E91 335i vs 335d vs F31 - Auto / Manual!?

T

Theog

Member
 Kent
Evening all,

I hope all is good. I've been renovating my house so haven't managed to get out in the Zed nearly enough :(

Anyways I have a little bundle of fun joining us in september so I need to start thinking of highly practical cars...... which aren't bland as ****.

Originally I was tempted by E91 with the N52 engine as I love the n52 in my current Zed, but I have a feeling I'm simply trying to replicate my car in another one... which is dangerous. So I'm thinking of keeping some similarities (BMW / M-Sport) but changing it up in other ways.

So far what I'm pretty sure I want is:
- 335 variant of some kind as it will be a performance bump.
- auto = originally I wanted manual but now I'm thinking of auto to change the experience. I don't want it to be a replica of my Zed. Also I have heard you can remap the gearbox to shift quicker.
- M-Sport = does anyone know if has the same hydraulic steering as the zed!? Sorry I'm not technical when it comes to these things.
- Black or anything but grey / silver
- Light interior... I love the cream / light interior of my zed. Makes it feel more inviting.


Questions / What I'm not sure about:
I'm not sure if to go for petrol or diesel. I know the petrol versions have many problems with turbos, and are generally quite unreliable. But they will sound great and have fantastic performance. Once remapped I imagine it would really shift.

On the other hand the diesel will not sound quite as good, but once remapped will be quite a beast in itself performance wise.

What is everyone's experiences with the above? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Best,

Theog
 
hi,

i have had several e92's (no e91's unfortunatley) but had 2 petrol N52s both 325s which i felt needed to be worked hard for the size of the car, which is irellevant to you anway, the 335i is an N54 in the e91 unless you get a late one which are N55's - they are pretty rare.

i have a e92 325d M sport in phoenix yellow which is a manual which has been remapped, decatted and DPF removed and is running circa 300bhp, it is a lot of fun to drive, it would wipe the floor with my 3.0i z4 and does 36mpg with mixed a road/motorway driving, its a lot of fun and is a great all rounder- i have driven the auto's and me personally feel like they feel disconnected and a bit vague to drive, the manual is so much more engaging, I'm not averse to auto's - if i got any F series BMW - i would 100% go for the 8 speed zf auto, however i feel the older 'slushbox' style 6 speed ones in the e9* are pretty numb.

They are good cars, few electrical faults and the diesel ones are pretty reliable on the whole, i have had mine straight piped with a 335 style exhaust conversion and it sounds quite naughty for a diesel.

Mine is electronically assisted hydraulic steering which feels nice and weighted , later ones have full servotronic assistance with speed sensitive weighting as an option on the LCI models.
 
jamie_z4 said:
i feel the older 'slushbox' style 6 speed ones in the e9* are pretty numb.
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Thanks for this @jamie_z4

I know that you can remap the auto boxes to be faster. Have you every seen the difference here?

Alternatively have you heard anyone changing the gearbox all together e.g. double clutch / faster shifting... or do you think this would cost farrr too much?
 
Let me be the spanner in the works and advise you to get a crossover of some sort.
If it’s your first you cannot imagine the crap you have to move around. Any kind of trip is an estate full of kit.
I guarantee a 3 box saloon will be replaced with a performance family car in months.
Secondly you cannot have a light interior.. grey OK but think drinks, food, puke, nappies and you’ll soon work it out
Father of 2 grown up kids that stopped trashing my cars at around 18. And hence slowly back to performance hatches then performance sports cars after a two decades of X5’s and similar
 
Theog said:
jamie_z4 said:
i feel the older 'slushbox' style 6 speed ones in the e9* are pretty numb.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this @jamie_z4

I know that you can remap the auto boxes to be faster. Have you every seen the difference here?

Alternatively have you heard anyone changing the gearbox all together e.g. double clutch / faster shifting... or do you think this would cost farrr too much?
Click to expand...

You can get really late model 335i with the dct gearbox which you find in the z4 e89s if you really wanted.

The auto might be fine for you but me personally they hunt around far too much for my liking
 
I'd agree with what jamie_z4 has said - I bought a manual E91 325i earlier this year (for more practicality than my E46 325ti) and it does seem to struggle a bit with the extra weight (although my Z4 is a 3.0Si)! But being an early one it does have the N52 engine and hydraulic PAS which is way better than the EPAS on my Z4. :( I ended up getting one in Graphite, but it has the lemon leather interior so I decided to live with the paint - any Tourings do seem hard to find, and sell quickly IME.

But after an N52 engined Z4 I would imagine any 3 Series with an N52 would be a disappointment, so if you want to be able to have any fun I'd go for a 335i as that can also be mapped - and you do get the option of a manual which I don't think was available on the 335d. Plus you won't get much fun in a diesel however quick it is (based on my experience of 6+ years with a 123d, before I saw the light and bought my 1st Z4)!

But the mileage you expect to do may also be a factor - low miles and diesels aren't generally a great combination.

FWIW cj10jeeper doesn't seem to appreciate that the E91 is a Touring (saloon is an E90) - my nephew became a dad 2 years ago and has managed just fine with the E46 Touring we found to replace his Compact.

IMO Cross-overs are for people who have given up on life - or also have a toy!

Anyway congratulations, and good luck with the search. :thumbsup:
 
Mr Tidy said:
IMO Cross-overs are for people who have given up on life - or also have a toy!
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Couldnt agree more - i'd rather walk than own a Renault Katur or something vlie like that :lol:
 
I’d just completely avoid the auto boxes but that’s just my personal pref. I even hated the zf 8 speed dct in the new m3 (had the car for a full day). Really disconnected me from the car.
 
Mr Tidy said:
I'd agree with what jamie_z4 has said - I bought a manual E91 325i earlier this year (for more practicality than my E46 325ti) and it does seem to struggle a bit with the extra weight (although my Z4 is a 3.0Si)! But being an early one it does have the N52 engine and hydraulic PAS which is way better than the EPAS on my Z4. :( I ended up getting one in Graphite, but it has the lemon leather interior so I decided to live with the paint - any Tourings do seem hard to find, and sell quickly IME.

But after an N52 engined Z4 I would imagine any 3 Series with an N52 would be a disappointment, so if you want to be able to have any fun I'd go for a 335i as that can also be mapped - and you do get the option of a manual which I don't think was available on the 335d. Plus you won't get much fun in a diesel however quick it is (based on my experience of 6+ years with a 123d, before I saw the light and bought my 1st Z4)!

But the mileage you expect to do may also be a factor - low miles and diesels aren't generally a great combination.

FWIW cj10jeeper doesn't seem to appreciate that the E91 is a Touring (saloon is an E90) - my nephew became a dad 2 years ago and has managed just fine with the E46 Touring we found to replace his Compact.

IMO Cross-overs are for people who have given up on life - or also have a toy!

Anyway congratulations, and good luck with the search. :thumbsup:
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Absolutely right - I read 335 of some variant
Will be a great car in touring form
I also would not be seen dead in a Renault type ‘family’ car, but there are many practical performance cars that I’ve managed to balance the ‘new’ needs with
 
If you already have a manual z4 to play with then I’d recommend going auto for your daily. Particularly if you are going with one of the turbocharged 335 variants. IIRC EPS came in as standard with the LCI on the E9x platform in late 2008 so you probably want to be looking for an earlier model to get hydraulic PAS.

The E91 is a great model, and in my experience is better for knee room (and hence rear facing baby seat room) than the equivalent VW golf, but be warned that the BMW layout pushes the two rear seats close together so if you have a second child in the back there is very little space between the child seats. The boot is not massive but has the great feature of the lift up hatch, which is great for dropping shopping bags in or diving in to retrieve something without having everything tumble out when you open the main tailgate.

You need to check if the pram or pushchair you are going to use will fit as you may find the boot neither wide enough or long enough to fit an ‘umbrella’ style folding pushchair.

If you want more space then go and look at a Skoda Suberb!

Chris
 
ran an e92 335i for a year with no issues. easy remap takes it to 360bhp, which really shifts, but is so easy! sounded great, looked sweet, very nice car.

then suddenly had a change of mindset and chopped it in for a e90 330d. again remapped to 280bhp, but the torque is ridiculous. and its a full slushbox auto (step on from the 335i which was a slushbox auto with paddles). Do I miss a manual? for daily driving, not at all. its just so easy to drive! my commute is 20 miles along the motorway each way plus the occasional long run, and its currently averaging 40.9 mpg (the 335i managed 28mpg average). but the torque is addictive - off the line it rockets up to 60 without ever going over 3000rpm.

I have a zed for weekend 2 seater manual driving, so day to day if you want stress free it has to be an auto. cant comment on the practicality with kids, but hey, you've only got yourself to blame for that! :P
 
Get the lighter interior and stick a cover on the back seat. :thumbsup:

To be honest, depending on how long you have to wait for the right car you will get liitle choice on gearbox and colours as there aren't many.

I vote petrol though as I prefer their power delivery and sound. Partly why I got a C63 instead of an RS4 as it sounds much better.
 
Thanks for this guys quite interesting... I have made some notes RE quotes, then some notes at the bottom (which could change the game all together!?).

cj10jeeper said:
Secondly you cannot have a light interior.. grey OK but think drinks, food, puke, nappies and you’ll soon work it out
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This is an interesting one, but if you can see it then maybe that makes you clear it up more? If black it could fester for a while and potentially damage the leather? I know what you are saying though.


jamie_z4 said:
The auto might be fine for you but me personally they hunt around far too much for my liking
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Interesting... please see my comments below about F31


Mr Tidy said:
But after an N52 engined Z4 I would imagine any 3 Series with an N52 would be a disappointment, so if you want to be able to have any fun I'd go for a 335i as that can also be mapped
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I remember our previous conversation on another post about the N52. I LOVE this engine so much, but I really don't want to be let down, hence why I think it's good going for something completely different.


rally-chris said:
be warned that the BMW layout pushes the two rear seats close together so if you have a second child in the back there is very little space between the child seats. The boot is not massive but has the great feature of the lift up hatch, which is great for dropping shopping bags in or diving in to retrieve something without having everything tumble out when you open the main tailgate.
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Thanks Chris notes taken on board.


Thanks for input @brillomaster


Steve84N said:
Get the lighter interior and stick a cover on the back seat. :thumbsup:
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That my friend is quite genius.


Further Updates
Sorry to complicate things, as I seem to change my mind every week! But now I'm considering the potential of going for the F31 now!

It seems that you can get the F31 335D X-Drive M-Sport for around £17k-£19k.

Yes this is a lot more money, but it could be nearer to the 2014 eara. Considering I'm looking to keep this next car for as long as possible (ideally 10 years!?) then ideally I don't want to be buying twice so to speak.

Some things I find attractive about this idea:
- 0-60 in 4.9seconds
- Can be remapped to colossal power outputs.
- I believe it reves quite high for a diesel and does sound quite nice?
- Better mpg, guessing avg real world being 35-40mpg?
- Much nicer interior
- Much faster auto box
- General mod cons e.g. panoramic roof, good audio, back cameras
- Around £3-4k cheaper than petrol second hand
- Hope to think the diesel engine will last me a long time!?

Potential down sides:
- Less connection with road due to non hydraulic steering.
- Much larger, so could be pain?
- Greater cost.
- More gadgets to go wrong down the line.
- Not so good sound / reving as petrol
- Will need 'stretching' every week to keep it going due to diesel engine. Not necessarily a bad thing though.


Other potential options are 5 series, as these seem cheaper than the 3 series, but slower for some reason (in diesel).

Please let me know your thoughts as I have only just thought of this idea.

Best

T
 
jamie_z4 said:
335d no brainer. Get it. I'd love one but can't afford it lol
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I may have to consider selling the Zed though :S

Genuinely this would break my heart, but family may have to come first and I have a feeling the F31 might be safer too.

Also this is such a good forum I would feel a bit left out if I didn't have a Zed to talk about :?
 
Mr Tidy said:
Theog said:
I may have to consider selling the Zed though :S
Click to expand...

In that case I'd look for a 335i E91 and keep the Z! :lol:
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Hahaha, don't tempt me.... that being said, I'm really tempted to get a side job to pay for all this.

On a separate note, I have just found out something quite insane.

The E91 335i has a tax of £550 a year! For the F31 335d it's only £150. That's a difference of £4k over 10 years of ownership!
 
Theog said:
The E91 335i has a tax of £550 a year!
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Ouch!

I may be wrong, but I had a feeling it was only the early ones that were in that band. IIRC for later ones it's "just" £315 or so!
 
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