I Need This: BMW 135i

[superberkut]

I'll be owning a lightly used example after I (hopefully) get my career going and can afford it. I still love '80s BMWs, but how can I resist a stunning E30-sized twin-turbo straight six beast that returns the same gas mileage as my 318i yet needs just half the time to get to 60mph?

I never thought I'd fall in love with a brand-new car.

Of many of the responses, this was a well-worded post, and I find myself agreeing.

I like it. But please, BMW, squeeze the 3.5 into the hatchback too!

M Coupe revival? But hardly a breadvan.

Bones Brigade, are you taking two jobs to buy one?

 

[Bones Brigade]

Theres like a 100 350Zs for sale were im moving and they were all under $18k. cheapest was about $15,000ish with about 70k miles.

@ bones

yes, i was looking at the 06+ with under 15k on the odo. around here theyre mostly 25k+.

 

[TopHat]

how much does it cost in UK and USA?

over here it costs let me see..

130i sport auto $66 300
135i Sport auto $74 200

335i Coupe 3.0lt TT auto $111 700
M3 $157 000

now you can almost call that equal to USD with the AUD being the best part of 91 cents. So take 10% off and you have USD prices..

How does it compare?

So, I guess that means we're getting the 135i at around.... $40,000 in AUD?

 

[YSSMAN]

I'm surprised that no one else is bothered by the fact that you're essentially getting less of a 3-series for more money... Not exactly what I'd want to be doing. Being completely honest, I'd rather spend the extra money for the "watered down" 328 than the 135, but thats just me. Then again, I'd rather just buy a used 3er anyway.

Of course, nothing will replace the origional:

There is one for sale near my home, and if I had any bit of an EPIC streak, I'd buy it and choose it over a Mazda 3...

 

[Bones Brigade]

i honestly dont like the 3 series. it may be exactly what you say it is (although it IS cheaper and performs slightly better) but for me, i like the looks much better.

 

[///M-Spec]

I'm surprised that no one else is bothered by the fact that you're essentially getting less of a 3-series for more money...

Umm. Not possible at comparable equipment levels.


M

 

[guitardude999]

Ide still have one of the new 3 series coupes over the 135i even it were to be a 320i !

The 3 series is just plain gorgeous !!! The 1 series looks like a nice small car aswell,
For that price though, there are alot of 4 door cars with better performance.

 

[YSSMAN]

Umm. Not possible at comparable equipment levels.


M

Understandable, but I just can't wrap my head around it. Car and Driver had a pretty shining review of it in their newest issue, called it the "two and one half series," which seems like a good characterization. I dunno, I just don't quite have it all together, likely due to not yet seeing one in person.

...I just have a hard time justifying the price when the 3-er is just slightly more...

 

[buickgnx88]

Well the 1-Series competes with the A3 and C30 (according to Consumer Guide) and basically with the 135i you can get the same drivetrain as the 335i for about 6 grand less.

 

[Joey D]

I'll take the C30 then, hands down.

 

[Spec M]

I think mostly everyone would agree its a pretty nice car generally, its just the cost that makes it seem, well I guess unreasonable.

Danachronism: bro your avatar pic is outrageous!

 

[YSSMAN]

...unreasonable...

Well, I think thats a bit of a stretch. Granted, if I had $30K to kick around I'd likely be considering it easily, but the problem is, I'm playing armchair driver, and without actually haven driven one (much less seeing one in person), its hard to convince me that its better than the 3-series.

This all being said, of course, if we got the hatchback I'd be sold immediately...

 

[buickgnx88]

Of course what's interesting is it may cost high, BUT it costs the same as the A3 S-line and has 50 more horses. Heck, it costs less than the A4 3.2 and beats it in power by about 45 horses as well. So I'd say it's a good deal for what you get and compared to what you could get.

Edit: Between this and the 3-series, it's a bit of a toss-up. The top of the line 135i would be falling into base 328i range, but many times there does get to be some price overlap.

 

[YSSMAN]

Certainly so, I don't think anyone in their right mind (other than Forza2.0) could rationalize the purchase of an A3 against it. That being said, VW will be happy to offer you a R32 for a similar price, which seems far more "worth it" under some circumstances. Furthermore, GM will be handing out the Solstice coupe shortly as well, however, that comes with a lack of two seats. Damn.

Its a good car, I just question it overall. Its a bit of a head-scratcher, but I give BMW a lot of credit for actually doing it, creating a new category of car for others to eventually jump into.

Thought: One small problem though, that same $30-ish K gets you one of these

I'll have McQueen's ride, thanks...

 

[Spec M]

Yea that is sick dude and I would love to have one (bullit). Im pretty sure ill have some hands on time with the 135i while im in school and more than likely ill love it even more. Theres just way too many options for $30k though IMO.

 

[buickgnx88]

Ahhhhh the Bullitt, I looked at it on the Ford website today, awesome looking car, I love the combo of dark green body and charcoal wheels. What they need to come out with again is another Cobra as sort of inbetween the GT and Shelby, and then of course reintroduce the red-orange Cobra-R!

 

[Wolfe]

YSSMAN, the reasoning for taking the 1-series over the 3-series is exactly like the reasoning for taking the 3-series over the 5-series, or the 5-series over the 7-series. It's smaller and more-driver-oriented, even if its price may overlap with the larger car, particularly with options checked.

There's also always the subjective area of exterior styling -- I happen to think the E82 is the best-looking car BMW has produced since the E46.

 

[Spec M]

This all being said, of course, if we got the hatchback I'd be sold immediately...

Yes it seems they kinda skiped over the hatch. Ive only seen one of these in real life. But I can definitely imagine how that would look though. If this were to come about I'd probably really want one.

 

[McLaren]

Why exactly would you take the Bullit over the 135i, let alone a regular old GT Premium? Both the latter look a lot better, and I'm sure the obvious one of the 2 will probably be faster and possibly funner to drive based on my previous BMW experiences.

 

[Blackbird.]

Honestly...

over...

???

Even exterior wise I'd take the 135 over the Bullitt.

 

[buickgnx88]

Stop! Bullitt-time!

 

[Spec M]

Why exactly would you take the Bullit over the 135i, let alone a regular old GT Premium? Both the latter look a lot better, and I'm sure the obvious one of the 2 will probably be faster and possibly funner to drive based on my previous BMW experiences.

There just personal preferences bro. Im an original Bullitt fan, and its just more dominate IMO. Hopefully if/when they do a remake they wont ruin it lol. Blackbird, very nice by the way.

 

[Blackbird.]

Why exactly would you take the Bullit over the 135i, let alone a regular old GT Premium? Both the latter look a lot better, and I'm sure the obvious one of the 2 will probably be faster and possibly funner to drive based on my previous BMW experiences.

I don't know if it's a fare comparison but I've driven only an '85 535i that was only chipped but it was a blast to drive!

There's also always the subjective area of exterior styling -- I happen to think the E82 is the best-looking car BMW has produced since the E46.

*cough*E92*cough*

Blackbird, very nice by the way.

Huh?

 

[Spec M]

The pics...

 

[YSSMAN]

Why exactly would you take the Bullit over the 135i, let alone a regular old GT Premium?

Its all about the color, man...

(lol)

I guess I look at it this way; As I recall the weight difference between the two aren't too great, and actually, the overall acceleration times aren't drastically different between the two either. However, like you said, handling is certainly different.

Dunno. I still make the Mustang GT the performance/dollar champ of the market.

 

[TopHat]

The pics...

Of a cheap interior, and an ugly interior?

 

[Blackbird.]

The pics...

Oh, heh, just a quick google search.

 

[YSSMAN]

Even on the interior I still think the Mustang puts forth character, which I think is great. Sure, its not the best interior out there, but it looks cool, and I like the feel of it. Again, I haven't even seen a 135i in person, so I can't compare.

But yes, I do think the Mustang interior looks more "cool" than that of the BMW.

 

[Spec M]

Oh, heh, just a quick google search.

Yea they both looked pretty nice even though their very diverse. Thats basically what I was thinking.

 

[McLaren]

I don't know if it's a fare comparison but I've driven only an '85 535i that was only chipped but it was a blast to drive!

Now you know I what go through every day except in newer tech.

There just personal preferences bro. Im an original Bullitt fan, and its just more dominate IMO. Hopefully if/when they do a remake they wont ruin it lol. Blackbird, very nice by the way.

It was more directed at Brad, but I can understand that.

However, I find the exterior of the Bullitt to be just boring next to the Premium GT. To me, the GT's spoiler, grill lights, hood scoop, and bigger rims just give it a meaner look. In all honesty, I would see the Bullitt Mustang as just a special edition of the base Mustang if it didn't put out more power than the GT.