The true way of testing a car is by owning it. No matter how much you struggle to find out everything you can when on a test drive, some things will never be uncovered.
That's why the guys from Car and Driver simply bought a BMW F30 328i in 2012 to own and test at their own will over the course of the next year. Needless to say that until now the car covered well over 40,000 miles and it's still going strong.
Over 13 months of ownership and all those miles, the amount of money that went into this car was limited to USD1,384 and those were tires that needed replacing for one reason or another.
Furthermore, the overall fuel consumption registered was limited at 27 mpg (8.7 l/100km) with no holding back whatsoever. Sure, some people complained about the lacking 2 cylinders and about the turbocharger fitted under the bonnet but that's what times ask for; fuel consumption and environment protection are notions that have to be implemented in our head, once and for all.
Some problems were encountered along the way too but all of them were covered under BMW's generous 5-year warranty that solves almost any problem. Other complaints include a lack of feedback from the car but these problems are already well known.
For the full story, check out Car and Driver.
Over 13 months of ownership and all those miles, the amount of money that went into this car was limited to USD1,384 and those were tires that needed replacing for one reason or another.
Furthermore, the overall fuel consumption registered was limited at 27 mpg (8.7 l/100km) with no holding back whatsoever. Sure, some people complained about the lacking 2 cylinders and about the turbocharger fitted under the bonnet but that's what times ask for; fuel consumption and environment protection are notions that have to be implemented in our head, once and for all.
Some problems were encountered along the way too but all of them were covered under BMW's generous 5-year warranty that solves almost any problem. Other complaints include a lack of feedback from the car but these problems are already well known.
For the full story, check out Car and Driver.