The 228i's Steering is Too. Damn. Light.

"gabbo241" (gabbo241)
07/23/2014 at 18:28 • Filed to: BMW, 228i, M sport

There's a proud tradition of "purists" lamenting things like water cooling, EPS, forced induction, four wheel drive, safety standards, weight, and so on. To a man, they are almost all insufferable. And not least because they often can't afford the cars in question anyway. For example, people with LinkedIn profiles that read "automotive journalist," but whose last names aren't Clarkson, May, or Hammond.

I don't happen to care how the 228i's steering is assisted (electrically), or how air gets into its combustion chambers. To me, whether air lets itself in, or is helped along by a little pinwheel is of scarce consequence.

All I care about is the fact that when I got into a 228i M Sport this weekend and turned the wheel, I was met with about as much resistance as you'd find in a GM product - and not a cool one like the Corvette. More like an Impala, or a Cruze.

For a company that only builds one thing (The Ultimate Driving Machine), I think this is a problem. Steering with heft conveys to the driver that driving is a serious matter to be met with serious machinery. Overboosted steering tells you that you can go ahead and text, or do your makeup, or eat an Egg McMuffin - because driving is just another dopey thing that you do in the course of your day, and its no big deal and let not get too excited about it.

And so, while I appreciate BMW's graciousness in permitting me to sling a beautiful new 228i around an autocross course this weekend, I surely wish the steering was a bit heavier.

At this point, someone in the front of the class is going to raise their hand and remind me that a simple button press will make the steering heavier. The trouble is that when an upwardly mobile young professional goes to test drive a 228i M Sport and starts maneuvering out of the parking lot, she's going to be unpleasantly surprised by the default steering setting. And that first turn of the wheel is what sells a car.

So, BMW. On M Sport models, make the default steering setting heavier. That's all I ask.

DISCUSSION (25)

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > gabbo241
07/23/2014 at 18:31

I say this all of the time. Overly light steering RUINS cars. My parents had a renault until recently had super light steering, over assisted brakes and a gear shift that was like whisking milk. Terrible to drive.

BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather > gabbo241
07/23/2014 at 18:32

When will enthusiasts realize that BMW is no more? How many more times do they have to get crushed in comparisons by Audi and Lexus (Lexus people!!!) before we realize that this isn't 2003 anymore and that BMW only builds one thing now: the ultimate badge carrier.

 V8 Rustler > gabbo241
07/23/2014 at 18:35

I test drove an M235i and felt the steering was very good for being electric. At first the EPS on my 2013 Mustang GT felt very weird, but now it feels good. But the best steering feel was the one on one of our BMW 1 series with hydraulic power steering.

Logansteno: Bought a VW? > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
07/23/2014 at 18:38

As much as I don't want to agree with you, I agree with you.

Fucking CADILLAC is more sporty now.

Jedidiah > gabbo241
07/23/2014 at 18:55

Personally, I like cars with light steering and precise steering; driving is better the easier it gets.

Typically, cars with heavy steering are designed around us fat-ass Americans who eat and text behind the wheel. Cars with light steering require minimal effort to turn wheel. The more extreme the steering ratio is, the more turns of the wheel it will require; regardless of whether it feels light or heavy. The ratio is responsible for the precision you have over the car while how it's made (pressure in the steering pump, etc) determines how it feels.

Modern cars typically have a lot of caster in their front spindles (and thus heavy steering) because it allows the car to track straight if your hands were to leave the wheel accidently (or on purpose). The wheels are less likely to turn because it requires a greater input (not neccisarily the number of turns) from the driver. Think about a chopper with long front forks; it has a lot of caster on its front wheel and it requires more effort to turn. Something like a shopping cart has little caster and the wheels turn incredibly easily.

The drivetrain type affects steering feel as well; FWD cars have more boosted power steering pumps typically.

I agree with your complain that newer cars seem to be designed around eating (why do we need so many cup holders?), but what constitutes good steering is more than simply feeling heavy. You have to feel the road underneath you and how the tires are responding without wearing yourself out or being uncomfortable—that is hard to design and sometimes hard to judge.

Louros > gabbo241
07/23/2014 at 18:59

Guess what? BMW is still going to sell a metric fuck-ton of 228is regardless of how you feel about the steering.

Manuél Ferrari > gabbo241
07/23/2014 at 19:15

I HATE THIS TREND!!!

BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather > Logansteno: Bought a VW?
07/23/2014 at 19:27

Oh I didn't even mention them because that's pretty much a given nowadays. I love how everyone complained how soft the new 3 was and how it was no longer its old self. Then Caddy basically built what everyone wanted the 3 to be, but then they said it was too much, so the 3 would still outrank it...

TulsaMtnBiker (OkieRising) > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
07/23/2014 at 20:10

Before you concrete that into fact. Take a new M3/4 for a spin. I think you'll enjoy it highly.

TulsaMtnBiker (OkieRising) > gabbo241
07/23/2014 at 20:11

I didn't drive the M235, but the M3/4's steering was fantastic IMO. Perhaps 228's default setting could be coded to sport?

gabbo241 > Logansteno: Bought a VW?
07/23/2014 at 20:15

The new CTS' steering is noticeably better, for example. Subtle and not excessive heft, enough to communicate serious intentions.

gabbo241 > Louros
07/23/2014 at 20:27

No disagreement there. Part of the reason I restricted reco to M Sport. But, ah, they sold a shitload of 1's and 3's with much heavier steering. So, what's your point?

Louros > gabbo241
07/23/2014 at 20:36

Point is too many people on this "forum" bitch about BMW just to bitch.

Satoshi "Zipang" Katsura > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
07/23/2014 at 20:45

Except BMW offers what Lexus doesn't (manuel)?

DipodomysDeserti > gabbo241
07/23/2014 at 21:06

I was given a few F30 variants as loaners while my E90 was in for work and the steering felt too light on all of them. My wife thought something was wrong with our E90 when we got it back because she got used to the new ones. My dads M235i has some sport settings which remedy the light steering.

gabbo241 > DipodomysDeserti
07/24/2014 at 00:08

Completely agree, I have an E90 328i. I wonder if the 228i and new 3ers have variable ratio steering that overboosts at low speeds (or all speeds).

gabbo241 > Logansteno: Bought a VW?
07/24/2014 at 00:11

I think its overstated to say that BMW is dead. They make great engines and chassis. I think this overboosted steering thing is a relatively easy fix. And Cadillac's rise doesn't necessarily reflect badly on BMW.

gabbo241 > Louros
07/24/2014 at 00:13

Totally agree and why I was bustin on "purists" at the beginning of the post. BMW doesnt need to worry about what people who pick up used Beamers (like myself) think. But I just think that its also ill advised as a business decision.

gabbo241 > Manuél Ferrari
07/24/2014 at 00:14

There's got to be a happy median. The 228i's tuning is definitely not it.

VinnieDeutsch > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
07/24/2014 at 15:30

I second TulsaMtnBiker. Also, let's see what the M2 is about. The point is, even if the everyday models have become softer, BMW still churns out some serious machines. Plus, anyone who thinks my E92 335i drives worse than a Lexus is high; and, if the steering of the F30/F32 is anything like the M235i then no way Lexus is touching it. I've never actually driven an Audi so I have no opinion their driving characteristics. I have driven a few Lexus' (Lexus's, Lexii?) and I thought they were soulless shitboxes inside and out and everywhere in between.

BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather > VinnieDeutsch
07/24/2014 at 16:53

Which Lexus did you drive? The new IS and new GS are nothing like the old hopped-up Toyotas of yesterday.

VinnieDeutsch > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather
07/24/2014 at 17:16

Yeah these were all the previous gens, IS and RX. Obviously the RX isn't expected to be a driving experience but it reaffirmed my extreme dislike of Lexus design both inside and out. I remember the last IS was absolutely horrible to drive and that impression sticks. So the new ones are much better? I remember the steering of the old IS was just not there.

Victorious Secret > TulsaMtnBiker (OkieRising)
07/25/2014 at 11:36

Thank you. Easy to talk crap about cars you haven't driven and then say they aren't the same as the old ones.

Victorious Secret > Louros
07/25/2014 at 11:38

Enthusiasts have never been a target market and never will be, its just that these days its more apparent that companies don't give a shit about excellent steering feel because 99.9% of the buyers also don't give a shit, and it makes a tough business case to make a car marketed and built for that 0.01%, of whom 99% can't afford it.

People just love to bitch about these things.

n54 & s38 > DipodomysDeserti
07/28/2014 at 13:04

Ditto. Had an F30 320i while my 335xi was in the shop. Couldn't get used to how light the steering was.