[Dr Forinor]

My previous car was a 2010 E90 Saloon (no xDrive) 330d remapped, so this obviously had the older engine with the older 6spd auto gearbox (IMO much worse than the current ZF8 auto). I had a little drag race with a friend (different car entirely) and up until about 85-90ish, we were neck and neck, and then afterwards I would quite comfortably pull away.

Last night, same friend in his same car. This time I however my DMS remapped F31 335d xDrive. Same drag race, same road, same conditions, and we were about neck and neck up until about 70ish, but after that I would leave him for dead - much quicker than my previous did after 90.

EDIT: These were not from a standing start, but from a rolling start.

Now this got me thinking, had I got the F31 330d, no xDrive (so slightly lighter car) with it remapped, in the real world, would there actually be much difference - as far as acceleration is concerned?

[mcspongy]

Originally Posted by Dr Forinor

My previous car was a 2010 E90 Saloon (no xDrive) 330d remapped, so this obviously had the older engine with the older 6spd auto gearbox (IMO much worse than the current ZF8 auto). I had a little drag race with a friend (different car entirely) and up until about 85-90ish, we were neck and neck, and then afterwards I would quite comfortably pull away.

Last night, same friend in his same car. This time I however my DMS remapped F31 335d xDrive. Same drag race, same road, same conditions, and we were about neck and neck up until about 70ish, but after that I would leave him for dead - much quicker than my previous did after 90.

Now this got me thinking, had I got the F31 330d, no xDrive (so slightly lighter car) with it remapped, in the real world, would there actually be much difference - as far as acceleration is concerned?

Ask DMS to remove the remap, and see if you notice the difference. Is the engine heavier in the 335d?

[robbiep]

You've now got an estate. Heavier than saloon, so slower.

You've now got xDrive. Adds weight, so slower.

You've now got more power, and AWD to get the power down (though I'd imagine it's still putting most of the power to the rear wheels on a standing start), so faster.

Swings and potatoes, as my granny used to say.

[Dr Forinor]

Editing original post: These were not from a standing start, but from a rolling start.

mcspongy My previous car was also remapped, so I am comparing my old remapped car with my newer remapped car.

[F36 435d]

Your mate has had his car remapped and not told you

[McBeemer]

Originally Posted by Dr Forinor

My previous car was a 2010 E90 Saloon (no xDrive) 330d remapped, so this obviously had the older engine with the older 6spd auto gearbox (IMO much worse than the current ZF8 auto). I had a little drag race with a friend (different car entirely) and up until about 85-90ish, we were neck and neck, and then afterwards I would quite comfortably pull away.

Last night, same friend in his same car. This time I however my DMS remapped F31 335d xDrive. Same drag race, same road, same conditions, and we were about neck and neck up until about 70ish, but after that I would leave him for dead - much quicker than my previous did after 90.

EDIT: These were not from a standing start, but from a rolling start.

Now this got me thinking, had I got the F31 330d, no xDrive (so slightly lighter car) with it remapped, in the real world, would there actually be much difference - as far as acceleration is concerned?

I think the main difference is all that loose change that you keep in your "DIY Glove Compartment" which is slowing things down

Seriously though, there's probably not too much in it, but what it highlights is, that no matter what we get & how we tinker with it to improve it, we're never satisfied !

You're simply airing the comparisons that we all make from time to time, wondering if life would be so much better if we'd taken route "B" as per our conversations.

Now ...... I've got to decide where to get my remap done !

PS. Are you any further forward with your suspension mod?

[NotGotABimmer23]

Top end and from a stop are where the 335d xdrive will excel over the 330d. From a roll to 70 there probably isn't much between them on paper or in reality.

[Dr Forinor]

Originally Posted by kylemacca01

Top end and from a stop are where the 335d xdrive will excel over the 330d. From a roll to 70 there probably isn't much between them on paper or in reality.

This is exactly it.

McBeemer The car is getting booked in after finalising certain things with the garage next week. Hopefully next couple of weeks I should have;

1. Bilstein PSS10 Comfort suspension fitted
2. Stainless Steel braided hose lines
3. Ferodo DS2500 brake pads

Will see if I stop there

[Dr Forinor]

Originally Posted by F36 435d

Your mate has had his car remapped and not told you

His car was already remapped when I raced him the first time

[1966-TR4]

Originally Posted by Dr Forinor

Now this got me thinking, had I got the F31 330d, no xDrive (so slightly lighter car) with it remapped, in the real world, would there actually be much difference - as far as acceleration is concerned?

There would be a difference, because in the real world putting all that torque through xDrive results in a quicker car than sDrive, from a standing start.

[Hooded]

Well your old car as standard is 3.7 seconds 50-75mph and your new car is around 3.5 seconds 50-75mph standard .. both cars are remapped .. assuming similar gains? Your old car and new car are only around 0.2seconds apart 50-75mph!

This explains why up until 70mph from a rolling start you don't notice much difference. 0-60 from standstill I'm sure your new 335d xdrive is a lot quicker though

Edit: I was comparing 2 saloon cars above .. if your 335d is a touring the stock 50-75 time is the same as your e90 330d according to this..

http://www.zeperfs.com/en/duel2643-5143.htm

[Dr Forinor]

All the above sort of reinforces my point.

Not many of us buy 330d or 335d for timed drag races or track cars. We buy them for good motorway / cross country drives. At cruising & overtaking speeds, I doubt there would be much in it, it's just a numbers game really?

[Ti Rich]

Here is something else to consider. I have just gone from a 330d to a 435d.

1. There doesn't feel that much difference unless you have your foot flat to the floor.

2. The X35d feels, and is, a lot heavier. You can really feel the extra weight.

3. MPG is about 15% worse so far but that's on a new engine.

4. No traction issues on x35d. 330d would spin the wheels very easy in the damp or wet.

To be honest, even though I have a 435d now, the x30D is the sweet spot for me.

[HighlandPete]

Real world driving is not really about 0 - 60, or 0 - 100mph. More about 30 - 70mph, through the gears. We seem to only get 50 - 75mph (80 - 120 km/h) figures these days.

It is why the 330d is viewed by many as the sweet spot engine. RWD is more efficient and virtually the same performance, 50 - 75mph, as the 335d.

xDrive blunts the mid range, hard acceleration (once past the benefits due to loss of grip on RWD), uses more power to do the same job than RWD, due to higher drivetrain losses. Tune the engines, even higher drivetrain losses (xDrive vs. RWD) under hard acceleration.

[Hooded]

Originally Posted by Ti Rich

Here is something else to consider. I have just gone from a 330d to a 435d.

1. There doesn't feel that much difference unless you have your foot flat to the floor.

2. The X35d feels, and is, a lot heavier. You can really feel the extra weight.

3. MPG is about 15% worse so far but that's on a new engine.

4. No traction issues on x35d. 330d would spin the wheels very easy in the damp or wet.

To be honest, even though I have a 435d now, the x30D is the sweet spot for me.

I agree, .. rolling start performance in the dry at legal speeds there really isn't much between the x30d (sdrive) and x35d (xdrive). The x35d is a lot quicker off the line of course, but since I rarely race people off the lights (and the x30d is no slouch off them anyway) the x30d seems the sweet spot for me too, even more so due to buying second hand at around 4 years old. There's a lot more 330d cars to choose from second hand and get your desired colour/spec and they're a few grand less at the same age.

Cheers

[Dr Forinor]

By your responses, I think I am on the same page as many of you.

As much as I'm glad I went for this 335d, my next one for sure will be a x30d (i?) version, and RWD only.

The x35d only really feels much quicker at much higher speeds, which is not realistic or representative of daily useage.

[Soul_Glo]

On the Shakespear track I was impressed with my 435d x hitting 44mpg at 105 mph. The acceleration between 100-120 also impressing. Alas it is performance best suited to the unrestricted autobahn.

I hear you about the 30d it seems like the best compromise but why not the 20d? At UK motorway speeds less is more. It does not take much to maintain 70 unless under mega load. My guess is the engine is probably using less than a quarter of the total output. Yes the 20d sounds like a bag of nails but mpg wise it is ahead of 30d and 35d. Performance wise you can see sub 7 seconds with a tune on a 20d and if traffic light grand prix is not your thing then it makes sense.

I love my 35d. My first six pot diesel and feels like a tiny rocket ship. M4 esque.

[Dr Forinor]

I had a 2007 320d Saloon, which was remapped. It did fine at even motorway speeds, and the MPG figures were superb but I do like *some* acceleration I very quickly changed to a 330d Saloon, which I did very much enjoy and never thought about a different car

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining about the acceleration in the 335d, it's just that I get the feeling that I didn't really gain much in gear acceleration over and above the 330d (if you aren't timing it all, obviously).

For me, I think the sweet spot is also the x30d, without the xDrive, for sure It's the best blend/compromise between economy and acceleration for your standard daily driving, but still provide enough thrills on the country roads.

Just googled it last night, the xDrive adds around 65kg to the car?

[JD6]

Originally Posted by Dr Forinor

For me, I think the sweet spot is also the x30d, without the xDrive, for sure It's the best blend/compromise between economy and acceleration for your standard daily driving, but still provide enough thrills on the country roads.

I do think that the 30d is an excellent engine and in sDrive form has a remarkable combination of pace with economy, as you say. In my hands a 330d has almost identical economy to a 320d, but as discussed previously that's probably due to pushing the 20d too hard to be efficient. My previous F10 520d recorded only about 1mpg above my current 335d.

Whether it's worth going from a 30d to a 35d depends a lot on what type of driver you are. I could be happy with either, but I do enjoy the nature of the twin turbo unit, perhaps due to having quite a few effortless V8 petrols before.

[Dr Forinor]

JD6 I must admit I love the effortlessness of the twin turbo unit, I do absolutely love it.

I guess really my bottom line here is, I don't mind the engine, it's most likely the xDrive that I quite possibly 'hate'?

I'm not sure, I haven't driven in enough sketchy conditions yet to see what the xDrive is like. But in saying that, I had my previous 330d sDrive for 4 years and not once did I wish I had xDrive.

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by Dr Forinor

I had a 2007 320d Saloon, which was remapped. It did fine at even motorway speeds, and the MPG figures were superb but I do like *some* acceleration I very quickly changed to a 330d Saloon, which I did very much enjoy and never thought about a different car

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining about the acceleration in the 335d, it's just that I get the feeling that I didn't really gain much in gear acceleration over and above the 330d (if you aren't timing it all, obviously).

For me, I think the sweet spot is also the x30d, without the xDrive, for sure It's the best blend/compromise between economy and acceleration for your standard daily driving, but still provide enough thrills on the country roads.

Just googled it last night, the xDrive adds around 65kg to the car?

I'm of the same mind, it is the blend/compromise between economy and acceleration. The 330d RWD sits just right.

The extra weight of the 335d is all over the front axle as well, so it is a compromise, more so if we don't need the benefits of xDrive for most of our driving.

Weight and extra xDrive losses do cost us both in acceleration times and fuel economy. Steady state driving may not be too big a penalty, but on acceleration, getting more weight and extra rotating masses up to speed are parasitic losses, adding to a higher road load.

[creepy coupe]

When I had my 435d and would jump between it and a friends 330d X drive.. I found the 330d would change down in places under acceleration, where the 435d wouldn't. So mid range torque makes a difference.