325i and 325Ci (stick shift)-need advice (more inside)

[Aeronautik]

Silly as it sounds, I ordered the 325i because the new look looks so nice. Thing is, I got stick shift. Now, is there any difference in performance between the two? I was told that if I'm gonna get stick shift, I should get a coupe. The new 325i look grew on my so much, I feel I had to get it. I got sport pkg and stuff, but I'm still a little concerned. Anyone have any experiences? Does the Ci handle and perform any better than the 325i-considering I got stick shift too??

thanks,
-Aero

-BTW: Sorry for my numerous posts, I'm new here, and pretty excited!

[mbf]

I have a '01 325i with a manual transmission and I think it handles beautifully. It took me a few weeks to get used to the clutch, but now I love the way it goes through the gears. I can't give you a comparison because I haven't driven the Ci, but if you've ordered the 325i with manual...no worries. I think you'll be happy. Of course, my last vehicle was a 93 Nissan Pick-up, so I may be easy to please.

[csieminski]

Sounds good to me. Another post described the sedan as actually being structurally stiffer than the coupe (better for handling). Since both share the same engine and transmission, the driving experience should be about the same. The coupe looks sleeker than the sedan, but if you prefer the sedan's styling, great.

BMW quotes 7.1 seconds 0-60 mph for both the manual sedan and manual coupe. Both are governor limited to 128 mph. The sedan weighs 3219 lbs as opposed to 3197 for the coupe, but this slight difference shouldn't mean much in day-to-day driving. For more detailed comparisons, look under 'Technical Data' for the 325i and 325Ci at www.bmwusa.com.

Congratulations on your new car.

[bheiser1]

I got a 2002 325i sedan with manual transmission a few weeks ago and
it is awesome. I do have a couple of observations.

I drove a 2001 325i sedan with an automatic after I'd been driving
my car for a while. The automatic had a definitely more "sedate"
feel. However it was much easier to drive in stop and go driving.
The 325i with manual feels like it doesn't really like being driven
in that kind of environment. It takes some practice to start off
in 1st smoothly and then shift into 2nd.

Also I noticed there is a distinctly different sound in the car 2002
with manual than in the 2001 with automatic. The 2001 seems
quieter (you hear less from the engine, even when accellerating
hard). In the 2002 with manual you hear a very distinctive sound
which I would kind of describe as a 'growl' :-). Sort of throaty ...
and then at highway speeds you hear the engine humming, whereas
in the 2001 with automatic it's not so pronounced. I wonder if they
did this to make the 2002 with manual seem "sportier"?

This doesn't really answer your question but since you mentioned
the choice of vehicles & xmission I thought I'd mention these observations.