Quote:
Originally Posted by damameke
Test drive both cars and feel and see whats the difference
if your mind is already set on the ///M sign....then
go for it
in any case.. either one is good....
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The cars are surely different.
I test drove 135i last March when it launched. It does have lots of power for sure and drives very nicely. I only drove E46 briefly down the road 2 years ago and that was it for test drive experience. That said, I've always wanted one, so you could say that my mind is set on the ///M badge.
However, the other side of my brain is saying 135i:
- almost on par with M3 in performance
- perhaps 80% of the handling/sharpness/madness of M3
- newer car
- lower insurance
- better fuel economy (not that it's a decision factor for me)
- 3 years of warranty and free maintenance left on 08 model.
If I did not enjoy track driving events, 135i would win this battle. But I keep thinking that the M3 would be much more satisfactory with 2 BMW schools, another 2 track days and a few autocross events. It has LSD plus that M-tuned everything about it.
Anyways, I may find that there's actually no 2008 135i to be had for low $30s, so that may solve the puzzle easily for me. It was just a reaction to my finding those BB values, which meant that one can have a virtually new car with virtually same performance as a 4 year-old M3.
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