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335i..2 months on


gangzoom

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I’ve been without my 350z coming up to 2 months now, and thought I do a mini-review of the the 335i thats replaced her.

 

Engine: The first thing to say is just how amazing the power unit is. At 306BHP the engine isn't short on power, but can return 30mpg+ when driven sensibly. I previously been dubious of turboed cars due to the fear of turbo lag. But the 335i really has no or very minimal turbo lag, certainly anything above 2k rpm and she just pulls all the way to the 7k red line like a NA unit. There is talk that BMW actually underrated the engine in the official specs, I don't find that hard to believe since the 335i seems to pull much better than the Z ever did at speeds of 60mph+.

 

There does seem to be issues around engine cooling, but there's plenty of info about how to improve this. Getting more air into the engine bay seems the key.

 

Drivetrain: My 335i is the first auto car I’ve driven. In daily use there’s nothing to fault, just stick into D and away you go. If you really want to make progress just stick into DS mode or use the full manual mode with the paddles. The auto box shifts flawlessly, and even blips the throttle on down shifts.

 

Handling: I’ve never driven any BMWs before the 335i and use to make fun of the 'we bring joy' BMW adverts, but I have to admit the steering feel and general handling of the car is fantastic. Though turn in is not quite pinpoint it's certainty much better than alot of other cars I've driven. My car has the M sport suspension and run-flat tyres, personally I find the ride fine, but that may be because I'm use to driving cars with hard suspension set ups and more than willing to trade comfort for better handling. My only gripe with handling was the lack of a true LSD.

 

Differential: When I first found out BMW only fitted their M cars with a mechanical LSD i was shocked. After all how could BMW claim to care about 'driving joy' if they are too tight to fit a LSD to a 300bhp+ car. Luckily for only £1300 Birds down in London with install a LSD. I had this done within 10 days of taking ownership of my 335i, and couldn't be happier. No longer does the car bog down mid corner due to the TC kicking in, and the feeling of the backend squatting down as the LSD transfer power from one wheel to another is fab.

 

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Mods: BMW offer power kits, extra spoiler kits as dealer fitted options for a price. On top of this there seems to be countless after market support for the car. As well as the LSD I’ve fitted a lip spoiler, window spoiler, debaged and carbon effect diffuser…all cheap copies off ebay but paint matches actually perfect and lets me save a few £££

 

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Practicality: The main reason I bought my 335i was the fact I wanted some thing more grown up and practical than my Z. The interior of the 335i is better than the Z, the iDrive system is actually quite easy to use when you get use to it. Its got a reasonable boot and plenty of space in the back.

 

I've also been pleasantly surprised at how many positive comments I've had from people about the car, and contrary to popular believe have even been let out of junctions by other drivers despite driving a BMW. Mpg wise I'm getting about 20 around town, and on long runs 35+, which for the performance on offer is simply amazing.

 

Value for money: I paid £20k for mine from a main dealer, and she is just over 3 years old. I plan to spend £5k on performance mods at the end of which I think I'll have a car which is close to M3 pace but much more subtle, and with lower running costs. Obviously I would love an M3/M5 but that's going to have to wait another 5 years when the mortgage is smaller!!

 

Overall: I been lucky enough to own some fabulously cars in the last 7 years, but without a doubt the 335i is the best to date. I still find it hard to believe BMW has produced a 4-door saloon that handles better, and is faster than many dedicated sports cars. 2 months on and still find my self laughing out loud every time I find a empty stretch of road and put my foot down.

 

One happy 335i owner :thumbs:

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have you found the distinct lack of any good forums?

 

i recently bought a 2011 e91 for work and i have been posting on bimmerforums for about 2 months. i may as well talk to myself as no one ever replies or if they do it takes weeks and is usually incorrect. its really frustrating when your used to the 350z forum where you get about 10 replies within an hour.

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Nice review mate-o, lovely motor. Tried the 335i when I was looking to change the zed and was really impressed. As said above though user forums are a nightmare, they are either far too big so you get lost in the crowd or in the M3 case full of e36/e46 "rude boys" who are out to pick a fight at any oppertunity. Guess thats why so many ex-owners hang around here :lol:

 

R

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The bimmer may be better than the Z, but this place is head and tails better than the BMW forums...use "E90 posts", seems better than some of the others.....so will hang around here for a while yet, who knows when the wife's Civic starts falling apart (which may be never, it's done 41,000 miles in 2 years and only had to pay for 2 tyres and some front brake pads :yawn: ). I'll defiantly be nudging her to look at some Infinit's :thumbs:

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Nice review :thumbs: ..seen your other post on the E90post.com forum. :thumbs:

Agreed with what srobrien and gangzoom had said..350Z uk forum is easily the best car forum. People are so much nicer and helpful here than the e90post forum. Too much bitching(considering it's a male members dominated forum :bangin: ) going on..you have people slagging off someone else's for sale ad all the time and coming up with nasty comments who have no intention of making a positive contribution to your thread. Uncalled for really. :dry::thumbdown:

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I was really impressed with my accountant's, dorve it a number of times and although it was a bit soft for my taste it was a great car - that engine is one of the best produced inthe last 15 years IMO. :)

 

He bought it from new and had a lot of niggly faults which was disappointing though, I have to say :(

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