340i 3.0 M Sport Auto 4dr Saloon

High performance GT saloon

This is my third 6 cylinder car and they have become rare beasts indeed, Jaguar stopped making the supercharged XE, the C43 only looks good in estate form and is pricey, the S4 didn’t do it for me at all and the fast Kia Stinger, a great looking car but was working out too expensive.

So I leased a BMW 340i. Love this car and no regrets whatsoever 9 months in. The 340i is all about the engine, an absolute gem of a straight six - turbocharged, super advanced and in automotive terms, really, really rare.

I didn’t want to wait a whole year or more for the new model, with those new car bugs and full list price. So with a good discount and cheap finance - a brand new F30 won me over. The new M340i launches with 4WD and 374bhp, but at no point have I felt I need any more power, this thing has plenty!

It is properly fast, an absolute flying machine, the engine is turbine smooth and sounds sublime, with an exhaust note like ripping canvas and fire-crackers, the 8 speed ZF box is a work of torque converting art! There are plenty of driver settings via the gear selector and mode buttons. In comfort it paddles quickly and smoothly up the cogs while in sport the gearbox holds right up to the redline and bangs through each gear, a valve opening up in the exhaust, for aural effect. Flappy paddles are great but it’s easy to get lost with 8 gears!

The 340i is understated and apart from the two tailpipes looks like a vanilla M Sport 320d. I like a sleeper, it’s a pretty car for certain but there’s nothing showy or ostentatious about it. Mine is in Estoril blue with the standard 18” wheels. Admittedly sapphire black on 19’s really work, but my car gets to travel below the radar and the 18’s give a better ride even if the Pirelli run-flats do not exactly inspire confidence when it’s cold and wet. Fuel economy - I (can)get about 26-28mpg suburban and over 40mpg on the motorway, an amazing feat given the performance, insurance is just over £300.

You sit low in the car, the supportive sport seats gripping you in corners. You sit even lower in the 4 series but I found the coupe less comfortable. The car, like all 3 series before it feels just the right size. The interior is unfussy and classy. The black leather looks great against the blue and although there is something to be said for the cream, black is more practical. The MSport steering wheel is perfect in every way, the heating an option that I unexpectedly love. The i drive works seamlessly and logically, but satnav and voice recognition are as ever slightly iffy.

Most high performance cars are a compromise of performance and handling versus comfort and practicality and this is no exception.The steering lets it down a bit, it’s just a little neutral and disconnected but you do get used to it. It handles well but this is no M3 (although it would likely keep up with an M3 driven sensibly on public roads, on a track - no chance). However this is a smooth, quiet and supremely comfortable GT car, a road car that acquits itself well on the track rather than a track car horribly compromised by high running costs, traffic and our terrible roads.

The Eco pro setting and auto stop start have no place in this car, the build does not seem as solid as my old E46 330i, with more and more plastic in each iteration but the 3 series DNA is still apparent in the physical styling, controls, cubbies and the retro-orange night-time dash display. Reliability - I’ve had no problems whatsoever after 9 months, so far the best car I’ve owned and so fast!

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