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meh, I had a 335 and had some issues and our dealer sucked here, the car was soft to me and no LSD sucks. I probably won't ever own another BMW. I'd go Audi if you were saying Audi vs BMW. Then again I probably wouldn't buy any German brand again for a while. I got burnt.
I'm fortunate to own both ('05 S & '09 335). Coming from an S it's really tough to compare. The E55 is even more different. I don't think you will find ANY of them particularly engaging drives, especially in auto trim switching from the S's fantastic manual. They will all feel heavy. I think the 335 feel more nimble than the S5 and both feel much better than the E55. A good friend had both an E55 and E63 and if I had to have a larger family car that would probably be it.
How practical is practical enough? The E55 is a full on 4 door sedan, the 3 can be either and the S5 obviously is coupe only. I drove the S5 before I bought my 3, and loved it. It's stunning, strong, smooth and well put together - though I would rather have the S4's drivetrain vs the S5's. At the end of the day, I really needed 4 doors and bought my car before the new S4 was out. Looks wise I like the 335 sedan better than the A4. Simple bolts-ons for the 335 make it scary fast.
I really like BMW's simple, high quality interior - I had an E46 before this one. As far as build quality I think they are similar. I call BS on all the people who regurgitate how great the Audi's are and how mediocre BMW's are. Styling is one thing and is certainly opinion based but quality is not. There's no way you can sit in both and think the quality of materials in the Audi is vastly better. I had my E46 for almost 10 years and the interior held up MUCH better than my 5 year old S2000's and better than my wife's 3 year old Acura. Not a single piece was dull, chipped cracked, etc. You just have to like that simple, straightforward, non-trendy design.
Best way to tell is to drive-em and make your own mind up. I don't really think you can go wrong with any of them, but they will be VERY different than what you have now....you WILL miss it!
S5 is overpriced compared to the 335i and the 335i can easily be made to hit 400-500whp with $1-2k in mods. Handles nicely too, but it doesn't compare to the E46 M3 or E92 M3.
Man i want a 335i sedan so bad. I need more room now than my CR has to offer. I was thinking about going with a evo or something. But now i have been looking at used cars like 335,lexus250,A3. Not sure if i will buy one though im scared maintance will cost me an arm and leg and that it will not be a good DD
I was in the market for an S5 and loved everything about it except it was a little underpowered for the money, but it is sexy as hell and not many on the road like the Bimmer.
I say go with the S5 or CPO'd M3/ISF.
The 335 is a great all around performer but damn the market is saturated with them lol...and I like to be different.
05-27-2010, 07:10 PM
