steptronic auto trans on 08 328xi

397188
Posts: 1

New member to club- is is safe to drive the steptronic
auto on 2008 328xi in sport mode or for that matter manual mode most of the time? If ok is the only drawback reduced gas mileage-


364450
Posts: 135

I have 2007 X3 3.0si. Since I got it, I have found that except when cruising on the highway (straight highways), I tend to use the sport mode most of the time and when I drive winding roads, I regularly use the manual mode for both down shifting for deceleration and having more torque around the turns. I think the key issue is allowing the car to warm up before getting hard on the accelerator and pushing the RPMs above 4 or 5K. BMW straight six engines thrive on high RPMs once warmed up and broken in.

I have driven the 328xi a number of times so I can understand why you would want to use the sport mode and manual--the engine which is lively at higher RPM seems a bit light on torque below 3000 RPM. I have also driven the 335xi and that one really does not need the sport mode, but even here, you will get a lot more punch as the lower gearing/higher RPMs of the sport mode will get the turbos spooling up faster. My X3 has plenty of torque throughout the RPM range, but it is a blast to zip past most cars at lower speeds and have that faster throttle response in the sport mode.