New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
View Threaded
Mon 16 Dec 2013 12:06
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Trilogy

www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/scoop/bmw-2-series-acti...d

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 20:56
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - oldtoffee

BORING. Who at BMW decided thay had to do something like this? Looks like it could have come out of any European fwd manufacturer and someone stuck a BMW badge on it and will charge £10k extra for it. Very popular in Surrey, Bucks and Berks no doubt.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 21:09
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - daveyjp
The person who decided obviously saw the new B class and realised it was a sector not represented by BMW. There is demand for a premium MPV. I now see plenty of the new B class and I am not in the south east.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 21:14
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - gordonbennet

Avant will be along shortly to dispel any notions about B Class equaling premium..;)

MB's make proper cars, as do BMW, driven at the correct end or all four wheels, they don't, or shouldn't, make high cube FWD eurobox shopping trollies.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 21:12
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Avant

If it sells to people who - rightly or wrongly - prefer FWD, and have been put off BMWs up to now, then it's making money for BMW.

I don't believe that this is the thin end of the wedge: there will always be RWD BMWs.

Edit - well remembered, GB! In fairness to the B-class, I think that if I'd had a petrol one I'd have been as happy with it as Daveyjp is with his.

Edited by Avant on 16/12/2013 at 21:19

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 21:19
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - RT

If it sells to people who - rightly or wrongly - prefer FWD, and have been put off BMWs up to now, then it's making money for BMW.

I don't believe that this is the thin end of the wedge: there will always be RWD BMWs.

It'll sell well - far too many people buy cars for the badge, not what the car is - but that's where car makers get the profit to invest in purer models.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 21:33
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Bobbin Threadbare

This smacks of a desperation that BMW don't need to give two figs about! Their cars are everywhere; they hardly need to push out into this kind of vehicle. Audi will do it next.....prediction there.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 21:49
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Trilogy

As the MINI is fwd BMW might as well make as much out of it as possible. These days there are so many niches to make ££ from. If BMW doesn't, another will.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 22:09
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - artill

I think this will do really well for them. I know a few drivers of 1 and 3 series who really fear the snow. All CoCar drivers, so no option of winter tyres.

As soon as it becomes known you can have a BMW badge on a car that doesnt stop working as soon as a flake of snow falls, they will be in big demand.

It doesnt matter that a real BMW should be RWD, afterall a real BMW should have a straight 6 in it, and how many still have that? As far as the public are concerned all a BMW needs to be a proper BMW is a badge, so this qualifies.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 22:57
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Avant

Yes, and remember that winter tyres have become common comparatively recently: the idea that RWD cars are no good in snow goes back a,long way.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 23:06
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - RichT54

Didn't BMW produce a survey that said 80% of 1-series owners didn't know which wheels were driven on their cars? I think that was part of their justification for going down the FWD route.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 16 Dec 2013 23:21
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - drd63
80%, I'm surprised it's not more. Outside of forums such as this how many people chose a car based upon it being front or rwd. I've often thought its an excuse people use when they don't want to say 'I bought it for the badge'
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 11:03
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Sofa Spud

My first issue with this BMW MPV is the styling - It looks like like it's just been morphed out of other BMW designs - pushed in a bit here, pulled out a bit there.

The current VW Sharan or Ford Galaxy designs both look a lot neater, as indeed do the earlier versions of those cars, which were, of course, badge-engineered variants of the same design. Even the Vauxhall Zafira and the twice-facelifted VW Touran look neater than the BMW.

I would guess that the FWD is necessary to package an MPV with enough interior space within the overall dimensions.

Anyway, most drivers aren't really interested in having the dubious ability to provoke a wheelspin induced tail slide, which is about the only thing that you can do in a RWD car that you can't in an FWD.

And RWD cars always seem to be the first to get stuck in icy conditions.

Edited by Sofa Spud on 17/12/2013 at 11:09

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 11:23
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - RT

My first issue with this BMW MPV is the styling - It looks like like it's just been morphed out of other BMW designs - pushed in a bit here, pulled out a bit there.

Don't all car designers these days just play around with Photo Shop and then press the "build" button ?

Why does phot***op fail the censor test ?

Edited by RT on 17/12/2013 at 11:24

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 11:37
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - madf

Looks OK to me.


Should decimate upper end market for Scenic, PC4 Picasso and Zafira..

Smart move..

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 13:36
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Happy Blue!

It will sell and I can see why. Husband has nice rwd BMW and wife needs family taxi. However they want the same quality of interior trim and number of toys on each. Not possible on a Zafira.

I would consider one when time came to replace the Smax.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 16:50
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Sofa Spud

Despite my skepticism above, based on what I consider unattractive styling, I agree the BMW MPV will sell, particularly to the potential 2 BMW or even the 3 BMW family!

Edited by Sofa Spud on 17/12/2013 at 16:50

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 16:55
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - mss1tw

My first issue with this BMW MPV is the styling - It looks like like it's just been morphed out of other BMW designs - pushed in a bit here, pulled out a bit there.

Don't all car designers these days just play around with Photo Shop and then press the "build" button ?

Why does phot***op fail the censor test ?

t***?

Yup, t o s h

Edited by mss1tw on 17/12/2013 at 16:55

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 17:04
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Bobbin Threadbare

Yes but will Dad cringe an tear his hair when the kids and the dog scratch, dirty and tear his BMW mpv to bits...?!

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 17:17
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Trilogy

Yes but will Dad cringe an tear his hair when the kids and the dog scratch, dirty and tear his BMW mpv to bits...?!

Just bring them up properly. Sadly, a rarity today, IME.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 18:16
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - madf

Yes but will Dad cringe an tear his hair when the kids and the dog scratch, dirty and tear his BMW mpv to bits...?!

Just bring them up properly. Sadly, a rarity today, IME.

I am always surporised with the state of some people carriers : crisp packets, food , filth etc..

If i was a dog home, the owmers would be prosecuted by the RSPCA for neglect.


We always taught our kids to eat carefully and hand back the packets which we put into an old carrier bag.

I assume people's cars mirror they houses and most live in slum conditions tryiing to breed cockroaches...- if the climate was warmer they wouild succeed. As for the hygiene - I shudder to think.

I make no apologies if any reader has a people carrier in such a disgusting state.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 19:54
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Bobbin Threadbare

Since I am a teacher, I have seen how children leap in and out of cars and slam doors. When I was a child we were under pain of death to avoid dropping a crumb or putting a fingerprint on the windows; woe betide the little girl who slammed her door!

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 20:14
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Trilogy

Since I am a teacher, I have seen how children leap in and out of cars and slam doors. When I was a child we were under pain of death to avoid dropping a crumb or putting a fingerprint on the windows; woe betide the little girl who slammed her door!

I feel all mpv should have sliding rear doors. Then the little darlings can't carelessly open their door, into other cars in car parks.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Tue 17 Dec 2013 21:28
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - daveyK_UK

Is there any expected residual forecast values?

Expecting these to be a popular 2nd hand buy, more so than a 3 series.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 18 Dec 2013 13:19
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - davecooper
My money would go the way of a high spec Galaxy. I very much doubt that the BMW will be any better and I can live without the badge, and the bland styling come to that.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 18 Dec 2013 14:46
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - Happy Blue!

However replace the word Galaxy with Mondeo and you understand why the 3-series out sells it, despite being a really good car.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 18 Dec 2013 21:17
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - markweatherill

It's really odd that this should be the first FWD BMW. I'd have thought the i3 would.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 18 Dec 2013 21:20
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - RT

Assuming you discount the BMW Mini

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 19 Dec 2013 13:30
New BMW MPV to be front wheel drive - madf

First BMW branded car with FWD

Reply | Report as offensive | Link