After 8 weeks of waiting, I finally traveled to Atlanta to pick up my new F30 335 from Adrian Avilai. I was lucky enough to receive an allocation of these scarce 335is :thumbup:
Adrian Avila hooked me up so I ended up booking a flight the day my car arrived to the dealership and had to make 1 stop, because the non-stop flight was double the price. This required me to make a stop in Charlotte then fly to Atlanta and then drive back to Orlando. It was a very long day, but what better way to break my 335i in. I would much rather do a little traveling than buy from my local dealership.
Being a Pre-LCI 335i owner I immediately started making some comparisons.
First of all the car seems bigger in a good way. I immediately noticed that the doors are lighter than my E90, but they do not shut easily. I have to almost slam them. This is not really a bad thing, but just different.
My main impression is that this car is way better than the E90. I paid less for my F30 when all of the technology options are considered. As far as the driving experience this car is like 4 cars in one. The fact that you can go switch between Eco Pro, Comfort, Sport, and Sport Plus is amazing. Eco Pro mode is not bad, but you have to know its purpose. Its perfect for being on a straight highway when you don't have much traffic to deal with. Its also great for being in traffic that is backed up. I didn't find the start-stop function bad at all. Its like my friend's hybrid that I have been driving around for the past two weeks. I also think it saves emissions rather than much gas. The Eco Pro mode saved my about 7 miles in gas on a 400 mile trip. Not all that great, but I also was in comfort and sport mode a lot.
Comfort mode is great, steering is loose and power is still there, just not as aggressive. When going into sport mode, the steering tightens, gears rev longer and the car becomes a beast! There is plenty of reserve of power on this car. It reminds me of the F10 550i that I test drove. You are going 80 before you know it and to really use sport mode, you can easily get to 90 plus mph and rev the thing out. Ive been keeping mine under 4,000 RPMs for the first 1200 miles.
The comparisons between the performance between the N55 and N54 engine are kind of ridiculous IMHO. This engine is no slouch and every bit as good as the N54. The 8 speed transmission just makes the car soooo smooth. IN comfort and sport mode I was between 2K and 3K rpms easily traveling at an average speed of 80 mph.
Compared to the E90 the brakes are very soft in comarison. They are not bad, but it just takes more travel for the brake pedal. The stopping power seems slightly less than my E90,but that is subjective.
The technology in this car is awesome, and I probably did not need to purchase the technology package, but the bigger screen looks pretty good. The Navigation sucks and is way worse than my former Acura TL. I probably just need to experiment with it, but I could not seem to be rerouted with the system. The Premium Sound is terrible IMHO. It is very similar to my Pre-LCI E90. You have to crank it way up to sound decent. Although it is very clear, there is very little bass in the surround mode. (not that I need much bass). I love the fact that the bluetooth audio song titles show up on the screen. My acura did not do this.
The leatherette on my car is AMAZING!!!! It looks and feels just like dakota and I am soooo glad that I did not get the premium package. The smell is great also. Im not the biggest of comfort access and my car came with auto dimming mirrors, outside path lighting, ambient lighting, etc. Very happy that I skipped the premium package.
The tires are 225s non-staggered as many of you know, and really do not look skinny at all.
Only a couple of things bothered me about the new style. The lever for the steering wheel adjustment is very cheaply made. My biggest gripe is that the top of the steering wheel is skinny compared to the rest of the steering wheel. Some people may like this, but I do not. The looks are deceiving.
Oh, and one thing that I discovered... Compared to my E90, the hood roundel has raised lettering and lines. I don't believe that the E90 had this. I spent all day detailing my car so I noticed this nuance
Lastly, I did have the dashboard rattle for about 10 miles. There was nothing that I could attribute it to, whether it was slow speed, radio on/off or whatever. It is completely gone now. and it was rather annoying, thank God it is gone.
Anyhow, I had a wonderful experience with Adrian and will be back in 30 months.
Enjoy these pics!
Oh, and a pic of Adrian. The man who made it all happen. I know, cheesy but oh well.