Sold my Z!

[BMWZ4]

After 5 fantastic and virtually trouble-free seasons driving this car, decided to trade it in for a '15 M235is. The Z had such low mileage (under 48kms) and I got a fantastic trade-in price to put toward the 235.

I have 6 more weeks with the Z before I part with it, then the 235 goes on order for deliver in March '15.

I enjoyed being part of the Z forum and reading the great posts/experiences of other Z owners.

Best
Dave

[ManiacGT]

Good luck with the new car. Drop us a photo when its all done.

I'm jealous you got a good trade in. e89's have dropped like a stone in the UK.

[jparnes1]

From what I've read, you 're going to love the M235. Good luck with that one. Glad to have met you when you bought my RFT's.

[nicknaz]

Congrats! I am in Toronto quite a bit and I always wonder when I see an E89 if its someone on the forums.

Let us know how you like the 235 and post a pic before you sign off the E89 section!

[tranquility]

Sad to see you leave the Z World but all the best w/ the M2-series. What made you decide upon that particular car?

nicknaz>
How many Z4s have you seen in TO? I think that I've only seen 3 all these years on the road.

[BMWZ4]

Thanks everyone. As I said, I thoroughly enjoyed being part of the Z "team"! It's a car I won't soon forget. I think this will be the only one of my cars that I'll miss once I drop it off.

Obviously the 235 is still quite a bit far off, but I'll definitely post a link to the "other forum" (!) when I take delivery.

And thanks for those RFT's JP!! I think I'm the only guy on the forum who didn't mind driving them!

@Tranquility: was looking for a fun car to drive (like the Z), but w/o the roof (as ManiacGT pointed out earlier) as well as the 4 (somewhat cramped) seats.

I took both the 8-speed DCT & 6M for very long test drives (I was out on my own for a little over an hour with both versions) and decided on the DCT trim. Honestly the 235 is pretty damn sweet. Great sound, decent mileage, well trimmed out etc and DEAD CHEAP with the trade-in (will be just under $23k).

Dave

[RobC2]

Congrats. I like those as well. I think the 8-spd. transmission is a conventional auto though.

[BMWZ4]

Originally Posted by RobC2

Congrats. I like those as well. I think the 8-spd. transmission is a conventional auto though.

Hey Rob,
Having driven manual cars for so many decades, it really was a difficult decision. As noted, I had both trims out for an extended test drive and decided on the DCT. I thought the 6M was great, no question about that, although super short throw shift.

I changed jobs recently and consequently have a slightly longer commute, with brutal traffic across one of the busiest highways in North America. I was getting really tired of shifting between 1st, 2nd and 3rd and never getting out of third.

Also...my son starts driving next year (YIKES!) and frankly speaking, I don't have the patience to teach him stick!

Oh, and to be clear Tranquility, this is definitely NOT an M2....it's an M235is (essentially an M Performance trimmed N55 TT). Not terribly different from the Z35is really, just added M Perf trim.

Dave

[jparnes1]

Dave, you should def teach your son how to drive a stick. It's a dying skill and you should pass it on. Also, it promotes safer driving among teens. You can't text and shift at the same time!

[tranquility]

Originally Posted by BMWZ4

Oh, and to be clear Tranquility, this is definitely NOT an M2....it's an M235is (essentially an M Performance trimmed N55 TT). Not terribly different from the Z35is really, just added M Perf trim.

Dave

Oh ya, I realize that. Still nice.

Any differences between the 2 cars' DCTs (besides the extra 1 spd for your new car)?

[BMWZ4]

Originally Posted by jparnes1

Dave, you should def teach your son how to drive a stick. It's a dying skill and you should pass it on. Also, it promotes safer driving among teens. You can't text and shift at the same time!

Agreed. Definitely a dying breed of stick handlers out there. Funny though, I was thinking quite the opposite; at least with the DCT he can focus on the road and not focus on shifting correctly/stalling at an intersection etc.

I have spent some time with him on the stick up at the cottage, so it's not completely alien to him, just didn't have the patience to get him to an intermediate level.

[BMWZ4]

Originally Posted by tranquility

Oh ya, I realize that. Still nice.

Any differences between the 2 cars' DCTs (besides the extra 1 spd for your new car)?

You mean between the Z's DCT and the 235? Can't say Tranquility, my Z is a 6M. But I think the 235's DCT might be the same as the 35is's DCT, but I don't know that for a fact.

Dave

[RobC2]

I think you are missing what I said. I believe it is a conventional automatic with a torque converter, not a DCT (dual clutch transmission). While they behave similarly in that they shift for you, they are very different mechanically. Just want you to make sure you know what you are getting. If it is in fact an automatic, it would be nothing like what it in the 35is.

[tranquility]

Originally Posted by RobC2

I think you are missing what I said. I believe it is a conventional automatic with a torque converter, not a DCT (dual clutch transmission). While they behave similarly in that they shift for you, they are very different mechanically. Just want you to make sure you know what you are getting. If it is in fact an automatic, it would be nothing like what it in the 35is.

Hmm, just went on their website, you're right. Maybe Dave was confused by the nicer-looking gearshift? Usu the A/Ts' don't look as nice. I dunno lol. 8-spd DCT would've been sick, but I'm already finding that 7 is more than enough.

[jparnes1]

Originally Posted by RobC2

I think you are missing what I said. I believe it is a conventional automatic with a torque converter, not a DCT (dual clutch transmission). While they behave similarly in that they shift for you, they are very different mechanically. Just want you to make sure you know what you are getting. If it is in fact an automatic, it would be nothing like what it in the 35is.

Tough to say with certainty. On BMWUSA.com there is no M235is listed, only M235i, which comes with a sport auto transmission. Maybe the M235is comes with the DCT, but for right now you can't order one (at least in the US)

[tranquility]

Originally Posted by tranquility

Hmm, just went on their website, you're right. Maybe Dave was confused by the nicer-looking gearshift? Usu the A/Ts' don't look as nice. I dunno lol. 8-spd DCT would've been sick, but I'm already finding that 7 is more than enough.

Ok, now I'm really confused lol. Dave did say his was the i*s*, not the i, so he should know what he got.

[nicknaz]

I don't see any m235is on the Canada site either. My guess it's a m235 same as the US and OP is still getting familiar with the car.

N55 is single turbo and 8speed sport auto is a torque converter automatic not a dual clutch transmission. It is the same drivetrain as f30 335 with the optional power kit.

Tranquility, I've seen 3 in the past year and I'm only in TO about 1 week a month. I'm usually in the university/Adelaide and Bayview/York mills areas as well as the usual Markham malls. I think there is just a higher concentration of German cars in those areas.

[Asbjorn]

Congratz on the M235i OP. I have driven the M135i and it is a wonderful car. Very fast and responsive. Easy to drift as well (longer wheelbase and much less ass-heavy than the Z4).

I am sure the M235i feels even better, although a tad heavier. Quite certainly the BMW I would have gotten if I could live without a roof that folds away, and needed four seats. Biggest downside is the total lack of affordable ECU flash tuning options, and that JB4 won't work smoothly with the new ECU either.

Originally Posted by nicknaz

N55 is single turbo and 8speed sport auto is a torque converter automatic not a dual clutch transmission. It is the same drivetrain as f30 335 with the optional power kit.

The N55 twin-scroll single turbo engines in the M235i and M135i are slightly different from the F30 335i N55 engines with the optional power kit. Because the N55 engine in the M performance cars have steel alloy crankshafts while the N55 engines in the AG cars have cast iron crankshafts. Perhaps it has been prepared for use in the future M2? Anyway, you are right that the power is the same, and so are the three “exhaust burbles” during each engine overrun.

The 8 speed torque converter automatic is different from the 7 speed DCT in that it has two "economy" ratios (ie 7th and 8th gear) instead of only one as in ours.

Also with the 8AT, the gear-ratios are made so that the rpm drop is lower in 1st-2nd-3rd gear in order to avoid "jerking" due to the way the torque converter locks up. It won't slip and engage gears smoothly like the DCT. That means you need 3rd to reach 60mph, while you still get a tiny bit of jerking between 1st and 2nd. On the positive side it is much faster to engage between R, N and D

Also you don't get rev matching on down shifts, so you can feel the engine braking when down shifting in manual mode. The 8AT also only has two automatic "modes", lets call them sport and normal, whereas the DCT has at least four automatic modes if you combine D and S with Normal/Sport/Sport+. Apparently with the 8AT the different combinations don't lead to any extra modes besides sport and normal. However, the 8AT unit is much cheaper to replace, so abusing it should be much less of a concern. And it is a big step up compared to the old 6AT.

[tranquility]

Originally Posted by nicknaz

I don't see any m235is on the Canada site either. My guess it's a m235 same as the US and OP is still getting familiar with the car.

N55 is single turbo and 8speed sport auto is a torque converter automatic not a dual clutch transmission. It is the same drivetrain as f30 335 with the optional power kit.

Tranquility, I've seen 3 in the past year and I'm only in TO about 1 week a month. I'm usually in the university/Adelaide and Bayview/York mills areas as well as the usual Markham malls. I think there is just a higher concentration of German cars in those areas.

Ya, I didn't find it either in the Cdn site. Oh well.

Maybe I'm exaggerating a bit but it does seem that the Z4 is quite rare. I've seen more parked vs running on the street.

[BMWZ4]

I will triple check again. Can't speak to the U.S. configurator site, but the Canadian site only shows the 2014 MY; I've been looking at a '15 MY they have at the dealership. The configurator is supposed to be online (for Canada) by late November for the '15. They're also (apparently) offering an LSD for the '15 which could explain the DCT and other features, no?

In any case, I'll be re-checking over the next couple of months.

Dave

[nicknaz]

LSD has been a port installed option for some time through the "m performance parts" catalog. It's $ though.

Seems like a lot of misinformation on the 8at in this thread. It does rev match on downshifts and there is a "DS" mode from moving the shifter to the left, just like the dct.

As for the different crank shaft in that version of n55, that sounds a lot like 35is owners insisting the n54 in their car is different. Also, interesting to note that the f30 335 powerkit for cars with a mid 2014 build and later gives +45hp instead of +20hp as in 235/135 and earlier f30 335.

[rking117]

Originally Posted by BMWZ4

After 5 fantastic and virtually trouble-free seasons driving this car, decided to trade it in for a '15 M235is. The Z had such low mileage (under 48kms) and I got a fantastic trade-in price to put toward the 235.

I have 6 more weeks with the Z before I part with it, then the 235 goes on order for deliver in March '15.

I enjoyed being part of the Z forum and reading the great posts/experiences of other Z owners.

Best
Dave

Congrats. I hope. see you over on the 2 forum