Certainly not going to slate the 85s 86s as ive enjoyed every minute & mile of the ones i owned but really have to trumpet just how good ive found the E89 experience so far .
Straight off the cabin space feels so much bigger yet the car is virtually the same width & only 100mm longer.
The overall layout is great & i like the larger clock binnacles & heater controls (although took a while to not try pushing the heater ones in like you can on older TTs
nice touch that :wink: )
The door storage is a small but classy upgrade as is the proper centre armrest
Driving position feels good & the sport seats are a major improvement that i always felt the previous seats needed
Hi-fi is the basic one yet sounds as good as prevous Logic7 i had in ///M & appreciate the USB facility
External styling / roof up or roof down i think they look equally good looking & the sculptured lines in the body are hard to ignore
From behind the wheel the bonnet has great contours with the blades/ridges very much ///M like
Se V Msport ? I'm not fussed for M badges galore but I appreciate many just "have" to have Msport bumpers but of all BMWs in last 10 years i just don't think the differences are enough to warrant any extra ask price or rule out a car on that basis , its a personal thing i know but i really wasn't fussed for them & actually prefer the Se rear bumper to Msport :?
Now the actual drive ? It was apparent within first few miles that the whole go-kart , throw it into bends feel i loved about the 85s 86s just isn't there
by comparison the 89 feels almost lardy 
but that imo is the only downside to its upsides that are a great GT / cruising car , It soaks up miles & hours like a rep mobile yet behind the wheel you are in no doubt its a sportscar from the long bonnet & cabin layout
Mine is the "lowly" :roll: 200bhp 2.3i but the 89 seems to encourages a totally different drive style so as yet feel no desperate need for more power .
Overall i was quite surprised by the obvious difference in feel as you shut the doors & drive away , best comparison i could give is the difference i felt stepping from a Z3 to E85 Z4 is similar from 85 to 89
With prices of 89s now fudged well into 85 territory they really do look great value & makes for a tough decision whether to go low mile 85 or high mile 89 ?
No regrets as yet , next stop into indy for a major service then get some more miles on the clock
Straight off the cabin space feels so much bigger yet the car is virtually the same width & only 100mm longer.
The overall layout is great & i like the larger clock binnacles & heater controls (although took a while to not try pushing the heater ones in like you can on older TTs
nice touch that :wink: ) The door storage is a small but classy upgrade as is the proper centre armrest
Driving position feels good & the sport seats are a major improvement that i always felt the previous seats needed
Hi-fi is the basic one yet sounds as good as prevous Logic7 i had in ///M & appreciate the USB facility
External styling / roof up or roof down i think they look equally good looking & the sculptured lines in the body are hard to ignore
From behind the wheel the bonnet has great contours with the blades/ridges very much ///M like
Se V Msport ? I'm not fussed for M badges galore but I appreciate many just "have" to have Msport bumpers but of all BMWs in last 10 years i just don't think the differences are enough to warrant any extra ask price or rule out a car on that basis , its a personal thing i know but i really wasn't fussed for them & actually prefer the Se rear bumper to Msport :?
Now the actual drive ? It was apparent within first few miles that the whole go-kart , throw it into bends feel i loved about the 85s 86s just isn't there
by comparison the 89 feels almost lardy but that imo is the only downside to its upsides that are a great GT / cruising car , It soaks up miles & hours like a rep mobile yet behind the wheel you are in no doubt its a sportscar from the long bonnet & cabin layoutMine is the "lowly" :roll: 200bhp 2.3i but the 89 seems to encourages a totally different drive style so as yet feel no desperate need for more power .
Overall i was quite surprised by the obvious difference in feel as you shut the doors & drive away , best comparison i could give is the difference i felt stepping from a Z3 to E85 Z4 is similar from 85 to 89
With prices of 89s now fudged well into 85 territory they really do look great value & makes for a tough decision whether to go low mile 85 or high mile 89 ?
No regrets as yet , next stop into indy for a major service then get some more miles on the clock
By the seaside...
North Yorkshire
