Blue dream to reality - My BMW X3 (G01) 20d xDrive Luxury Line

Added this little accessory (black leather key-fob cover) recently. For the price (INR 370/-) the fit and finish is adequate. The one on the right, OEM BMW, came with the new car, courtesy, Bavaria Motors, The Pune Dealer

After almost eight months of hibernation, we decided to undertake our annual pilgrimage to Goa last weekend. It was also our first long trip with family in X3. While looking forward to the trip, I was bit anxious because of (1) Covid situation and loads of misinformation around (2) Going out in almost a new car- just about 2000 kms (mostly city driven) old before the trip and (3) Going to drive an automatic on longish ghat sections for the first time.

Just before the trip added this boot mat from Elegant. It fits nicely and has a very grippy texture. Looks built to last.







Journey

On Friday morning, we set out from eastern suburb of Pune at 5 am and reached Colva in South Goa, about 490 kms away, just in time for the check-in at 2pm. It was a good timing considering how broken Chorla ghat is right now and a 40-min breakfast stop near Kolhapur.

Some observations from the trip:

1) X3 is very very comfortable and you don't feel tired despite doing 4-5 hours non stop. Sound insulation, AC, suspension and refined engine all combine to make the ride comfortable. I usually take two breaks between Pune and Goa. but this time one break was good enough.

2) Embedded navigation (I think MapMyIndia) worked well and was very fast in calculating unlike Google which hangs when rerouting if you loose data connectivity. Map is accurate too. Both Google and BMW Map suggested same route for South Goa

3) It reached obscene speeds without me realising or putting any effort. First diesel engine I have experienced which doesn't whine a bit while revving all the way to the red line (5500 rpm). Dong dong warning is irritating.

4) Adaptive headlamp (and high beam) worked quite accurately. Doesn't work if fog lights are turned on, although instrument indicator lights up. Stock LED headlight was adequate on the highway

5) Negotiated craters and slush on Chorla route with ease. Adequate GC. Didn't notice any XDrive traction control kicking-in. On the same route an Ertiga taxi was stuck for 20 min

6) Not a single squeak, squeal and rattles despite riding on moon surface

7) Cargo space was adequate for family of four travelling with school and home office gadgets for four nights

8) Has a lot of street presence (perhaps due to the logo and owl-eyed DRLs). Fellow road users gave way. Cops at KN-GA and GA-MH borders didn't stop. Even loud two-wheelers slowed and gave way within narrow Goan roads

9) Returned 14.3 km/l on entire trip with full load and 100%AC, 30% sports mode driving. Tankful will easily give 800+ kilometres of range. I refilled after 788 kms

10) About the destination- South Goa was quite empty. Very few tourists out on the street. Many small eateries and bars were shut. Swiggy was working. Our hotel was about 70% occupied despite long weekend. They upgraded us to a family villa FoC. Most locals used masks. We were mostly holed-in our suite.

11)Traffic on the highway was nearly normal. Toll Gates up to Satara were crowded like usual. Top surface at many places on the highway have degraded.

Now let some picture do the talking

Attached Thumbnails

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What a small world we live in, Covid or not. That's my red 3 series cosied up against yours in one of the pics. One heck of a coincidence.

And that last picture...oof. It's worth a million bucks. Sunsets like that are prettier than a picture, and set against a beach that pretty, it's blissful, to say the least.

Stay safe, and happy journeys!

Escaped from the maddening onslaught of Trump and Bihar election memes by stealing a overnight ride to a quaint little vineyard south of Nashik. NH leading to Nashik has deteriorated at many places with big potholes appearing suddenly, giving me a constant fear of RFT rupture (horror stories read here). However, nothing happened. X3 performed as expected.

Odo now touches a tad over 3.5 thousand kilometres of fuss free ownership. First service is due next month and looking forward to the experience. Meanwhile extended car warranty last month (5-years) anticipating price hike from Nov 1.

Some pictures from the trip attached below:





Passion rider at the far end wanted to photo bomb and he succeeded too.





My children planning next world war in their virtual world, while, we enjoyed what nature and vineyard had on the display outside .



Cheers,
-BJ

X3 will complete a year soon, thought of posting some quick updates and also seek few suggestions.

Memories...





Updates

• Have done only 3500 kilometres, thanks to Covid.
  
• Renewed insurance with dealer (BMW Financial Services). Opted for zero dep + consumables. The insurers are Bajaj Allianz (one of my favourites) and costed about 55k without 3rd party and 50% NCB. TPT is already covered by ICICI Lombard for three years with new car purchase. Dealer assured having multiple agencies won't be a problem in claim processing. Keeping fingers crossed. Hope I never need it.
  
• Although the car was registered and delivered in Jan'20, dealer had activated the PDI and service on 31st Dec'19. So, a little warning lit up last week reminding me a "Oil Service" is due.
  
• I have scheduled a service appointment for the next week. I've a question for experienced BMW owners. What does "Oil Service" mean in Condition Based Service (CBS) and how much dent in the wallet I am looking at? CBS doesn't show anything else needed to change/service!
  
• I'm thinking of not renewing BMW Secure package. However, have time till Jan 1st week to rethink. After that cost will increase a bit. They have quoted about 44k and RSA is complimentary with it. My reasoning is after a year they would at best reimburse 80% of tire/wheel rim cost. My running is low and I am a cautious driver, rarely speeding above "ding ding sound". I check tires regularly and keep them inflated a little more (34-36 psi) than specified. Bridgestone Alenzas look durable so far. Am i right in reasoning? Perhaps only useful thing I miss in that is RSA. What is the flatbed transport cost (per km approx) if my X3 needs to be lifted to ASS ever?

Have planned a 2500 kms round trip with family towards the year end. Looking forward to test X3 in the winters of the North and praying Covid noise doesn't worsen.

Meanwhile, took the Fat Boy out on a 4000 kilometre round trip during Diwali. It was rejuvenating experience after a long confinement.

A shot on the Guna Shivpuri Highway.



tia,
-BJ

^^

Just get the oil service done. They may add optionals like AC filter etc but stick with oil and oil filter. Since you will be paying for the oil change, ask them to use one ltr bottles instead of the oil they regularly use from the bigger barrel. If they don’t have stocks, ask them to get. Marginal difference in price only if they pick the correct oil. I will try to find the part number and update here.

Hope you all taking care during resurgence of the pandemic. This is a short cumulative update of my X3 during past five months.

1. Current odo ~6500kms. Car completed a year in Jan'21.
   
   
   
2. Got the warranty (BRI) package extended up to 5 years at ~Rs 1.8L. Skipped BSI as my running is low.
   
   
   
3. Did first service in mid December at about 3500 kilometres odo. The service bill amount was about ~20k including five bottles of BMW Diesel additive (which itself is about 5k). So about 15,000/- service bill is not much for a German car of this size and feature.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. Installed BMW Car Eye camera module, both front and rear. Dealer gave a goodwill discount of about 10%
   
   
   
   Front Camera
   
   
   Rear Camera
   
   
   Inside cabin when Camera is working. Notice the LED is on. Similar LED is present on the rear camera too. It can be turned off by the software. I have left it on- another deterrence for folks tailgating.
   
   
   
5. Went on a long trip to Ranthambore in Christmas'20 after first service. Car performed extremely well for a round trip of about 2500 kilometres. Except a puncture in the front tire while returning near Shirdi, due to extremely bad road, there was nothing to complain about.
   
   
   
   This screw pierced the rubber near Shirdi. Did roadside tubeless repair and drove home. I could have continued with it but wanted to replace for peace of mind as Secure package was still valid.
   
   
   
   
6. Replaced the tire under BMW Secure plan. Had to pay about Rs 9.8k from pocket for about 25% tread wear they estimated, including the balancing and fitment. Bridgestone Alenza was not in stock. Had to wait from December to April, four months, to get the replacement.
   
   
   
   Tire change invoice.
   
   
   
   
7. Didn't extend the BMW Secure plan this year. Have taken a risk. RFTs can be repaired like a normal tubeless in most cases.
   
   
   
8. There was a minor manufacturing defect in roof headliner assembly near passenger side where A-pillar joins the roof. The liner was slightly misaligned due to a bent clip. BMW replaced the entire thing under warranty. Costs about 60k, if I had to pay for it
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
9. Got the navigation map updated from 2018.2 to 2019.2
   
   
   
   
   

Some random pictures from last Ranthambore trip.


Drive safe.

Cheers,
-BJ

Few observations

1. BMW Workshop do try to add these Diesel Additives to inflate the bill. If you didn't ask for them and they billed you without your consent; return the product & ask them to refund the amount.

Since your car has run only 3500 Kms at the time of service, additives makes no use.

2. Vehicle wash at BMW Infinity Workshop, Navi Mumbai is always free of cost, no mater how small the job.

3. AC Vent Cleaner & Disc, another product used to inflate bill. I doubt it makes any difference.

4. Its better to repair a RFT like a normal tubeless (if possible) then to spend 10,000 for a new tyre.

Thank you el lobo for comments and tips.

Since, we drive to many offbeat places and Ranthambore ride was already scheduled, I was not sure about the quality of diesel in remote areas. Therefore, when suggested by SA, picked these bottles as a backup. Have used only one so far in RJ.

My son has sickness in ghats roads. While returning from last Goa trip he threw up inside. Although, rear vent was not messed, still, to be safer I agreed to get it cleaned once. True, this is not something I would do on every service .

For tire replacement, I was in two minds. Went ahead with the thinking that by paying only 10k I am getting a brand new tire worth ~30k, which I can probably retain as a "full size" spare at the next opportunity to replace the set.

-BJ

Hi BJ

I stumbled upon you thread this morning and went through the entire ownership and must say it is very well written and congratulations on this new acquisition (actually, congrats on your 1st anniversary of it too)

Incidentally, we both own the same color (Is your color known as Phytonic Blue) X3's and glad to know you are enjoying it till date

I will keep an eye out on your thread to known how the X3 is doing and wish you a happy and trouble free ownership

An absolute delight to read. My neighbor recently purchased the X3 and I thought that looked huge. The X5 is on a completely different level. Wishing you many happy kms

After holed-in for months together, family got restless. We decided to steal a weekend and escape from the madness. Lockdown has eased in Pune, but weekend and night restrictions remain hence, we chose not to stray far but stick within the district. A quick overnighter to the nearby hills in the rains was rejuvenating. X3 clocked ~6700 kms and continues to thrill behind the wheel.

Posting some pics from the trip.


Delightful tarmac with low traffic due to the barricades and policing near picnic spots.


Lush green Sahyadris after the rains.




Blueboy's exclusive resting spot under the porch


Sunday walk in the monsoon clouds


Twilight hues filled by whispering clouds.


Colours of nature amplified by mist and rains.


Nature's canvas.


School work on the go.


Underbelly wash at home

Cheers,
-BJ

I was strongly suggested by my Merc, BMW, VW and Mini dealer during various phases to not wash the underbelly of the car (i.e. Raise the car and wash since most sensors get exposed which might fail). Not sure how true is that, but i avoid lifting the car for wash or washing the engine bay.

Maybe others can add.

Urban myth right? Water wading depth of X3 is 500mm. If it was so fragile they wouldn't have mentioned that in owners manual. I am not leaving the car in a pool of water overnight or over any extended period to inflict injuries or break sensors due to water seepage. 90% underbelly is hidden behind sound deadening plates. What is exposed is only wheel wells and exhaust + muffler lines and suspension struts. A 15sec occasional dose of ~70-80psi water shouldn't harm these. If it did, better be that now when my new car warranty is still valid

Yes I don't do pressure wash of engine bay. Haven't done that since WagonR days. Ofcourse I have seen service centres doing that (at their risk).

Cheers,
BJ

Which resort is this?

BMW Workshop at Navi Mumbai washes the X1 20d engine bay every time I send car for service. Spic & span engine bay after washing.

Sedans are more prone to issues after washing compared to SUV/SAV. X1 has a 250 mm water wading capacity.

But I would never recommend washing engine bay and exposed engine underbelly of any car.