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2Addicts | BMW 2-Series forum BMW 2 Series (F22) Forum 2 Series Pricing, Ordering, European Delivery Steptronic or wait for sports transmission?

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      04-27-2014, 01:17 PM   #1
Sounds
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Steptronic or wait for sports transmission?

Does anyone have any opinions on the steptronic? I have the option to get a 228i that is optioned out almost exactly how I want it except that it doesn't have the sports transmission with paddle shifters.

Is it worth the wait to custom order a 228i without the steptronic?
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      04-27-2014, 01:28 PM   #2
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If you are even considering the custom order then I think the consensus would be an overwhelming - YES (you should wait)!

I special ordered my 6MT and got to test drive an 8spd and WOW... I really did inquire about trying to change after the car was in production.. alas I was not allowed too. Maybe it's for the best
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      04-27-2014, 01:35 PM   #3
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Yes. I'm not a fan of the steptronic on my 128i. Very lazy downshifts.

The new 8 speed sport auto is much better. I don't even understand why BMW offers the steptronic.
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      04-27-2014, 01:53 PM   #4
Sounds
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I was afraid you guys were going to say that. It's extremely tempting to settle for the steptronic so that I could drive away with a new car this week, but I'm afraid I'd always regret that decision.

It seems like half the cars on dealer lots in California are the steptronic. It's so weird that they would do that.
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      04-27-2014, 02:03 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sounds
I was afraid you guys were going to say that. It's extremely tempting to settle for the steptronic so that I could drive away with a new car this week, but I'm afraid I'd always regret that decision.

It seems like half the cars on dealer lots in California are the steptronic. It's so weird that they would do that.
Look at it this way, wait 2-3 months for exactly what you want vs deal with something less than ideal for 3+ years. Seems like an easy decision as far as I can tell.
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      04-27-2014, 02:23 PM   #6
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The sports auto in manual sport+ mode is a reasonable imitation of a decent dual clutch box. Its like eating imitation crab, decent enough, but not quite the real thing.

The steptronic is a useless piece of crap in manual mode, just like any other automatic with paddle shifters you have driven everywhere else. This is like eating tofurky and calling it roast beef. In full auto mode, it is indistinguishable from the sport auto in comfort auto mode.

There is no reason to purchase a car with the steptronic. NONE.
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      04-27-2014, 07:01 PM   #7
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I was in your same situation. More than half the 228s in California have that steptronic transmission. My CA ended up doing a dealer trade for one without. Should be here in a couple weeks as it was still on the boat. Curious what the options you want are?
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      04-27-2014, 07:08 PM   #8
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Which trans comes with the m235 in the US?
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      04-27-2014, 07:39 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by disco4me View Post
Which trans comes with the m235 in the US?
only 8 speed sport automatic (ZF) or 6 speed manual
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      04-28-2014, 10:47 AM   #10
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If you plan on using the paddle shifters, then wait. Incidentally, I ordered mine and the dealer added the option and I didn't realize it until it was too late. I think since it's listed so prominently (first) that dealers are selecting it and not realizing they've overriden the default option of the advertised Sport Auto with paddle shifters, launch control, and Sport+ mode. I am with previous posters, why would anyone even want the Steptronic?

If you plan on using launch control and paddle shifting then wait to order one - but honestly, I don't see how or why straight Sport mode would be geared any differently between the Sport Automatic and the Steptronic. It's all conjecture and a mystery if there is any difference - some people say 200ms difference between shifts (I know it's hard to believe anyone would ever notice that). http://www.f30post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=683974 I've researched this ad nauseam just to calm my OCD of not having the Sport Automatic.

That being said, you don't get the Sport+ mode (behaves like a standard with no auto shift) with the Steptronic. I debated reordering but realized for me personally I rarely if ever used the shifter in my C230 and I was upset at first but am well over it. Oh yeah, you get a nicer shifter boot with the Sport Auto as well.

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      04-28-2014, 11:23 AM   #11
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Since the m235i comes with only 8 speed sport automatic (ZF), I assume this isn't an ordering problem to watch out for on the m235i. Is that correct?
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      04-28-2014, 11:26 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by disco4me View Post
Since the m235i comes with only 8 speed sport automatic (ZF), I assume this isn't an ordering problem to watch out for on the m235i. Is that correct?
Correct, you can't order the Steptronic on the M235i according to the options sheet.
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      04-28-2014, 08:04 PM   #13
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Aren't the Steptronic and Sport Auto the same transmission, except for the addition of the paddles and maybe some programming? The 228 I test drove had the Steptronic and it was 8 speed. The car I ordered is the 228 MSport so I will have the sport auto.
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      04-28-2014, 10:54 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SteveAustin View Post
It's all conjecture and a mystery if there is any difference - some people say 200ms difference between shifts (I know it's hard to believe anyone would ever notice that). http://www.f30post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=683974 I've researched this ad nauseam just to calm my OCD of not having the Sport Automatic.
Well, I would hardly call a first hand account conjecture. My opinion is that a statement like that would only be made by someone who has not driven both personally...

I own a 328xi wagon with the sport auto, owned an SMG M6, and owned a DSG TTS. I have driven a 228 with steptronic on the lot. I *promise* you that the experience is night and day different. I have driven manuals my entire life, and almost all of them are undrivable from a fun/sport perspective because they suffer from the same sluggish shift disease that make them useless. The sport auto is the *ONLY* "true automatic" box I have ever driven that doesn't have this cancer in it's blood.

As I've said before, the steptronic operates like any other slushbox manumatic you can find anywhere. specifically, there is a noticeable lag when you ask it to downshift. Ask it to downshift 3 or 4 gears at once (say at a right turn banging down to 2nd) and it almost always blows you off. Useless.

The sport auto mostly behaves exactly like this when in comfort mode as well. That's ok though because that behavior is gone in sport and sport+. You can be in 5th, brake, downshift to 2nd as fast as you can, turn, then step on the gas - you will be in the right gear in the sport modes. On the other hand, the steptronic slurs every shift through the torque converter and it's a crapshoot what gear you will be in if you try to do the same thing. That is not a particularly satisfying experience.

In some ways, the sport auto is better than the audi DSG box. Although DSG is super smooth, it's only bang responsive when it correctly predicts what you are trying to do. A double or triple downshift isn't really that fast on a DSG and it "guesses wrong" on what it thinks your next shift is far more often than you would like. When it guesses right, it's downright magical. Other times, It is annoying.

"Launch Control" is far more useful than people give it credit too. Although you can "activate" it, you don't need to. All launch control is is brake torquing to load up the torque converter and letting go of the brake. This is why the instructions tell you to hold the brake pedal firmly. People have been launching automatic transmissions this way since the 60s.

Anyway, there isn't any conjecture or mystery. Yes, the hardware is physically the same. No, the software is not. The software transforms the experience so much that it may as well be different hardware. Go drive the two yourself. You aren't being honest with yourself if you think there isn't much of a difference after you do.
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      04-28-2014, 11:28 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeG12 View Post
Aren't the Steptronic and Sport Auto the same transmission, except for the addition of the paddles and maybe some programming? The 228 I test drove had the Steptronic and it was 8 speed. The car I ordered is the 228 MSport so I will have the sport auto.
Even the 228 MSport can have the Steptronic option ticked. When I was with my CA trying to find a car (didn't want to wait to order), filtering out the Steptronic made my results go from like 24 to 8 for those with the M Sport package.
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      04-28-2014, 11:46 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sounds View Post
It seems like half the cars on dealer lots in California are the steptronic. It's so weird that they would do that.
Dealers screwed up royally placing the orders. Steptronic is a no-cost option. You absolutely do not want it.

Take a look at this:
http://www.2addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=952487

It's one thing to rationalize away if you got stuck with the car and didn't realize what you'd done, but if you have the choice, don't be a sucker. The dealers think they can unload these on unsuspecting people who don't know they're getting "ripped off" / paying for the dealership's ordering mistakes. ("there's an ass for every seat")
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      04-29-2014, 12:00 AM   #17
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@SteveAustin - isn't the shifter itself also different? My understanding, too, is that you don't have the Sport+ program at all. So even if the hardware is the same, the software is very different.
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      04-29-2014, 12:12 AM   #18
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This is an interior picture from BMW Beverly Hills - purports to be a 228i with sport auto:
http://s5.postimg.org/w187cvq0n/sport_auto.jpg

This is an interior picture of another 228i from random BMW dealer in bumfuk America that was advertised as steptronic:
http://s5.postimg.org/k0mrc5ilz/8386999967x640.jpg

And this is a side-by-side from one of your links -- so I believe two 3-series cars -- but a little old, dated 2012:
http://s5.postimg.org/krfhhxkzb/shif...2012_04_10.jpg
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      04-29-2014, 12:33 AM   #19
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So I can shed some light at least in regards to the F30. In my opinion there is a huge difference between sport auto and steptronic. Even outside of cosmetics, and paddles. I've driven enough f30 loaners with steptronic to know there is noticeable difference in shift speed between the two. The sport auto shifts stronger and with more authority. With that said, assuming the shift speed is roughly 100-200 milliseconds of difference, is that really a game changer? Depends. Drive both to see how you feel. For me it was.
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      04-29-2014, 05:31 AM   #20
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I'm frankly only interested in a manual, but where is the option for the sport automatic listed? I've spent some time on the BMW build site and I'm not finding it for the 228.

If you click on standard features, the sport auto tranny is listed as the standard transmission. I don't see any mention of the steptronic...?
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      04-29-2014, 08:35 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by maxdriver View Post
I'm frankly only interested in a manual, but where is the option for the sport automatic listed? I've spent some time on the BMW build site and I'm not finding it for the 228.

If you click on standard features, the sport auto tranny is listed as the standard transmission. I don't see any mention of the steptronic...?
The Sport Auto is standard. Many dealers were ticking the steptronic option.
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      04-29-2014, 04:38 PM   #22
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Quote:
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The Sport Auto is standard. Many dealers were ticking the steptronic option.
Ok thanks! See you have a miata..had a '92 for years!
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