[NRudy]

Just out of interest what made you decide to buy your car?

My own is a few reasons.

Ive owned lots of cars in my 12 year driving time. My first prestige car was a 320i 2002 (2.2 straight 6). I loved that car. It was taken away by a careless driver writing it off.

Then after i lost my 320i i was in a petrol station and heard a straight 6 looked and it was a brand new 335i N54 e92 and i thought wow i will never own that.

So after years of driving all sorts from hatches to mercs to audis (never again) i came to my current purchase. Looking around i thought i always wanted a E46 M3. Upon discussing this i tried to justify this as follows.

Me: I want an M3

Why

Me:Its amazing and i always wanted one

Ok whats the MPG

Me: 22-26

Is it practical?

Me: Yes just like a 3 series

Ok then why not getca 3 series?

Erm.......

So i looked around and realised a 335i can match a M3 for performance but is newer being a E92, lower mileage and smoother to drive.

Now reason i wanted a 335i and not a D was... Noise. To be honest i rarely push my car hard, i baby it, only time i really use the engine is getting to a tunnel, winding down the windows, getting it in manual and letting it shout. Biggest smile ever.

Or driving round town just listening to the grumble as it cruises along knowing i have the ability to go stupid mph without really trying.

335i is amazing to me now im atuck to what ill get after this. I mean nothing else tics the boxes for me. Cars are faster smoother ir more economical but the way a 335i does it fits perfect for me. Ive driven all the new bmws from the 1series up and i always just want my 335i.

So how abouta you guys why did you go for your BMW?

[Aragorn30d]

I've had Audis for years, and we still have an A4 in the family. We ended up with two very similar A4's, one mine and one the wifes. They did everything you could ask of them and it was quite difficult to justify a change. But i decided i wanted something a bit different and decided i was going to swap my A4 for a RWD sporty coupe of some description.

I had a budget of about 4-6k and wanted something with a turbocharged engine that still returned decent fuel economy, so probably a 4 cylinder, 2.0L type thing. After searching i realised they basically didnt exist. Most sporty coupes in budget had big engines that were stupidly thirsty and werent turbocharged. Or they were japanese things like the 200sx which seemed a bit crap.

After a while i started leaning towards BMW, as they had the blend of German quality to match the Audi and a RWD/Performance bias. I quite liked the 1 series coupes but they were too expensive, and the E46's seemed overpriced and not a huge upgrade over my old car, being a similar age/era. I also wasnt convinced i'd be happy with a 3.0L non-turbo 6, i like turbochargers too much. The E92 335i is one model that seemed to tick the boxes, but they were above my budget, and while i could have stretched to it, i quickly realised that finding one that i actually wanted to own (ie a non-silver MSport model with a manual box) wasnt easy and would have hiked the budget up even further. As well, the list of common faults they suffer started growing, and i decided that being realistic it was too much expense.

So i started looking at the 6 cylinder diesels. Figuring a 3.0L turboD would easily outperform the 2.0 petrol turbo that i was originally wanting, and them being more common, meant it was more affordable. Then my mate started talking about A5's and i started thinking i didnt actually like the shape of the E92 all that much, the A5 looks a lot better... more muscular and beefy.

Then while browsing autotrader i clicked on a 330d that seemed to tick many of the boxes and thaught "ah that one looks much better, whys that..." before realising it was actually an E90 saloon instead. Looks like a much better proportioned car to the E92, so i bought it.

Thus my goal to replace my A4 Saloon with something a bit exciting, sporty and Coupe-like, resulted in me buying a diesel 3 series saloon. Polar opposite? Perhaps, but its a great car and i really like it.

[imy]

I initially went to look at a 335i out of curiosity. No interest in buying. The guy who owned the vehicle told me to push it as hard as i liked. he then asked me to pull over and jumped in the drivers seat. he pushed it so hard i honestly thought i was going to die that day. i was sold straight away and transferred the money as soon as the test drive was over.

[bhurd320]

I brought a GSD and had a hatchback focus and the dog was getting to big and wanted a new car, looked at all the diesel estates and had settled on a focus estate 2l tdi, but went to look at it and it was a pile of shit, noticed a 320D msport e91 on the forecourt in carbon black, took it for a test drive and brought it there and then

[djgandy]

I drove a 335i vert in the US 5 years back. The speed and the exhaust note had me sold.

I got the 335, but only the coupe, still waiting on the vert part!

[Dann]

I had an E36 328i for just over a year before I bought my 335i.
The 328i had failed it's MOT earlier the year before and that made me lose the love for it.
It was also getting old and a little tired and I wanted to spend too much money on it (constant maintenance etc)

Because of the above I started looking for a car.
I wanted either a E46 M3 or E90/91 LCi 330 or 335i.

Planning for the future (I have a long term GF and house) I realised 335i was the only one to go for.

I started have a brief look and found my E90 335i. I phoned the seller, got the massive spec list and worked out how much it was worth etc.

I also made a comment on Pistonheads about my E36 and someone offered me a silly amount that I couldn't refuse.

So I went to look at the 335i and did some maths, then emptied my savings and borrowed some money from my mum and a deal was done.

My OH wasn't happy though. She didn't talk to me for a week and all we did was argue about the car constantly for the next month. Seems silly but it actually came quite close to ending our relationship of 7yrs.

She's over it now thankfully.

The reason I bought this actual car though?
It has everything bar about 2 options.
It's not black or silver
It has a decent interior (not the dull dark black)
It has folding rear seats
It was low mileage
and I got a good deal
and it was the Best E90 LCi 335i that I had seen for sale, and to this day is still one of the best (imo)

[zltm089]

I've owned my 335i for nearly 6/7 years now.

It is my first "sports" car.

When I was looking at what to buy... Evos, STIs and the Integra DC5 were also on my list.

Back then my budget was £20k and there were not many 335i from BMW dealers going for £20k.

Having ruled out EVOs and STIs, as I decided I wanted a coupe.

It was down to Integra v/s 355i.

Went for the 335i as it has a more bhp, no boy racer look, rwd and could be easily tuned for big gains.

I think, i will always regret not getting a manual box thought.

[mjn77]

Because some white van arse wrote off my rare E46 330d manual saloon in Estroil blue and full black leather interior

Loved that car. Only 162k miles, fully Powerflexed, Eibach suspension, decatted and other mods.

[pmmcbl]

I always wanted a 6 cylinder BMW but since I couldn't have the spec I wanted I went for other cars. I never settle down for second best.
I have been into VW's since a young lad, so many golf's and passats.
But this year I decided to move away from diesel cars and go back to petrol. I wanted a fun car but yet practical for the kids.
A E91 335i came up at work with only 25k on the clock with nearly all the options I wanted. The only negative thing was the colour which was black. But ohhhh don't I love this car, it's fun to drive, sounds amazing, looks understated. But not sure how long I will keep it. I get bored very quickly and always want something new.

[OGM2LCI]

Lost my E46 320d in a crash and had to move to a MKI Leon FR that was okay but it didn't drive like the BMW and had a clutch that was beginning to slip, appeared to be beginning to develop the chocolate camshaft issue and a very rattly interior

Was getting a nice size pay rise in a months time so got shot of the Leon and began looking at E92's as I still considered myself 'coming from an E46' as I'd only owned the Seat for a couple months, for me it was the natural progression, owned the E92 for over a year now and haven't looked back since

Now I'm looking for the next natural progression...335i...even if I have to buy myself a 125 scooter for trips to and from work to afford to fuel the 335!

[Mk1tony]

I'm a recovery driver, I recovered a customer into BMW in Cobham and was waiting to give my customer a lift home so had a quick look around. Got distracted by an E90 335d, after a quick test drive I put a deposit down.

I had been looking at octavia vrs so glad I didn't.

Needless to say my customer thought I was nuts and 18months on a few little modifications amd I still love it

[Rich_D]

I originally bought my E90 330d to be my daily driver and keep the miles off my E39 M5, as it was going to be considerably better on fuel, yet still quick & nice to drive, however I still found myself using the M5 more than I should LOL, I've since sold that though.

[mayhs]

Before buying my 330D I owned a BMW 645ci. Took one for a test drive and the sound of the V8 was truly amazing. Fast forward two great years of ownership (and expense) and my V8 developed a common 'valve stem seal' oil leak. A £2-3k fix by a indy, or considerably more from the stealers.

Decided on the 330D for the economy and that it could be mapped close to 300bhp. Double the MPG of my 645ci while not being much off the pace either, although the pull of the diesel doesn't match the free revving of a big NA engine.

I do miss the sound of that V8 though

[Rich_D]

Originally Posted by mayhs

I do miss the sound of that V8 though

Amen to that

[HighlandPete]

Been a fan of BMW from the 1970's, the 2002 was the car that caught my attention. Father had a New Class 2000 'sedan', back in 1971. My first BMW was an E12 528, started driving it back in 1978.

This time around the F11 535i was the model that attracted me most of all, after an E91 330d I really wanted to get back in a 5-series. I love the BMW I6 engines. Had a V8 in my E39, so have ticked that box. Having tried the N55 engine in a couple of models, the engine was on my short list.

My particular car is a genuine well optioned EX BMW HQ car, (BMW UK director), bought at a decent price with just 6k miles. Was the right decision, a very rewarding car to own and drive.

[djgandy]

Originally Posted by mayhs

Before buying my 330D I owned a BMW 645ci. Took one for a test drive and the sound of the V8 was truly amazing. Fast forward two great years of ownership (and expense) and my V8 developed a common 'valve stem seal' oil leak. A £2-3k fix by a indy, or considerably more from the stealers.

Decided on the 330D for the economy and that it could be mapped close to 300bhp. Double the MPG of my 645ci while not being much off the pace either, although the pull of the diesel doesn't match the free revving of a big NA engine.

I do miss the sound of that V8 though

hmm im always tempted by the 650i! A great sounding engine.

[Dace64]

Well after 6 years in a B5 RS4 and 35 track days across the UK and Europe, I moved into an E90 V8 M3. Great all rounder, however a change in work direction meant 20mpg was not a viable option. Switched to a LCI 330D and had it mapped. Terrific car and loved it, however it too went and I found myself back in a 400bhp B5 S4.
I knew what I wanted and waited 14 months for the right spec'd E92 335D. It is by far the best all round car I have owned for my circumstances (500 mile a week commute) and it will be a "keeper". Plan to have a few tweaks in the Spring ��

[Delta0311]

The fact that the pussy magnet comes standard.