[MattMD]

I was reading my issue of C&D about the F30 vs ATS. I noticed at the end that they said "We're convinced that the E90 would handily win a comparison test against the F30."

I won't spoil the winner for anyone, but what do E90 owners think about this statement? I think I would rather have an E90 than an F30...

[John 070]

Just drive the F30. The answer is pretty obvious. People have their reasons for going from a E9x to a F3x, but there's no way they can say it's for the vague steering.

[ndog14]

I read the samething when they did the Merc C250, Volvo S60, Infiniti G25, Audi A4 2.0T, and the F30 328i. The F30 barely beat the A4, and the E90 could beat the F30.

[MattMD]

I definitely feel like the E90 is the better car. It has the NA I6 and is sporty like a BMW should be. I'm not sure if the E90 was just too hard to improve on, if BMW just dropped the ball, or if BMW is purposely making their cars less sporty. I'm (sadly) leaning towards the latter...

[Saintor]

If they were talking about the 328i, it is perfectly understable - the N20 is a poor fit to a 3-series. But the 335i F30 looks like an overall improvement over the E90, save for that steering.

[gary88]

I drove an F30 335i and thought it was great. The steering isn't as bad as all the car magazines make it out to be (at least in sport+ mode). The brakes didn't bite as nicely as my car but that could be BMW using a different pad or something.

[Dozhdbog]

The F30 is about the same weight as the e90 but with more structural rigidity and a better drag coefficient. Despite the fact it's a couple inches longer, it rides phenomenally well, and the steering isn't vague by a long shot (just not quite as good at transmitting road feel as an E90's).
I don't like how the f30 looks except in m-sport form, which I think is brilliant.
That being said, I'll stick with my e90 as it is for a good while. Depending on what the new M3 is like, I may move to that as my next car in a few years.

[CombatNinja]

What a surprise, an e9x forum likes the e9x.

The F30 is better in so many ways. How about 34mpg highway vs. 28mpg for starters?

[Dozhdbog]

CombatNinja, half the posts in this thread give pretty positive reviews of the f30.

[Bingobimmer]

Originally Posted by Dozhdbog

CombatNinja, half the posts in this thread give pretty positive reviews of the f30.

+1

[BrazilianBimmer]

Originally Posted by Dozhdbog

CombatNinja, half the posts in this thread give pretty positive reviews of the f30.

Tell me where you got this statistics from or it didn't happen!
What is your source, sire?

[JustinGTP]

The front ruins it for me on the F30 and the backend looks cheap and borning. No LEDS apart from the corona rings. I much prefer the E90 backend with LED turn signals. The front looks more agressive, and again, love the LED turn signals.

I won't leave my E90 yet. I also prefer the cockpit in the E90. I don't like the new steering wheel, you can't hit "next track" you have to spin the wheel, thus you can't go random with the steering wheel. Annoying as heck.

[A418t81]

I think the F30 is a nice car. Different for sure, but not a bad thing. The M sport ones look great.

[tmo24]

Originally Posted by BrazilianBimmer

Tell me where you got this statistics from or it didn't happen!
What is your source, sire?

He said THIS thread. So, the source would be the handful of posts previous to yours.

[Bimmerlover76]

I agree.

1. The interior if the E90, while Comparatively bland, is a lot more solid. There are better materials, there is less flex to a lot of the surfaces, and generally has the same or better quality look to it.
2. Hydralic or electric-assisted steering? You decide. But, I believe the jury has already ruled that hydraulic-assisted steering as the way to go.
3. Looks. While the new generation is lighter, the older generation just looks sleeker.
4. If I'm not mistaken and please correct me if I'm wrong in this, but I understand that they have replaced some of the suspension parts, that used to be aluminum, into steel?

[Bimmerlover76]

Originally Posted by CombatNinja

What a surprise, an e9x forum likes the e9x.

The F30 is better in so many ways. How about 34mpg highway vs. 28mpg for starters?

Meh...

Fuel economy ratings are just overinflated selling points to sell more cars and get more votes. If you do the math, a difference of a few MPG doesn't add up to a whole heck of a lot savings. Some, but not enough to sacrifice all the good things that the e9x has.

[HTran]

I have the f30 328i loaner right now and I would trade my 335i for this in a heartbeat. I love the new exterior and interior styling, especially the new I drive.

[Professor///M]

love my exterior & interior design better, and my 335 certainly felt more stable and faster than any F30 I've driven. F30 without LED signals is truly disappointing.

Conversely, I'd love the new head's up display, and the option to go Sport, Comfort, Eco-pro and the 8 speed auto transmission.

Ruling is that I'd never upgrade to a F30 335, waiting to see what the M3 has to offer and if that's not that exciting I'm upgrading to an F10 M5

[edirtaynine]

this happens every model generation change. most e9x people feel that the e9x is better than the f3x. the e46 people think theirs is better than the e9x's. the e30 people think theirs is the most purest. lol

[ZuerstBMW]

Ive had both the E90 325i, 335i, and E92, so far Im really liking the F30 328i
ALOT.
Once my X5 lease is up, Ill have to decide if my next M car will be the M5, M3, or M4.

[calicolorado]

My only objection to the F30 is that one is now compelled to buy a turbo engine to drive one. Turbo power is absolutely great, and I have extensive experience with the care and feeding of a turbo Audi, but part of the 3 series appeal until now has been a wonderful NA 4 or 6 cylinder engine. BMW must think they cannot achieve competitive power outputs using direct injection and smaller displacement because they have embraced turbo completely. It's sad, because the euro 330i with direct injection made awesome power without turbos.

Adding a turbo makes the 3 (or any other regular turbo BMW) much more complicated and expensive to repair. This is unfortunate for people who don't treat cars as throwaway Kleenex. I'm young, but I have an old-school view toward cars and ownership. My 328i was bought because it had the perfect combination of normal aspiration, manual transmission and a comfortable, long lived leather interior and I hope to drive it through 300K miles.

The F30 has all of the electronic subsystems and computers an E90 has, only more AND it has turbocharging. How hard will it be to keep and love this car long term???

[username604]

Originally Posted by CombatNinja

What a surprise, an e9x forum likes the e9x.

The F30 is better in so many ways. How about 34mpg highway vs. 28mpg for starters?

The e90 gets 17.65% worse highway mpg. That won't make up the difference in the value of the cars. How much would the fuel economy been impacted if they didn't choose electric steering? Seems like the biggest complaint about the car.
Oh yeah, and all-season tires... not good for skidpad/brake benchmarks!