Which to buy M135i or M235i

[335d]

Thanks AOK - I'll bear that in mind.

I'm not a fan of Coral either.

[va1o]

I had my eye on the M235i originally but decided they don't justify the extra over the M135i in price. Only wanted 2-doors so went with the F21 M135I and have been pretty happy with it. Still benefits from some Coupe features such as the pillarless doors, and looks nice enough!

Each to there own though

[msej449]

Addendum to my earlier post: I'd forgotten how much time 1 Series owners spend slagging-off their runflat tyres. You'll see a lot of posts on various forums saying how marvellous switching to non-runflats has been. This is much less the case with the 2 Series and M235i. However, it's often hard to separate how much is due to changing to a different brand of tyre and/or a different size of wheel. Posts by 2 Series owners seem much more equivocal and many (like me) feel their runflats are OK and 'though there may be an improvement, are very uncertain that it would be enough to warrant the cost. In particular, as I said earlier, runflat complaints from 1 Series and especially M135i owners seem to increase in the winter, when I suspect that the issue is they need winter tyres and wheels, rather than a switch to non-runflats.

So if you do opt for an M135i then I'd say you should also budget for winter wheels and tyres (if it's a daily drive, rather than a fair weather vehicle). BMW winter wheels and tyres for a performance model will be about £1500-£2000 new, and somewhat less from an independent retailer. Since your summers are unworn in the winter, then the lifetime cost is principally the switch-over twice a year, and the alloys. However, many suppliers subsidise the alloy cost to sell the combined wheels+tyres. BMW garages swap and store the unused set for you, typically for about £30/year or so. Independents charge for each swap and you have to store them.

Owners' winter wheels are usually narrower than the summers, or they go 'square' (same J and tyre width all-'round) from 'staggered' (wider) summer rears. This is to reduce aquaplaning. I can attest that going square on my M235i in the winter dramatically reduces aquaplaning and makes the car much more stable in cold and wet. There is a price to pay in handling but given it's colder and wetter I have to adapt my driving anyway with 328BHP on tap.

Edited by msej449 on Friday 18th August 18:15

[LocoBlade]

True for 1 and 2 Series in general but standard fitment on Mx35i and Mx40i cars are Michelin Pilot Supersports non runflats. Runflats are a no-cost option but you'd tick the option if buying new so pretty sure there'll be more cars out there on MPSS than runflats.

msej449 said:

Addendum to my earlier post: I'd forgotten how much time 1 Series owners spend slagging-off their runflat tyres. You'll see a lot of posts on various forums saying how marvellous switching to non-runflats has been. This is much less the case with the 2 Series and M235i. However, it's often hard to separate how much is due to changing to a different brand of tyre and/or a different size of wheel. Posts by 2 Series owners seem much more equivocal and many (like me) feel their runflats are OK and 'though there may be an improvement, are very uncertain that it would be enough to warrant the cost. In particular, as I said earlier, runflat complaints from 1 Series and especially M135i owners seem to increase in the winter, when I suspect that the issue is they need winter tyres and wheels, rather than a switch to non-runflats.

[LocoBlade]

If you haven't seen it in the flesh, don't make judgements based solely on photos as it virtually always glows bright red like a babboon's arse in photos whereas in reality it's more of a terracotta reddy brown. I wanted mineral grey exterior so black inside dark grey would be a bit gloomy and I really couldn't stomach creamy white "oyster" leather. I was also extremely dubious about coral based on what I'd seen in photos, but in reality it's a lot less in your face and I really like it.

335d said:

Thanks AOK - I'll bear that in mind.

I'm not a fan of Coral either.

Edited by LocoBlade on Friday 18th August 20:29

[SebringMan]

After doing 3,000 miles in my BMW over the past few weeks I am now sold on a light interior. As said it's a little less gloomy and a nice place to be.

[msej449]

My 2016 M235i came as standard with runflat Continentals. I knew this was the case and there was no 'non-runflat' option on offer. This to the surprise of the parts department, who were all ready to sell me the inflation kit, given the standard build rules, until they checked the VIN. So whatever your preference, it's worth clarifying what the car has, as BMW don't always keep to their own rules about what's fitted by default. I've seen 1 Series postings where the default has been changed for a short period, implying that there were perhaps supply problems from the tyre manufacturer. It causes a lot of confusion.

Re colour and interior, I'd make a distinction between what looks photogenic and what's 'livable-with'. We had a beautiful loan M235i convertible in metallic black with black interior and the full carbon fibre outfit (mirrors, grille, dash trim, gaiter etc.) - it looked stunning. But I've had an all-black Audi before in similar guise: come the middle of winter on a long drive home and it was positively funereal. We ended-up ordering in estoril blue with oyster and high-gloss black and it's much more cheerful. But this is always a very personal choice.

Edited by msej449 on Saturday 19th August 00:02

[Petrolhead]

LocoBlade said:

If you haven't seen it in the flesh, don't make judgements based solely on photos as it virtually always glows bright red like a babboon's arse in photos whereas in reality it's more of a terracotta reddy brown.

I have noticed that also and dont like it in the flesh so I think Estoril Blue is the colour for me

Also, this car will not be a daily driver for me tho

[CarsOrBikes]

I prefer the drive of my M240 to that of my M140, both this year cars, with adaptive, the 2 is better composed, although I liked the look of the 1 better