[Tav7467]

My '22 X3MC steering feels exactly the same way. I thought I was losing my mind (or the alignment was way off from factory). It's barely tolerable.

[Al Bundy's Dodge]

Not sure why anyone would expect great steering on a standard series BMW…as has been documented, it's been rubbish since BMW went to EPS.

But everyday I drive around I see why BMW did what they did…I dont know about other countries but Americans aren't interested in steering feel. In fact they aren't even interested in steering the vehicle themselves. They are interested in posting on Twitter and reading their friends Facebook updates while in the car.

[M2Crew]

Invalid review. They tested the car on winter tires. These guys fell off hard in the last 12-18 months.

[CDN-Driver]

I for one am disappointed that the "steering" issues continue.
Buyers pay for drive modes to address the flexibility requirements of customers.
The steer with a pinkie while checking facebook and eating cereal crowd can have one mode.
People who thought they were buying "The Ultimate Driving Machine" can have their mode.
As the reviewers point out, other companies can do it, why not BMW?

[Germanauto]

Originally Posted by Al Bundy's Dodge

Not sure why anyone would expect great steering on a standard series BMW…as has been documented, it's been rubbish since BMW went to EPS.

But everyday I drive around I see why BMW did what they did…I dont know about other countries but Americans aren't interested in steering feel. In fact they aren't even interested in steering the vehicle themselves. They are interested in posting on Twitter and reading their friends Facebook updates while in the car.

I have a lot of colleagues and friends who drive BMWs, exactly zero of them give a damn about how the car feels to drive. It's all about badge and image. People with cars from competing brands? Same story. They just want to mash on the gas then drive like a snail in turns.

[Germanauto]

I'm sure some of their steering comments can be attributed to winter tires. AWD doesn't help either. But as others have commented, BMW's EPS has been well-documented to be lacking for over a decade now. I did find the steering of the M2 to be good enough for my tastes as the car overall was so fun and alive. I hope the G87 M2 is similar.

Porsche somehow managed to make their EPS feel super close to hydraulic steering. There is road information coming through and the steering is tight without feeling artificially programmed like BMW's does.

[Lightngsvt]

Originally Posted by M2Crew

Invalid review. They tested the car on winter tires. These guys fell off hard in the last 12-18 months.

Depending on the temperatures when they tested the car running summer tires would've been invalid also. Summer tires would not perform properly in cold temps.

Originally Posted by Germanauto

I'm sure some of their steering comments can be attributed to winter tires. AWD doesn't help either. But as others have commented, BMW's EPS has been well-documented to be lacking for over a decade now. I did find the steering of the M2 to be good enough for my tastes as the car overall was so fun and alive. I hope the G87 M2 is similar.

Porsche somehow managed to make their EPS feel super close to hydraulic steering. There is road information coming through and the steering is tight without feeling artificially programmed like BMW's does.

I agree with your comments, however, I just rewatched their review of the 2018 M240i and they had very similar complaints about the steering and that was an RWD car on summer tires. But they didn't specifically say it was a deal-breaker on the last generation like they did on the new car.

Porsche steering is excellent. Porsche shifters are excellent. Even though my Boxster has less power, but similar width tires, than my 340i ZHP it is still always an occasion to drive the Porsche. I'm sure BMW could reverse engineer a similar steering feel, but they are more concerned about sales volume than producing the Ultimate Driving Machne. Sadly profits rule, and BMW wouldn't exist by only serving the enthusiast portion of their market share.

[Jashue]

Originally Posted by Lightngsvt

I just rewatched their review of the 2018 M240i and they had very similar complaints about the steering and that was an RWD car on summer tires. But they didn't specifically say it was a deal-breaker on the last generation like they did on the new car.

I remembered their review of the F22 well and after having just revisited it, it looks as though that the review for that car might have also been performed on a car with winter tires. Uncharacteristically, they don't mention what tires their tester was wearing, but the review was dated in March of that year and they are in Ontario, so there's that...
Here are a couple screen grabs. Can anyone tell what those tires might be? Do they look like winter tires?

[gp_solo2]

Originally Posted by Jashue

I remembered their review of the F22 well and after having just revisited it, it looks as though that the review for that car might have also been performed on a car with winter tires. Uncharacteristically, they don't mention what tires their tester was wearing, but the review was dated in March of that year and they are in Ontario, so there's that...
Here are a couple screen grabs. Can anyone tell what those tires might be? Do they look like winter tires?

They seem to be winter tires. Hard to tell from the picture but seem to be some zigzag groove on the thread block that are typical to winter/ ice tires.

[MmmmmM2]

Originally Posted by AllaVodka

To be fair though. Steering on the G20 is IMO significantly worse than on the F30. It feels completely disconnected from the road, light, with more dead on center. The G20 has less body roll, though.

Man, that is a bold statement. The steering on my 18 340i ZHP was just terrible. I can say with all honesty, that the steering in my M2C has spoiled me. It's not perfect by any means, but when they put me in a 2021 330i loaner, that steering was pretty awful, but still leaps above my 340i.

[Lightngsvt]

Originally Posted by Jashue

I remembered their review of the F22 well and after having just revisited it, it looks as though that the review for that car might have also been performed on a car with winter tires. Uncharacteristically, they don't mention what tires their tester was wearing, but the review was dated in March of that year and they are in Ontario, so there's that...
Here are a couple screen grabs. Can anyone tell what those tires might be? Do they look like winter tires?

Good catch!

Originally Posted by MmmmmM2

Man, that is a bold statement. The steering on my 18 340i ZHP was just terrible. I can say with all honesty, that the steering in my M2C has spoiled me. It's not perfect by any means, but when they put me in a 2021 330i loaner, that steering was pretty awful, but still leaps above my 340i.

I don't feel that my 18 F30 340 ZHP is that bad. It's better than the steering was in my 2012 F30 335i, which felt like a cheap video game controller. The 340 is in a different league than my Boxster, but its not bad, it's not dead or twitchy. I agree it's a bit numb and doesn't transmit much feedback. I had a G20 330i loaner about a year ago and its steering was atrocious! There was no on-center field and it felt twitchy/darty.

[MmmmmM2]

Originally Posted by Lightngsvt

Good catch!




I don't feel that my 18 F30 340 ZHP is that bad. It's better than the steering was in my 2012 F30 335i, which felt like a cheap video game controller. The 340 is in a different league than my Boxster, but its not bad, it's not dead or twitchy. I agree it's a bit numb and doesn't transmit much feedback. I had a G20 330i loaner about a year ago and its steering was atrocious! There was no on-center field and it felt twitchy/darty.

The dead on center feel on the 340i was what bothered me the most. I could literally move it back and forth a bit and the car would stay straight. No such issues on the M2C.

[Lightngsvt]

Originally Posted by MmmmmM2

The dead on center feel on the 340i was what bothered me the most. I could literally move it back and forth a bit and the car would stay straight. No such issues on the M2C.

Yeah it is a bit dead, but to me, I prefer that to steering being twitchy. I drove an M2 and agree, its steering is much better.

[MmmmmM2]

Originally Posted by Lightngsvt

Yeah it is a bit dead, but to me, I prefer that to steering being twitchy. I drove an M2 and agree, its steering is much better.

What's funny is I thought the 340i steering was just fine until I drove the M2.

[CDN-Driver]

In doing research it is also not consistent within a BMW model, and if you get a bad one then you are in for a … challenge.

[M2Crew]

Originally Posted by Jashue

I remembered their review of the F22 well and after having just revisited it, it looks as though that the review for that car might have also been performed on a car with winter tires. Uncharacteristically, they don't mention what tires their tester was wearing, but the review was dated in March of that year and they are in Ontario, so there's that...
Here are a couple screen grabs. Can anyone tell what those tires might be? Do they look like winter tires?

A reminder that they’re just a couple of dudes with a camera, and not actual professional automotive journalists. It’s crazy to base a $50k purchase on what they say.

There are lots of other opinions from influencers of this class that say much better things about the way the car drives. I’ve driven it, there’s no comparison in steering between the new and old M240i. The new one is noticeably sharper.

Anyone who thinks they’re comparable hasn’t driven the new one.