Interesting Comparo: 135i vs 335i vs '02 M3
 

The kind of stuff we argue about, except they actually went and did it.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Drives/Comparos/articleId=125908

There is tons of talk about that article over on the M3 forums. Most of the E46 owners are pretty hardcore and talk a lot of smack about the 1 and the 3. The consensus over there is pretty much the same as the article's conclusion. All of the cars are great, but nothing can compare to the feeling of an M car. I can attest. Sitting in the drivers seat and seeing the little ///M badge on the dashboard along with the grey face of the gauges just feels special. I'm actually getting goosebumps right now just thinking about it. God I can't wait to get home for the summer and hear than engine whine up to 8000rpms

My brother has an M3 from last year. Thinks he will switch back to a Porsche after a few years.

I've only driven an E46 M3 once, but came away VERY impressed. They just need to depreciate more.:D

To the credit of the 135 and 335, it is impressive after only 6 years, BMW's non-M cars are within a few tenths of the M3 on a track. An M version of the 135 could be a very special car.

It really is. I would love to see an M1.


The market for the E46 M3 is really soft right now. Our CPO with 22K miles was right around $33K-$34K. I consider that a steal on a car that had an original sticker of about $64-$65K.

I was at Road America last weekend. My student was driving an E46 M3 while another had a 335i with the Dinan software. Damn thing pulled right by the E46 M3 on the straights. My prediction is that once people start modding the headers and turbos on the 335i it won't only cream the E46 M3 but will likely scare the hell out of the new V8 M3 owners.

"The results of Dinan’s tuning are nothing short of breathtaking, with the added boost and related recalibration producing maximum output of 384 horsepower at 5700 rpm and 421 lb-ft torque at 4300 rpm. All of this additional power is available from Dinan’s software alone, which is easily downloaded by your Authorized Dinan Dealer in about an hour."

Tuning is $2k at Dinan (of course), but $799 with Active Autowerkes. A 384 HP 135i would be fun.:D

"The results of Dinan’s tuning are nothing short of breathtaking, with the added boost and related recalibration producing maximum output of 384 horsepower at 5700 rpm and 421 lb-ft torque at 4300 rpm. All of this additional power is available from Dinan’s software alone, which is easily downloaded by your Authorized Dinan Dealer in about an hour."

Tuning is $2k at Dinan (of course), but $799 with Active Autowerkes. A 384 HP 135i would be fun.:D

I am thinking about the 135 but I am going to wait a little longer until they have more selection on the dealer lots. I test drove the car a few weeks ago and I would have to order it which likely means full MSRP and I have to sell my daily to try and justify this.

It will be interesting to see how high gas prices have to go to shut down the performance car market almost entirely like what happened in the 70s. The new federal mileage rules combined with the record gas prices are IMO going to put a halt on all these 300+hp family cars/SUVs, 400+ hp touring cars and 500+hp muscle/sports cars pretty soon.

Which is fine, we really DON'T need soccer moms running around in 300hp 5000lb sleds.

Ford Fiesta is a RWD 300+ hp car??

I think the 1's look the best anyway. Not a fan of the aluminum block though....time will tell.

Are we going to get the diesel 1 hatches? OMG I love those.

Sign me up!

Jay, I agree, I wish we would get the entire line of BMW diesels. I think the diesel X5 and 535 start in 2009. On Top Gear, Clarkson commented that the 5 series diesel he drove was his favorite 5 series.

m21, I'd say the big difference is that many of these modern high-HP cars still get decent MPG. I just looked up the 135i, it gets 25 MPG highway. We're not talking 10 MPG muscelcars here. I do, however, think we'll see a lot more small displacement turbos, and less big V8s. I enjoy a nice V8, but you just can't get the same MPG.

Yes, looks like they will be using the 5 cylinder Volvo turbo that was in the R series cars. Europe only for right now. Wonder what they might use if it comes here?