honda606

It's not going; it's been down the hill for years now and shows no signs of driving back up.

KaiWang

your talking about this article right?

i was hating the new 3 series.. doesnt look so bad now.. except that i think bmw is heading in the wrong direction with active steering which dumbs down the steering feel .

plus bmw is lagging behind in the HP department.. the 330 is only putting out mid 200 HP while cars like the g35 are putting out high 200 hp costing MUCH less.


http://club3series.com/forums/showthread.php?t=689

http://club3series.com/forums/showthread.php?t=690

rai

First active steering is only an option, if you don't want it don't get it. I sure don't want it. But probably BMW will find a way to force people to get active steering by building well optioned cars and maybe by forcing it with the performance package.

Second the HP means very little to me, since I've seen 330i and 330Ci tested just as fast as a G35 and sometimes faster. That's with 225hp or 235hp (old I6). So the new car with 20-30 more hp should be doing 0-60 in the 5.6-5.4 sec range all day long.

Someone said the new car weighs 3400 lbs but that's not much more than the previous car. So if it gains 120 lbs that is more than off-set by the gain of 30 hp.

Still the G35 costs less, but it's a much inferior car to the 3-series (IMO). Not saying the G35 is bad, but it has a long way to go before it's as good as the 3-series (IMO).

If anyone equates high HP or cheaper MSRP to being a better car, then: GTO >> G35 > 330

VTEC_Junkie

sure, a lower powered 330 can be driven in a straight line just as fast as a g35, if not faster, but how you do have to launch it to get it to go that fast?? and how often does one apply that kind of launching technique on a day to day basis?? the 330 and g35 are sports sedans designed for driving on the streets, so in that sense what matters more is torque and horsepower, and not so much how fast they can go 0-60 or in the 1/4 mile, because a lot of that has to do with launching technique. i'm sure if you compare rolling start 0-60 and 1/4 mile between the 2 cars, there will be a larger discrepancy between the 2 times.

KaiWang

what are the 1/4 mile and trap speeds of the 330 vs G35? that would tell you better which car is actually faster. BMWs are notorious for gearing their cars for a fast 0-60 btw

personally i've gotten alot of 330 and 530 as loaners when i go in for service. driving those around and driving the g35 coupe, the g35 coupe feels faster and has better handling and road feel to me than the bmws.. u have to get a 330 w sports suspension option to make it feel like the g35 coupe.

oh yeah.. i doubt ppl looking to buy a 3 series will look at a GTO.. but they will look at a G35

KaiWang

ahhh here it is.

last page of this post

http://club3series.com/forums/showthread.php?t=689

for the new 330 255 hp, 220 ftlb tq with 0-60 6.1 sec quarter mile 14.8 sec at 95mph low $40k car

G35 298 hp, 260 ftlb tq low $30k car anyone have the 0-60 and 1/4 miles time and trap speed for the 2005 G35 w the new 298hp motor?

The Hoth

Bill, skip those electronic gimmics like the I-can't-drive and the funky active steering....IMO, they are absolutely useless.

Suspensionwise, BMW has always got it right. It is comfortable enough and yet handles the corners well.

I drove my friend's 325xi and my Passat back to back this weekend. The difference is quite obvious. I love the handling of BMW.

FRM

Check out the 2006 Lexus IS350.

Legal Bill

5 years old, 60,000 miles. This the longest I have ever owned a car. While I love the Jag, I am well outside the warranty, and I think I'd like something a little smaller, more nimble and more sporty. Noe is the time to trade to get some value out of the Jag. The alternative is to keep it till 100k to get the most value out of the initial purchase price.

Legal Bill

I haven't heard good things lately.