later having covered 150 miles! I covered a route that included a Motorway stretch and lots of A roads through the countryside.

I love this car, it truly is a baby beast. It's nice having a car with the extra ride height again.

Managed to play around with some settings today;

Configured the Sport mode to just apply chassis adjustments as I'm still running it in and didn't want to use the gearbox in sport mode too much yet. In Comfort the car is slightly soft and wallows a little when pressing on, steering is also not that accurate. However it's perfect for around town. Sport mode really sharpens this up and is great on Motorways and A roads. I think the steering could actually be lighter in Comfort mode though...

The HK sound system really continues to impress me. it needs to be turned up loud to fully appreciate it though, something I have no issues with . I was listing to Radio 1Xtra on DAB for a large part of the journey with Nick Bright playing a mixture of Hip Hop, R&B, Grime, Reggae and Afro Beats. The sound was absolutely amazing, I don't understand the criticism of this system... The bass is tight, the mid range clear and the treble sharp and accurate without hurting your ears. I then switched to my iPhone via a lightning cable and played some house, again superb sound. I played a track that has a very challenging baseline that will catch many systems out and the bass remained tight and controlled right through. I set up the system with bass and treble turned up to around three quarters from max, with volume again at around three quarters of the maximum output. Sound via Bluetooth is not as clear but is passable. I thought the lack of an EQ would bother me but I'm really not missing it, the system is very well sorted without one.

The HUD is awesome, wasn't sure about this but it's great.

There is excessive tyre noise on rough surfaces at speed.

The seats are really comfortable now that Ive spent 2+ hours in them, you just need to get your driving position right. The perforated leather looks really nice too.

The comfort access is really responsive, better than the system I had on my E70

I can get the tailgate to open and close with my foot every time, there is a knack to it

In terms of options that I was considering but didn't go for;

Lumbar support, glad to report I don't think it would have added value as I like the contour of the seat

EBT, again wouldn't get much use out of this

VSS, not tried it but maybe I would have it ONLY if the steering is lighter at low speeds not just a shorter turning circle

Here's some more pics including interior shots, was difficult to get the lighting correct for the interior....

[sdb123]

Looking good!

There's no doubt the HK is good...my issue is that it is a stripped down implementation compared to other BMW's. The lack of equaliser/Logic7 is a shame as you can't fine tune the overall sound - that won't change anytime soon though so there's nothing that can be done about it.

Enjoy the car, looking forward to more thoughts as you (and your wife) run it in.

[The Beast]

Originally Posted by sdb123

Looking good!

There's no doubt the HK is good...my issue is that it is a stripped down implementation compared to other BMW's. The lack of equaliser/Logic7 is a shame as you can't fine tune the overall sound - that won't change anytime soon though so there's nothing that can be done about it.

Enjoy the car, looking forward to more thoughts as you (and your wife) run it in.

Funny I just updated my original article to state that I don't miss the EQ, thought I would but I don't. I think too many settings can be just as bad at times... I'm constantly tinkering with my F10 settings. For me, dare I say it, I think this system is probably better in some ways than my F10 system. The F10 is more boomy, however I'm really impressed by the control of the F48 system. I heard subtle changes in the bassline in some songs that I've never picked up on before in my car

Maybe it's just set up for the type of music that I listen to...