Just recently, Edmunds did a road test of the BMW 430i with a six-speed manual, the least powerful 4 Series available in North America. No one had expected it to be a serious performance machine but, with the BMW name on a rear-wheel drive coupe, they had expected it to be fun to drive. Turns out, though, it’s just not that much of a sports car, or at least not as much as anticipated due to BMW’s prestigious reputation. Now, though, Edmunds decided to see what the 430i coupe could do on a test track.
This test is mainly about acceleration, as Edmunds’ Carlos Lago shows off how to launch the BMW 430i. At first, he keeps everything in its most normal mode; so comfort with DSC on. He launches it at around 2,000 rpm and it bogs a bit before taking off, with the traction control sort of slowing it down, and he managed a 6.9 seconds 0-60 mph time. Which is flat-out not good.
Next, he turns everything off and puts it in Sport Plus mode and decides to launch it at 2,500 rpm. It still bogged down a bit and ran a 6.8 second 0-60 mph time, which isn’t great. Also, he noticed a bit of a delay in his attempt at a fast 1-2 upshift, so that could have ruined the time a bit, too.
Lastly, with everything turned off, he launches it at 3,000 rpm and it’s a much better launch, with just a bit of tire spin and then a quick takeoff. After that, his shifts work well and the BMW 430i manages a 6.2 second 0-60 mph time. So launching at 3,000 rpm saw a significant improvement in acceleration time, rather than launching it at 2,500.
The BMW 430i doesn’t need to be a rocket ship to be fun. It just needs to be relatively quick. Unfortunately, 6.2 seconds isn’t even that, as it will get outrun by an automatic V6 Camry and Volkswagen GTI, both of which are considerably cheaper than the 4er. So if you’re looking for a fun, exciting coupe on a budget, get a 2 Series.
