[BMWDAD]

http://www.insideline.com/bmw/3-seri...ison-test.html

personally unless the coupe is REAL different I am out of this class of car

[ATX78703]

Originally Posted by BMWDAD

http://www.insideline.com/bmw/3-seri...ison-test.html

personally unless the coupe is REAL different I am out of this class of car

??? R u talking about price?

Seems that as the subcompacts have entered (a3, 1 series, etc..) the asking price has gone up significantly on these models. But that 328i is overoptioned. A better price point for it is 42-45K.

[BMWrules7]

Originally Posted by BMWDAD

http://www.insideline.com/bmw/3-seri...ison-test.html

personally unless the coupe is REAL different I am out of this class of car

This is exactly what you get when the manufacturer gives the cars to the reviewer for testing. Too equivocal cuz you don't want to hurt anyone's feelings too much.

In the end, as predicted, the 328 won.

[yerffejleahcim]

Loving the 328i more as reviews continue to come in.

[Propagator]

"The BMW doesn't inspire you to attack any back roads, but it offers a prudent degree of mountain-road-handling prowess to complement BMW's classic formula for all-around success. The new electrically assisted steering isn't communicative on a granular level, but it isn't going to repel anyone either."

So Insideline is really sticking to the view that the F30, even with the sport package, is not something you would call a true sports sedan, but more of a sporty luxury car. This is very different from the all-out lovefest by, say, the Motortrend. Interesting.

[7or8]

With this iteration of the 3er, there is an extra line that doesn't seem to allow for as much of an orange to orange comparison against A4. With the E90 it went like this, IMO:

E90 -non sport pkg vs Audi A4
E90 - w/ sport pkg vs Audi A4 Sportline
E90 M3 vs Audi S4

Now you have..

F30 -non sportline vs Audi A4
F30 -Sport Line vs Audi A4 S Line
F30 -Msport vs ?
F30 M3 vs Audi S4

..or is it:

F30 -non sportline vs Audi A4
F30 -Sport Line vs ?
F30 - Msport vs Audi A4 S Line
F30 M3 vs Audi S4

[clarence]

Have they got those darn Goodyear EfficientGrips again?

[nick3753]

To me s4 competes with 335 more than m3. Closer in price and performance to 335 than to m3, especially the future f30 m3.

[Red Bread]

Originally Posted by clarence

Have they got those darn Goodyear EfficientGrips again?

Yep, which I think (and hope) is one reason that the Audi cleaned up on handling tests. First, they're RFT's, then they're crappy Goodyears and finally, they're narrow. What is BMW's plan with this awful setup?

[7or8]

Originally Posted by Red Bread

Yep, which I think (and hope) is one reason that the Audi cleaned up on handling tests. First, they're RFT's, then they're crappy Goodyears and finally, they're narrow. What is BMW's plan with this awful setup?

Msport has the decent tires and staggered setup; since it's not out yet all the mags are comparing the competition against the Sport Line.

[justinnum1]

those good year tires are a joke

328 owns the competition anyways, no surprise there

[DrivenByE30]

Is it wrong for me to see the Audi as the best looking car out of the three??

That A4 line is beautiful i think... better than BM and MB, which are not bad looking at all, but the 4 rings has a much cleaner sheet...



No matter, any of the three car, even if picked randomly, are great cars!

[nexusonemeover]

Originally Posted by clarence

Have they got those darn Goodyear EfficientGrips again?

Mine (328i with sport package) has Pirelli P7 Cinturata tires... very hard... going to be replaced with Continental ExtremeContact DWS and a spare in the boot.

http://www.pirelli.com/tire/us/en/ca...lication%3DCAR

http://www.conti-online.com/generato...ct_dws_en.html

[BMWDAD]

Originally Posted by BMWDAD

http://www.insideline.com/bmw/3-seri...ison-test.html

personally unless the coupe is REAL different I am out of this class of car

I am looking for the sports here, not the luxury.

Maybe the 2 coupe, or the 4 coupe with have it.

[bananachipz]

Originally Posted by BMWDAD

I am looking for the sports here, not the luxury.

Maybe the 2 coupe, or the 4 coupe with have it.

Have you actually driven the f30?

[svache]

Originally Posted by nick3753

To me s4 competes with 335 more than m3. Closer in price and performance to 335 than to m3, especially the future f30 m3.

Agreed. I would think the RS4 was the competitor for the M3 instead.

[E36toF30]

Originally Posted by BMWDAD

http://www.insideline.com/bmw/3-seri...ison-test.html

personally unless the coupe is REAL different I am out of this class of car

Real different how? What would you buy instead?

[justinnum1]

how does it feel audi and mercedes to always be taking it up the a$$ in this segment?

[E36toF30]

Originally Posted by Propagator

"The BMW doesn't inspire you to attack any back roads, but it offers a prudent degree of mountain-road-handling prowess to complement BMW's classic formula for all-around success. The new electrically assisted steering isn't communicative on a granular level, but it isn't going to repel anyone either."

So Insideline is really sticking to the view that the F30, even with the sport package, is not something you would call a true sports sedan, but more of a sporty luxury car. This is very different from the all-out lovefest by, say, the Motortrend. Interesting.

And yet they still gave it the win, even with the Goodyear EfficientGrip tires (not to mention being RFTs and thinner than what the Audi had).

[Propagator]

Originally Posted by E36toF30

And yet they still gave it the win, even with the Goodyear EfficientGrip tires (not to mention being RFTs and thinner than what the Audi had).

Well, I don't really think it's fair to judge a car with anything other than the tires that it came with from the factory. We cannot be simultaneously cheering for the improved gas mileage, and cutting it slack because stickier tires would make it better (duh).

But more importantly, I'm noticing a certain pattern from the reviews. Up to the E90, magazine comparos would often conclude that the 3er, despite being the benchmark for so many years, was still a very different car from the rest of the competition. This was likely due to its lack of luxury features coupled with a certain degree of rawness and connected feel that could not be found in the competition (with the possible exception of the G37).

Now the reviews seem to say that, for better or worse, the F30 is a rather similar type of car to the rest of the field, but better in almost every way. That it is now a more well rounded car, at the expense of some character. Even the extremely positive Motortrend comparo was titled "Sporty Luxury Car Comparison", which is actually in line with Insideline's not-so-glaring assessment.

I wish I could do an extended test drive on a sport line 328i with manual, but sadly that isn't going to happen any time soon.

[svache]

Originally Posted by justinnum1

how does it feel audi and mercedes to always be taking it up the a$$ in this segment?

Quote of the day

[E36toF30]

Originally Posted by Propagator

Well, I don't really think it's fair to judge a car with anything other than the tires that it came with from the factory. We cannot be simultaneously cheering for the improved gas mileage, and cutting it slack because stickier tires would make it better (duh).

Yeah, I somewhat agree. However, I'm pretty sure most F30 sport lines at dealers do not have the Goodyear EfficientGrip tires that the test car had, but rather something a bit grippier/more performance oriented. And yeah, it's true that such tires are probably down .5 MPG or so from the EfficientGrip ones.