Annoyed w/ Quality of 325i -- get a G35 Instead?

[JFischel]

I'm interested in hearing from anyone that went from a BMW to a G35 Coupe. Basically, I'm getting annoyed with all the BS that is going wrong with the car. It seems every month something else goes wrong. The heater fan just went on me yesterday. The car's a 2001 with only 25 K miles on it. At any rate, anyone have any thoughts with respect to comparing the G35 to a 325i?

Many Thanks,

Josh

[nas4a]

I'll try this one, atleast to give you some advise. I do not and have not owned a 3-series, but I have driven one. A friend of mine has a brand new 330ci automatic that I got to drive hard for a few hours about 2 months before I got my G35 coupe. He was trying to get me to buy a 330, but I stayed with my coupe decision. The 3-series was my #2 choice, so I did some reading on it as well.

OK, First, I love my coupe, I am 100% happy with my decision. I'll try not to be biased, so I'll throw out some BMW pro's for you from the start...

Seeing as how I drove a 330, and yours is a 325, it's not apples to apples, but...
I felt that as far as acceleration went, the BMW I-6 engine was much better at lower RPM's. It had some serious kick low in the power band, but above about 3,500 RPM, the coupe's high HP and Torque kick in. That car flies. I'm still breaking it in, so I haven't seen full redline, but the one or two ventures up to 5000+ RPM were FUN. I think a race from a dead stop would have the BWM winning the first part, with the coupe catching up and overtaking it in the last part.

Handling is rock solid in either car. The only difference I could tell was the G35 had slight understeer, while the 330 had slight oversteer. I prefer understeer b/c you can apply light braking to load the front wheels for better traction if you need to. oversteer can be scary and is more unexpected IMO. I'm sure some would argue

Styling (exterior)...I think the G35 beats the 3-series in it's sleep. The 3-series is a beautiful car, but I think the G35 coupe is the best looking thing out there. Personal opinion.

Styling/comfort (interior)...The BMW's interior uses better materials and is more classy. The G35 interior is more sporty. I personally preferred the BMW dashboard and gages, but the G35's are fine. I think the BMW's dash had a more finished tight fitting appearance to it where the G35's is sort of basic and techy looking. The G35's seats are more comfortable in my opinion. Bigger lateral supports, and a much better feel. The 330's seats felt more like recliners, where as the G35's felt more like racing seats. Very supportive. Back seats...the 3-series wins hands down. I could sit pretty comfortably in my friend's 3 series coupe with out problem. Legroom was minimal, but it wasn't bad. My G35 has 2 back seats, legroom is fine, but if you're over 5'6", I'm guessing your head will hit the glass in the back if you don't slouch. It's for kids and small girls at best...but who wants a big girl anyway?

Bells and Whistles...The BMW's got some good ones, I love the little redish light that shines on the dash, the venting rear quarter windows is really nice, and the trunk is bigger. The G35 has some as well, but I think the 330 -can- get these, my friend's just didn't have them. Heated seats and dual zone climate control rock, esp. if you have a girlfriend who is ALWAYS cold. I hate heat, she loves it, so it works. The lights on the G35 are very unique. LED brakelights, very nice HID headlights standard.

That's about all I can think of. The G35 is a 6 speed manual, and it's very close ratio, so you can row through the gears like a champ and always be in a good RPM.

I chose the G35 based primarily on uniqueness and looks. 3-series are all over the place out here, but I have yet to see another G35C. The looks coupled with a great engine and a 6 speed tranny sold me. The fact that it was more than $5000 cheaper than a similarly equipped 330 was great too!

Good luck, both are great cars. I'm sure with a 325, the engine difference is larger. I think the G35 would be noticeably stronger at any RPM than the 325. Not sure if you're more into speed or sophistication, but I like a mix, and the G35 gives me more of the speed with no real loss of sophistication.