E90 335D or 335i ?
Discussion
335i will be more exciting but no quicker in the real world. I found the 335d very linear in acceleration and speed gained almost without realising how fast you are going ! Over 60 mph is rapid ... but then the 335i is indecently fast.
Try both ... I did ... and ended up buying a 330d LCI
Try both ... I did ... and ended up buying a 330d LCI
roofer said:
All down to mieage. Low miles, petrol, mega miles, derv.
I can understand why you'd say that but if much of your rationale is based on the 335d doing a lot more miles to the gallon I just wonder whether that would be true if you're comparing the latest model 335i fitted with the single turbo engine? I think the combined figure is within 10mpg of the 335d and in my experience diesels tend to struggle to match the claimed combined figure whereas I find I can usually beat the figure for a petrol. That may just be down to me and my driving style but I suspect I wouldn't see more than 3 or 4mpg difference between a 335i and a 335d and, given the relative prices of petrol and diesel, that means the diesel wouldn't be that much cheaper to run; would make the petrol a no brainer for me but each to his own!I have owned a 525d and now have a 335i Touring. When I owned the diesel, I rarely drove it hard for long, good car though it was. The petrol engined one I often take out just to go for a drive, which I never did in the diesel.
The petrol is so much more fun, the noise, the wide powerband, the smoother delivery, the fact that the power builds with revs rather than being linear (if that makes sense!).
I would agree that there is precious little difference in performance between 335d and i as I test drove both. The other consideration is that you can't get a manual 335d and this was the clincher for me.
The only thing that would make me go back to a diesel would be if my annual mileage increased dramatically.
The petrol is so much more fun, the noise, the wide powerband, the smoother delivery, the fact that the power builds with revs rather than being linear (if that makes sense!).
I would agree that there is precious little difference in performance between 335d and i as I test drove both. The other consideration is that you can't get a manual 335d and this was the clincher for me.
The only thing that would make me go back to a diesel would be if my annual mileage increased dramatically.
Notsofastfrank said:
The only thing that would make me go back to a diesel would be if my annual mileage increased dramatically.
Agree with everything you said but based on your experience with diesel and petrol do you reckon you'd see much difference in fuel consumption between a 335i and a 335d? Not much doubt the diesel would be better but by enough to outweigh the advantages of the petrol that you so rightly identify?Max_Torque said:
If current trends are maintained, you might find the 35i is a heavier depreciator (big engined mid range cars are hardly flavour of the month already). I'm looking for a LCI 330d tourer, but i can't find a manual one ;-( pretty decent performance and excellent economy.
On the approved used section of the BMW website there's often a finance calculator option against individual cars that will throw out a guaranteed future value based on different mileage scenarios (so you can basically play around with different mileages to see what difference it makes to the GFV). Haven't tried it very recently but when I last did the petrol didn't seem to come out any worse than the equivalent diesel; yes the diesel was worth more after 3 years and (say) 60k miles but it usually cost more to start with and the additional GFV was really only recovering the extra initial outlay. In terms of looking for a manual 330d I suspect they could be hard to find as I imagine most new ones are autos. However, if you want a 330d I'd actually say an auto is probably better suited to the characteristics of the engine anyway; you don't drive a diesel like a petrol so let an auto do the work and waft along on the torque!
Shadytree said:
All good advice, thanks.
I'm test driving a 335d on Saturday and will try and find a 335i the following week
I'm finding my E92 335i relatively thirsty aound town and pretty good on longer runs, its returned 25.6 mpg average so far. Thats 2 mpg worse than my remapped E36 M3 EVO returned on the same driving mix. I'm test driving a 335d on Saturday and will try and find a 335i the following week
Ive had a 335d tourer and it ticked every box for me, good on fuel with fantastic performance, i colud not ask for any more TBH, i did consider a 330i and 335i before the purchase but as we can do 20k PA it wasnt justifiable with a 335i,
However i knew that i had made the right choice with the 335d, so much so when i sold it i instantly regretted it, and have just recently replaced it with another 335d tourer
I did remap mine, and found it to be around 5-6 mpg better after this was done, not to mention the increase in performance
However i knew that i had made the right choice with the 335d, so much so when i sold it i instantly regretted it, and have just recently replaced it with another 335d tourer
I did remap mine, and found it to be around 5-6 mpg better after this was done, not to mention the increase in performance
JNW1 said:
In terms of looking for a manual 330d I suspect they could be hard to find as I imagine most new ones are autos. However, if you want a 330d I'd actually say an auto is probably better suited to the characteristics of the engine anyway; you don't drive a diesel like a petrol so let an auto do the work and waft along on the torque!
I would agree, for the "average" driver the auto suits the car better, however i am not an average driver ;-) (and however good the current autoboxes are (and i should know, i calibrate them!!) they are not able to read my mind (yet....) So if i know i might want to overtake a car, i am already in the right gear for it when i do so. Also, you can get significantly better MPG with the manual (becuase you don't have to accept the as calibrated load/gear points from the manufacturer, and you can do things like coast in neutral. If i "hypermile" my current 330d manual, i can easily get well over 50mpg on a long journey. And the final nail in the coffin for the auto, no clutch pedal! so "clutch down" saves are not possible (and the "rock it out" technique got me around in the worst snow of last winter on bald summer tyres can't be used either ;-).SO for me, manual all the way please
Max_Torque said:
If current trends are maintained, you might find the 35i is a heavier depreciator (big engined mid range cars are hardly flavour of the month already).
If depreciation is an important factor then the diesel wins hands down - I have been looking at e46 and x3 models in 3.0i and d guises and the same spec cars have around 30-50% price difference because of the i or d on the boot.The 335i will be perceived as 'juicy' just like the 330i is when in reality it is not that bad but reality and used car prices are sometimes on different planets!
I've had my 08 335i M sport for 8hrs so far and love it :-)
Averaged 38.1 mpg on my way home from the dealers ( 60 miles mostly motorway). Than went on a little trip down my favourite B road, and got about 20 mpg, which is about the same as my now departed 350z.
Mine has an auto box...makes driving so easy, almost too much so. The sports mode on the autobox works well, you can manually select gears and changes are probably as quick as I could manage manually. Never tried the manual box, but having grown up been told "real men drive manuals" i've got use to the auto box surprisingly quickly...
I didn't even entertain the idea of the 335d, mainly cos i don't do enough miles, and the sound of the straight 6 won me over straightaway....
Either way both are fantastic cars, looks like any other 3 series but put your foot down and your hitting 3 figures without even trying....oh and the handling its too bad either!!
Averaged 38.1 mpg on my way home from the dealers ( 60 miles mostly motorway). Than went on a little trip down my favourite B road, and got about 20 mpg, which is about the same as my now departed 350z.
Mine has an auto box...makes driving so easy, almost too much so. The sports mode on the autobox works well, you can manually select gears and changes are probably as quick as I could manage manually. Never tried the manual box, but having grown up been told "real men drive manuals" i've got use to the auto box surprisingly quickly...
I didn't even entertain the idea of the 335d, mainly cos i don't do enough miles, and the sound of the straight 6 won me over straightaway....
Either way both are fantastic cars, looks like any other 3 series but put your foot down and your hitting 3 figures without even trying....oh and the handling its too bad either!!
Edited by gangzoom on Saturday 25th June 20:52
Max_Torque said:
I would agree, for the "average" driver the auto suits the car better, however i am not an average driver ;-) (and however good the current autoboxes are (and i should know, i calibrate them!!) they are not able to read my mind (yet....) So if i know i might want to overtake a car, i am already in the right gear for it when i do so. Also, you can get significantly better MPG with the manual (becuase you don't have to accept the as calibrated load/gear points from the manufacturer, and you can do things like coast in neutral. If i "hypermile" my current 330d manual, i can easily get well over 50mpg on a long journey. And the final nail in the coffin for the auto, no clutch pedal! so "clutch down" saves are not possible (and the "rock it out" technique got me around in the worst snow of last winter on bald summer tyres can't be used either ;-).
SO for me, manual all the way please
What does calibrating an autobox involve? I have recently switched to driving an auto because of a problem with my ankle and have to say its ok but I often find it is in the wrong gear at times because it cant anticipate what I am going to do. SO for me, manual all the way please
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