RE: BMW 435i M Sport farewell: PH Fleet
Discussion
cerb4.5lee said:
Couldn't agree more I feel sorry for the poor buggers that paid that for the E92 M3 when that launched...its a rare case of you don't get what you pay for!
You must keep in mind that you're in a minority when it comes to thinking the e92 M3 isn't any good! Plenty of people love em. 
I was interested to read the comment about a notchy gearbox. My Dad's BMWs back in the 70s & 80s had lovely gearboxes and I always associated BMWs with that. I currently run a 120d which replaced an Audi S3 and the Audi had by far the nicer gearbox to use. I've always preferred a manual gearbox and was actually relieved to find that I didn't have to make the choice between manual and auto as there was no manual option for the 330d M Sport Touring I've just ordered as I was much impressed by the 8 speed sport auto on the test drive.
On the subject of residual value, I was pretty hacked off with the trade-in price the dealer offered me on a well cared for car less than two years old (worse depreciation than the Audi managed in almost three years) - but they came out to play with the amount of 'dealer support' provided on the new car (BMW don't like to call it discount). As a clue, We Buy Any Car dot com offered me more for it sight unseen that the BMW dealer did!
On the subject of residual value, I was pretty hacked off with the trade-in price the dealer offered me on a well cared for car less than two years old (worse depreciation than the Audi managed in almost three years) - but they came out to play with the amount of 'dealer support' provided on the new car (BMW don't like to call it discount). As a clue, We Buy Any Car dot com offered me more for it sight unseen that the BMW dealer did!
Schermerhorn said:
Anyone happy to pay £50k for a 3 series BMW needs their head testing.
Why? It has a 3-litre straight six turbo, good-looking coupé body, great interior, gadgets galore, RWD, choice of manual or paddleshift etc. etc.Which £50k (including several £thousand of options) brand new competitor (4-seat coupé) would you rather have? We live in a time when a well-specced diesel Golf is £30k and the 911 starts at £73,509.
My only issue is that despite the recipe looking good on paper, there's a question of it being less of a "driving machine" than BMW's older cars.
Schermerhorn said:
Ozzie Osmond said:
Seems we've reached the point where any car which isn't either a giant SUV or an AMG with 6oo bhp will inevitably get slagged off.
Would I be happy to have that £50k 4-series on my drive? You bet!
Anyone happy to pay £50k for a 3 series BMW needs their head testing.Would I be happy to have that £50k 4-series on my drive? You bet!
Provided they can afford it.
The 435i is a long way removed from an e36 328i in terms of what it gives you and there is obviously going to be a price hike.
(Having said that, many of us would enjoy an e36 more)
Wills2 said:
cerb4.5lee said:
Couldn't agree more I feel sorry for the poor buggers that paid that for the E92 M3 when that launched...its a rare case of you don't get what you pay for!
You must keep in mind that you're in a minority when it comes to thinking the e92 M3 isn't any good! Plenty of people love em. 
The DCT suits the engine too so well and I sometimes think I was a luddite to insist on mine being a manual.
cerb4.5lee said:
Wills2 said:
cerb4.5lee said:
Couldn't agree more I feel sorry for the poor buggers that paid that for the E92 M3 when that launched...its a rare case of you don't get what you pay for!
You must keep in mind that you're in a minority when it comes to thinking the e92 M3 isn't any good! Plenty of people love em. The DCT suits the engine too so well and I sometimes think I was a luddite to insist on mine being a manual.
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
Wills2 said:
cerb4.5lee said:
Couldn't agree more I feel sorry for the poor buggers that paid that for the E92 M3 when that launched...its a rare case of you don't get what you pay for!
You must keep in mind that you're in a minority when it comes to thinking the e92 M3 isn't any good! Plenty of people love em. The DCT suits the engine too so well and I sometimes think I was a luddite to insist on mine being a manual.
Still a belter of a car in most people`s eyes though.
Mermaid said:
E65Ross said:
£50k for a car which can very nearly almost match Audi R8 V8 or 997 Porsche 911 Carrera performance with a half-decent boot and proper back seats? Sounds like a bargain to me.
So have you bought one finally? 
No, because I can't afford one whilst saving for a house. It's on my next car list though
Phateuk said:
article said:
30ish commuting mpg (admittedly mostly with the roof bars in place) wasn't anything to write home about in this day and age either
Is it just me that thinks that's quite impressive given the performance available? 
Tbh, I suspect the 435d will be the pick of the bunch. BMW quote the 435i 0-60 at 5.4 (5.1 if auto), the 435d (X drive) does it in 4.7 seconds! That's faster than both the E36 and E46 M3 and on par with the E92. Staggering performance!
Ozzie Osmond said:
Schermerhorn said:
Anyone happy to pay £50k for a 3 series BMW needs their head testing.
That should go down well with all the aspirant M4 owners!Meanwhile there's Brits queuing to blow £40,000 on a diesel 4-pot Evoque.
My point was that £50k is over-priced for a car that is many people would have distinguishing from a lesser model from the same range; ie a 320i sport etc.
If I had that sort of cash or monthly financial capital I'd opt for an M5. At least people KNOW it's a tiger.
interesting the debate on how much the BMW will loose in a year,all cars loose money in the first year ,obviously the odd supercar car may not, but in general a car looses between 40-60% of its value after
3 years, fair enough if on lease but I prefer to buy a 4/5 year old car that already dropped 20k.
3 years, fair enough if on lease but I prefer to buy a 4/5 year old car that already dropped 20k.
matthias73 said:
Clivey, we managed to have exactly the same response except that you worded yours more eloquently. Well played.
It's just a shame that the new cars feel like driving through layers of cotton wool. Having said that though, Evo really rather liked it.
Schermerhorn said:
If I had that sort of cash or monthly financial capital I'd opt for an M5. At least people KNOW it's a tiger.
Except for them confusing it with the legions of 520d M Sports with more Halfords 'M' badges than the real thing. Edited by Clivey on Tuesday 22 April 16:34
Schermerhorn said:
If I had that sort of cash or monthly financial capital I'd opt for an M5. At least people KNOW it's a tiger.
I have always liked that with the M5 its very subtle and understated and if one is coming the other way its hard to spot that its the fire breather of the model line up...would love to own one though same as you. leedsutd1 said:
interesting the debate on how much the BMW will loose in a year,all cars loose money in the first year ,obviously the odd supercar car may not, but in general a car looses between 40-60% of its value after
3 years, fair enough if on lease but I prefer to buy a 4/5 year old car that already dropped 20k.
I traded the Audi in for the BMW, so it's the same dealer in each case. At 2 years and 9 months they gave me 57% of the Audi's list price when purchased. At 1 year and 9 months they have offered me 52% of the 120d's list price when purchased. I got discounts on both cars at a similar percentage. This is the first time I've bought the same make twice in a row and I very nearly didn't do it because of the lousy trade in offer - but I was completely hooked on the 330d after the test drive. 3 years, fair enough if on lease but I prefer to buy a 4/5 year old car that already dropped 20k.
Clivey said:
My only issue is that despite the recipe looking good on paper, there's a question of it being less of a "driving machine" than BMW's older cars.
As someone who does 20k a year in a bog-standard 320d F30, I can categorically state that, at least without expensive options fitted to it, the F30 isn't anything like the "driving machine" that the E90 was (comparing with similar bog-standard models from that range). It's just like any other modern car. Competent, but completely lacking feel and driver involvement. On non-adaptive suspension, it is quite significantly under-damped as well.These are details that BMW always used to get right, even on entry level models. I could thoroughly enjoy myself in an E90 318d because the fundamentals were so right. It coped with undulations and camber changes with no fuss at all, and the turn in was always sharp and instantaneous. The F30 is lazier in its responses, softer, more "ordinary" feeling.
Maybe as an M-Sport with the options list lobbed at it the F30 is a different proposition, but why should you need to do this to get the kind of engaging handling that always came as standard on even the poverty models?
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