I stopped by a local BMW delership to look around and buy a second set of floor mats. I do this because I lease and before I turn the car back, I throw in the new mats. Anyway, I was looking at pictures of the 04 330i PP, which is exactly like the 03 330i PP that was redesigned in March, the one I have. The one thing he told me was that leather was no longer an option for the 04. The 04 with PP will only have the Alcantara cloth. So I guess it is leather or adaptive lights but not both. I am glad I got 03 with the leather, so if anyone else is trying to decide, you may want to consider this soon.
Glad I got the 03 PP
- Thread starter Bryan330i
- Start date
And to think they charged me $1,450.00 more for the leather over the alcantara??? ![[wave]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_wave.gif "Wave [wave]")
I do like alcantara on the stearing wheel but it is already looking a bit worn where my seats still look as new as when I got the car. I may have selected another car if not given a choice to get the leather. I can see some of the benefits to the alcantara though like heat and cold factor.
I do like alcantara on the stearing wheel but it is already looking a bit worn where my seats still look as new as when I got the car. I may have selected another car if not given a choice to get the leather. I can see some of the benefits to the alcantara though like heat and cold factor.
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Until you try to clean it. I think the leather is going to look a whole lot better down the road. I actually think the opposite of you, I like cotton as well but prefer real leather, I think Alcantara is BMW's version of Velour that is in most all cars. If I want the Alcantara look I can always buy some fuzzy seat covers.
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My car is the same as the 04 except for the availability of leather, and the chance for BMW to get another $1,450.00 per car, and the lights. I guess I am just more af a leather person, but who knows, perhaps someday they will come out with Alcantara computer bags, but I sure wont be toting one around. ![[rofl]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_rofl.gif "ROFL [rofl]")
I'm still trying to figure out why you return a leased car with brand-new floor mats! Please head right back to the dealership and return them---the car is expected to be returned with normal wear and tear; you will not be penalized for returning the car with used floor mats. If you don't care about the $100 for the mats, please send it to me instead---I will be far more appreciative than your dealer.
i got my 04 pp w/ alcantra and i've gotten a lot of comments on it... the first thing people say when they step in my car is how nice the alcantra is. i can see how it'll get used up probably more than leather but i'm happy w/ alcantra and i'm sure BMW thought about its durability....and also why are you buying new mats, u don't need to its an extra waste of money that YOU don't even get to enjoy...i don't get it
bryan330 or any 03 pp owner: do u have rain sensor in your car...when i asked the dealer whats diff. about 2004 pp he said something about the bumper and the rear (but i don't see a diff) but my 04 has rain sensor, which i dunno if it had before...i think they purposely didn't make noticeable changes to the car but do u know why they decided to discontinue the leather?
I always have the car fully detailed and change the mats before I return it. I think they see a nice clean car and just sign off on it. My last car took 10 minutes to check in, they walked around, looked inside, commented on how clean it was, and noted perfect on the return paperwork. I hate BS and just want this stuff done quickly. I originally found this in a lease return pointers manual, small things like this can create a very different image and make the return process a whole lot easier. Why would I want to spend more time negotiating this and that, what is normal wear what is not, its just not worth the hassle.
I was just over at the dealership where my car is being fixed. I was talking to the service guy and we both agreed that the alcantara is very nice, but as he said, it depends on how long you are going to keep the car. Who knows why they changed this on the 330iPP. He thought that is was going to impact sales for the PP because a lot of people are looking for the good old BMW leather.
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i'm sure they'll loose business with some people who want leather...just as they'll loose people if they don't have a feature that say is in say a mercedes. But if you're gonna pay the extra $ for a performance package, you're asking for performance...your decision shouldn't be based on the interior unless leather is a really important factor for you in a car. But its not like you're getting a bad interior because alcantra is awesome and looks reallly nice on the car, so i don't think its worth getting the 03...if you're gonna order it get 04 unless the leather is a big issue w/ u. Its been raining here for 3 days straight and the 'suede-like' part of my alcantra is still perfect...bmw thought of this kind of stuff
Leather all the way.
![[thumb]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_thumb.gif "Thumbs Up [thumb]"){kind=icon}
I somehow don't see Porsche, MB and the others going with full Alcantara. I don't know if you remember some of the few cars that tried this before? My opinion is that it looks soooo bad after a while. I know my steering wheel has definite signs of wear and is going to need a cover or replacement well before 1 year. I think there is going to be a whole lot of warranty costs with this decision BMW had made.