[parapaul]

Originally Posted by phil200tdi

Have a go in my 335i

510lb/ft at 2000rpm.

Fair comment

Has anyone driven a 335i and M3 back to back? I've admittedly never been in a 335i, but I had a play in an E92 M3 a while back and TBH while it was very quick, the power delivery of a N/A engine is so linear it just felt a bit flat. I suppose I'm basing my assumptions on that, but the 335i is a turbocharged 6 so could very well be a different kettle of fish.

Happy to be proved wrong...

[Boz335i]

46 - petrol all day long. I have owned diesel before and my wife drives a diesel.

When I bought my 335i I test drove a 335d at the same time, the 335i just felt more exciting, the d was almost as quick but was a bit quiet for me, especially with the auto box, whereas the i had the excellent DCT box.

Before I bought it, I asked myself 'If I bought the D would I wonder what it would have been like to own the i' Yes.
I've never regretted not buying the D.

[phil200tdi]

Originally Posted by Boz335i

46 - petrol all day long. I have owned diesel before and my wife drives a diesel.

When I bought my 335i I test drove a 335d at the same time, the 335i just felt more exciting, the d was almost as quick but was a bit quiet for me, especially with the auto box, whereas the i had the excellent DCT box.

Before I bought it, I asked myself 'If I bought the D would I wonder what it would have been like to own the i' Yes.
I've never regretted not buying the D.

I can see you in an M3 very soon....

[phil200tdi]

Originally Posted by DarkAnt335i

WOW Huge power. My 335i felt brutal with 'only' 425 ft/lbs due to the power coming in so low down. How do you find it in wet conditions?

Hilarious in the wet!

With stock msport suspension and open diff it's a handful if your not careful. I do mainly motorways so not too big a deal. Still I've had wheelspin in 4th at 70mph.

BUT - downside is my clutch is starting to slip..

[zltm089]

Originally Posted by phil200tdi

Hilarious in the wet!

With stock msport suspension and open diff it's a handful if your not careful. I do mainly motorways so not too big a deal. Still I've had wheelspin in 4th at 70mph.

BUT - downside is my clutch is starting to slip..

what are the signs of a slipping clutch?

[phil200tdi]

Originally Posted by zltm089

what are the signs of a slipping clutch?

Put your foot down, revs go up but you dont accelerate as hard as you expect. Then the clutch catches up...

[two,_OH_five]

For me a gurt lazy luxobarge needs a gurt lazy engine.

The 335d matches this quite well with genuine GT potential.
The 335i doesn't out of the box so it was game over for me. Sure you can throw money at it but I personally prefer to throw that at cars with added lightness from birth

I think age does play a part for me (early 40s). Not in fuel choice but in car sizes.
When I were a nipper (sharing t'u-bend of local dissentary clinic with 8 other families) we had a MG midget (mums) and a 2002 (dads, later replaced with a 131 Mirafiori) as family cars. Hell, we moved house with a Mini pickup
I've grown up on a diet of hot minis, hot fiestas etc.
This puts the E9x series into barge category in my head, something which my backside is in full agreement with. I guess younger folk see them as compact sporty cars these days

[335DieselPower]

Originally Posted by MEGA

I'm 26.

I bought my first 320d when I was 20. The reason was simple.

What other 200bhp (after a remap, which I planned as first mod long before buying) car can a 20 year old insure?

The tuning capabilities of the diesel was what made me buy one. I'd only previously been in (that is, even been driven in. The 320d was the first BM I'd owned) petrol BMWs as I feel it was probably the E9x where for the first time the 2 litre diesel overtook sales of the equivalent petrol (even though the 330d E46 is a brilliant car).

I then went back to a high powered (relatively) petrol at 25 (I got it for my 25th birthday in fact as I could insure a group 18+ car for the first time). But that didn't last long. The 350z. Ahh the exhaust. The exhaust was just stunning. The engine was great. But 15mpg around town coming from 29 in the 320d was unbearable. I was spaffing £150 a week on fuel as it was my commuter car.

So the 335d, which is a car I'd wanted ever since reading of the epic adventures of Carlos Fandango in the starship enterprise cira 2006/7: Was the obvious choice for me. I was looking for one with all the options I required for over a year - and when it came up I simply had no choice but to buy it ..

I've driven circa 300bhp petrol and diesel cars and I love the power delivery of the big lady d. I just wish wish wish it sounded better.

The mpg is a great factor too - goes without saying. I get 23 ish around town (Average speed is only 17.. boo hiss. Stupid West London), over 40 on the motorway - and from a car that can go off the indicated 160mph without any difficulty at all (I'd imagine if the dials went up you'd get an indicated 170). What's not to like.

However, the fact that the M135i has similar economy in a petrol engine is a huge temptation now. If the M2 when it does come out test drives on a hard drive anything above about 19, I might have to go back and chase the white rabbit towards a decent exhaust note again!

Is yours remapped MEGA?

[335DieselPower]

Originally Posted by Russ.C

I own an E92 330D and just love the torque of a diesel, I have always owned diesels due to the mileage I do a year (20K ish) If I could choose I would probably get a 335D but insurance was a bitch, I'm 21 now but was 20 when I bought my 330. The main thing that would draw me away from a Derv is the engine and exhaust noise, so much nicer in comparison!

+1 another young Torque Lover

[chaz_master]

I would only ever want a diesel if running costs became such an issue, or if the car was solely for commuting. I love driving too much to want to dilute the fun. Find me one that doesn't sound like a tractor and I might be interested.

[xs2man]

I'm 33.

Had both petrol and diesel. But my 335d feels "almost" as fast as my S4, and I get 38 mpg instead of 23. Okay, it doesn't sound as nice, but I'm past that.

I also have a 4.6 V8 Range Rover though, so still have a petrol V8 for when I want the sound.

But I have had GTI's, GTE's, S4's etc... Then a procession of Audi Diesels before.

Pretty much, I will always have a diesel and a Petrol. And, to be fair, my 335d isn't my economical car either. It's my comfortable cruiser. My Range Rover is my all-weather, get me fucking anywhere car, that is also a nice big beast for HUGE shopping trips and skip runs.

I also have a 13 year old Polo diesel that I run on vegetable oil. That is my economical car that I use for the 50 mile each way commute to work.

[Shere]

Originally Posted by verysideways

36 years old - I've owned about 55 cars in the last 19 years

Wow! How did you possibly manage that?!

[Digitalize]

I'm 19, and went for the 320D as its what I need, running costs did play a large part in to this, if everything was paid for, I'd probably have a remapped 335D, just for the ridiculous power, as a daily I'm not after noise.

[Kassim786]

No doubt that modern diesels are much more refined then previous years, I can say this with first hand experience as I had driven a wide range of both diesels.
Due to my previous profession

But one thing iv noticed is the only time you actually feel the Benifit of driving a diesel is on the long run e.g. the motor way where majority of diesels will rerun 50+mpg

In town they can be as Sh*T on fuel
Consumption as petrol cars.... I have driven both a 525d E60) and a 730d and they were extremely juicy in town but amazing on long drives.

Diesels also generally can suffer from more problems if not used properly e.g. If they are constantly used for town driving they can end up with a sut built up clogging the engine

(Know this first hand as the wife's brand new Audi A3 less than 8 months old decided to completely give up after having excess build up of sut)


Still love diesels though don't get me wrong .... "Smiles per gallon"

[verysideways]

Originally Posted by Shere

Wow! How did you possibly manage that?!

Well, i used to work in IT and didn't enjoy my work, so tended to have a few cars at a time and change them fairly regularly.
Typically a BMW daily driver, a toy of some description (911, TVR, etc.) and often something a bit different (off road Range Rover, bike engined kit car, etc.)

If the insurance renewal came through for a car i knew i'd had it too long

Now i drive fast cars for a living so i'm quite happy cruising around in my E91 (petrol!).

[DocD]

I would have a petrol if fuel consumption wasn't an issue, but I drive 500+ miles per week and pay for the fuel out of my own pocket so it has to be a diesel. Thankfully the six pot BMW motor makes this about as painless as I could ask for.

[Subzero2003]

Hearing the mechanic start my car up and drive it a few yards made me smile and just reminded me how much i love my 6cyl petrol 335i. It just sounds so beefy from the outside and the number of 335's, let alone 335i's you see these days is almost non existent in my area.

The OP said his kid's love diesels, but I just think that is because everyone has got diesel these days and 99% of kids don't ever get a ride in anything more exciting than a 2.0 diesel. Their dad will have one as his company car, their mum will have a 2.0TDI Focus, all the taxi's are 2.0TDI's, their friends mum's and dads will probably be the same.

No kid these days gets to have a go in 3.0l/3.5l/4.0+ V6's/straight 6's/V8's because they're just so scarce, and therefore the kids growing up today, i don't think will have the same love of cars that we did growing up. Kids now will be talking about how many MPG'zzz their dad's car gets, rather than 20 years ago where they were arguing over whose dad's car had the biggest engine and made the most noise.

For me, the thing i like best about my car, apart from the noise and the power, is the number of people who ask me about it. I even got for the 2nd time ever some complete stranger in Tesco's car park talking to me about the car. People that i haven't properly met/seen for years very very often strike up conversations with me about how they've seen me driving it and it sounds amazing. I try to act cool and play it down, but on the inside i'm grinning like a kid and i love it.

[MrPogle]

Originally Posted by Subzero2003

I even got for the 2nd time ever some complete stranger in Tesco's car park talking to me about the car.

Aren't strangers........well.......strange? My other half had a Fiat Uno Turbo which I only drove occasionally but twice I had complete strangers approach me in carparks and ask me if I wanted to sell it. A Fiat!