Field testing the 2011 128i Cabrio in extreme winter conditions

[Niblet]

Well,,Not really how I wanted to treat my new BMW,, but its my daily driver,,and as such subject to the goofy weather we are having in Deutschland right now.
Growing up in Minnesota and living in Alaska for 8 years,,I'm no stranger to winter driving,, but I havent drove a rear wheel drive car in the snow since
High School in the mid '80's,,,,,

I must say with the cars 50-50 weight distribution,,,(this meant nothing to me until now),,,this thing handles the snow with amazing results,,
now I am not going to compare it to AWD or 4WD ,,,, nor would I recommend this car even intentionally be drivin in the snow,,,,if you find yourself in a situation like me,,,where you have to,,,or you loose your job,,,
its not like driving a 1980 Caprice Classic,,,,It will get you home,,,just use common sense and dont turn off the traction control!!!


Also,,at temps as low as 23 degrees F,,, the car starts normal,,, there is NO stickyness to the shifter,,windows,,,or anything,,,no weird winter noises either,,,This thing has performed flawlessly and I have 6K on it,,,it does like to drink the windshield washer fluid though!!!

The heater will cook you out,,even on low settings,,,the heated seats are mandatory,,and since mine is a very early production model,,it doesnt have the heated steering wheel they later threw in with the cold weather package

The auto heated mirrors start to work work within 2 minutes of starting,,the rear def is fast too,,

I have never owned anything this nice except maybe my Escalade,,,
but "you get what you pay for" is really true here,,,This is sweet and I will be shipping it to South carolina in 2 weeks so it will never see this crappy weather again hopefully!!!

And I will be underneath the car detailing it upon its arrival to the USA
The enginge compartment it still virtually spotless due to the belly pan or whatever they call it,,,,

ok thanks for looking!

[MikeinAlexandria]

Nice.
What wheels are you using? Tires, M+S or real snows? The whole of Europe got snow this year, along with the Sierra Nevadas. I wish DC would have received a nice solid six to eight inches last week so we'd have the trees decorated for Christmas.

[Niblet]

The standard crap 16 inch wheels,,with RF's M+S,,,now mandatory here,,,I miss my studded tires!!
want to put some REAL rims and tires on very soon,,,,anyone know where to get a set of factory 18 inch take off's,,????

[amancuso]

Good review Still no snow for us here in South Jersey yet this season... Hoping it won't be as bad as the whacky winter we had last year.

[LJKelley]

Ya I'm actually suprised at how well it does in the snow. I have some Continetal ContiProContact SSR. (Just All Seasons). I'm not sure if my dealer put those or if those are factory (I'm pretty sure Bridgestone's are factory).

I was thinking I would run out and get dedicated snows but I don't think so now.

[Evice]

Correctional Facility? Sign in the background

[Tom K.]

For the non sport package 128i, the most common OEM tires are the Conti ProContact SSR or Bridgestone EL42 RFT in either 16" or 17" size. The SP 128i often comes with either Pirelli or Goodyear NCT5 summer touring RFTs.

I have the EL42s on my 328i wagon (completely different from the pre- 2008 EL42) & they perform decently in dry, very well in wet and (so far) are ok in light snow. The Contis are reputed to be slightly better.

Tom

[Niblet]

Yes its where BMW drivers go when they test there cars on the higway and get caught by Johnny law!



heh heh,,,good eyes,,,i didnt even notice it!

Picture taken this afternoon at Coleman Barracks,, near Mannheim,,,
The US Army has a Correctional facility there,,,,

I work on the airfield

[cvandenhaute]

Unfortunately the heated sterring was not anymore part of the cold weather package for my 2011 128i

[Niblet]

Yes after I got my BMW home I called the dealer and asked where the heck is my heated steering wheel?? as the brochure clearly says its part of the winter package,,,,,,unfortunately for me when my car was made it was a stand alone option,,,,and read the fine print in the brochure,,,,
they arent responsible for the info contained in it as its subject to change!!

[Prof T]

Just drive, a little slower/steady , it's a great car. The RF tires suck though.