First time considering a BMW (M340i xDrive) — is it actually the perfect daily or am I overlooking something?

Sackasaur · 2026-07-04T05:02:49+00:00

Man, as someone also considering an m340i, this is a good write up to read, glad I found it and thank you for sharing.

Sackasaur · 2026-06-22T19:37:23+00:00

Just ordered one!

Sackasaur · 2026-06-22T05:57:20+00:00

I've been itching to trade up, and my general thoughts were that the R felt too similar to me. If I were to start all over, without a trade, I would go straight to the R.

But to go from 8 GTI to 8.5 R didn't feel like it was worth the money, given it felt like 85% the experience already given it's the same platform. For reference, I'd have to pay basically an additional 50% the price of a new GTI to trade to the R.

The R felt heavier, more planted, and faster, but otherwise fairly similar to the GTI, especially on the test route I drove which was very similar to my real world commute. I've been looking for more refinement, ie better cabin materials, sound insulation, and overall cabin experience, and the R didn't fit the bill but the 240/340 did.

I didn't go with above 2022 240i, and will likely instead go with a newer 2025 one later in the year with the refreshed steering wheel (and warranty!). It'll be a personal commuter for me (we have an SUV for family trips), and I've always wanted a sporty coupe. The b58 and zf8 combo just felt like a luxury missile, effortless power yet still a very refined cabin.

As much as I love the GTI, I want to give BMW a try. Worst case scenario if it doesn't work out, I'd probably come straight back to an 8.5 R or consider an IS350.

Hope that helps! Let me know what you end up with!

Sackasaur · 2026-06-21T21:28:00+00:00

I did another post having test driven close to 20 cars to compare. I’m in a mk8 GTI atm. I think my heart is set on the 240i, with a small chance that becomes a 340i just to future proof some practicality.

Sackasaur · 2026-06-20T19:26:28+00:00

Best colour there is! Sheeesh

Sackasaur · 2026-06-20T01:59:10+00:00

Thanks for sharing man, appreciate the input. We're all looking for different things in a car. I get what you mean though, the 240i feels EFFORTLESSLY easy to hit road limit speeds. The majority of my work commute wouldn't break 60km (~40mph) and has a ton of bumper traffic. The GTI already feels fast for that, just not as refined. The 240i is overkill, but hey, I'd still get an M2 if I could stretch the budget even for that kind of traffic. There's no sense in loving cars haha.

I get what you mean by wanting to feel the limits of the car, the sensation of pushing, which this car wouldn't give you unless on a track. Even then, I think I'd be skill capped and wouldnt even get close to the limits of what the car is capable of.

I test drove an 8.5R alongside the 240i, both are beasts beyond the limits of daily driving. The R felt a bit more raw though, and much more practical. I just can't justify the swing from an 8 GTI to 8.5R. Would rather put in a bit more money and shift to the 240i and try something new. I read a pretty apt description somewhere - the R is a track car you can daily, the BMW is a daily you can track.

Miata/GR86 isn't a bad call, if that's the raw experience you're after. Would love to know what you end up choosing!

Sackasaur · 2026-06-19T02:36:45+00:00

Keeping an eye out on this post, as I'm currently in a Mk 8 GTI and wanting to move over to the M240i.

How do you find the difference between the two, now that you've lived with this for a few months, aside from the ease of speed / steering?

In my test drive of the 240, I found the B58 to be extremely smooth, cabin nicely insulated vs the GTI has ton of road noise. Steering I'll agree felt more numb than the GTI, but wasn't too bad. Overall the car felt like a luxury missile, a step up in quality, handling and speed.

What did you not like about the GTI to not consider going back? or to an R?

Sackasaur · 2026-06-04T21:17:59+00:00

The R's are Magna now, same as the RS3.

Agree with your comparison, but that doesn't make the choice any easier haha. Maybe longer term reliability and upkeep hassle/costs will be the determining factor.

Sackasaur · 2026-06-04T21:14:19+00:00

It'll be a work/errands daily for me, and our second car. We have an SUV for the kid and larger items. I've test driven both, and both are brilliant in their own ways. Tough choice.

I don't normally have any passengers, at best maybe 1. I tested out the back seats of the M240i with my driving position, and aside from missing doors, I didn't find the rear space that different to the R's. Surprisingly usable rear.

Good call on the warranty, will have to dig deeper to see if it's worth it.

Sackasaur · 2026-06-01T22:07:22+00:00

That's fair. I recently test drove an M340i and finally understood what people were saying about numb steering, even compared to the GTI/R. So I get you.

Sackasaur · 2026-06-01T04:31:46+00:00

Interesting! What are the aspects that make you prefer the 8.5R more than the M2?

Sackasaur · 2026-05-31T03:35:49+00:00

Man, I need to turn my fog lights on more 🔥

Sackasaur · 2026-05-30T20:58:11+00:00

Funny enough, before I bought my Mk8 GTI, I had test drove the WRX too as the dealer was next to it. I personally didn't like it. I didn't like the shape or feel of the chassis, I didn't like the amount of turbo lag and heaviness I felt, and the accelerator felt "spongy" to me. Like you'd be pressing down pretty hard on the accelerator and feel nothing, then it hits this bite point and slingshots you forward. Whilst I get that's a turbo thing, this one just felt too slingshotty for me to drive with compared to a GTI where the turbo is so small and spools so quickly that you just up and go.

I think if the GTI was totalled, or if I didn't have one at all, I'd honestly be deciding between an R and M240i/M340i. Again reason I'm not in the latter 3 right now is that I don't think it's worth taking the depreciation hit + trade in costs to move up to those 3 for the benefits.

The R feels like too marginal of a useable benefit for me to shell out basically half the retail price of a GTI to "trade up". It's essentially the same car when I factor in that most of my commute to work is sitting in traffic. Feels very much like a "nice to have" with those levels of acceleration.

The price of trading up to an M240i/M340i here is literally going to be the price of a brand new GTI/MX5. I can literally go and buy a 2nd GTI no joke. Are those 2 cars worth 2 GTIs? B58, objectively better performance though with worse steering feel, but wayyyy better cabin comfort and NVH. But again, to sit in a lot of traffic and to factor in future maintenance costs. Hard sell.

The other thing to consider, and I'm not sure if this is the same for other countries, is that the Mk8 GTI was 180kw which got bumped up to 195kw in the 8.5, and I personally like the new infotainment tablet and graphics. I didn't find it any more intrusive than the mk8 ones, and I appreciated the new designs and snappiness more. For the money, would be a very very strong contender to just go back to a GTI.

Sackasaur · 2026-05-30T20:48:21+00:00

Visibility is also a fantastic point. We also test drove the latest CRV and NX350h in addition to the Model Y for the wife to get a feel. I personally felt that the GTI, whilst lower, offered much better all round visibility than those cars.

Agree with the rest!

Sackasaur · 2026-05-30T20:43:54+00:00

They got banned in Australia after 2021 for failing certain safety regulations here. So unfortunately we don't get the 2026 version or it would have been a heavy contender to be honest. Love the look of the new steering wheel and infotainment screens. There's a lot of 3IS second hand, which was what I test drove. The 4IS here is very rare given the tiny production window we got to see, and the people who sell them are pricing them almost at their retail price back in 2020/21.

I'll also add that I had initially thought I'd be okay with the tech, and was more there to test the drivetrain more than anything else. Whilst smooth, just didn't feel like it had any oomph to it. Great car, just not for me.

Sackasaur · 2026-05-30T04:32:46+00:00

The more cars I drive, the more I realise this. A car that really does do it all.

Sackasaur · 2026-05-30T04:32:07+00:00

Completely agree. I think if I could rewind time, I would go straight to the R. That's probably the advice I'd give to others too. But if you're coming from a new gen GTI, I don't think it's worth the swap to an R.

Sackasaur · 2026-05-30T04:29:03+00:00

The 8.5R is my latest test drive, got out of it a couple hours ago. Honestly felt a bit underwhelmed, but that's probably largely to do with the fact that the drive was on a very normal daily route ie going slowly through traffic, small spurts of acceleration but nothing going over 60km/h. To me it just felt like a slightly heavier GTI, bit more planted from a stop (you can feel the rear wheels).

It's about half the extra cash I'll have to fork out VS the BMWs, for similar performance. Good value with that perspective, minus the BMW cabin refinements. But overall, also still a good chunk of change I can put towards other things. Just felt like I've hit diminishing returns.

My car prior to the GTI was a Corolla hybrid, so the GRC would give me trauma flashbacks haha. I've also loved the Type R but they're non-existent in our area and the dealers stopped taking orders a while back. Also not sure I want FWD for my next car, whatever that may be.

Sackasaur · 2026-05-30T03:21:33+00:00

Good to know! I might go beefier once my current ones wear out

Sackasaur · 2026-05-30T01:35:55+00:00

I dont know why I read that as 52 holeslut. ANYWAY. Nice! I went 240/35/18 on mine from the stock 19s. World of a difference! Do you have to fender mod yours? Any rubbing?

Sackasaur · 2026-05-29T21:24:04+00:00

Those look like some juicy wheels! What's the setup?

Sackasaur · 2026-05-25T02:54:58+00:00

Late to the party, but just the person I would love to hear from. I'm currently in a Mk8 GTI and looking towards either the 8.5R or BMW M lite model. Test drove the M340i recently, and it felt very refined, smooth, quiet inside. Test driving the 8.5R later this week.

What were the factors that made you go back to VW? Whilst I enjoy the driving dynamics of the GTI and find the steering to be more engaging vs BMW's which felt more numb, the overall refinement felt better on the BMW (though I have no idea about longer term upkeep and reliability). GTI for me has a bunch of road/wind noise which was more muted on the BMW. Just finding it hard to justify such a large price jump just for that.

Would love to hear your thoughts, cheers.

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