3.0 vs 3.5 differences

[BlueZ4AZ]

Originally Posted by memphis2012

you guys are getting me excited... (not that way) if 4.3 is true than i got more than what i bargain for and that's AWESOME!!! :

When I first test drove the 35i back in June, I stepped immediately out of my 2007 Corvette and into the Z4. My first impression - No WAY is this a 5.0 sec. 0-60 car like BMM says. MUCH faster. Definitely NOT almost a full second slower then my LS2 Corvette (4.1 seconds).
.....and Motor Trend just proved it.

[Alext]

A manual should be able to pull off similar times right?

[Rubber Ducky]

Originally Posted by Alext

A manual should be able to pull off similar times right?

Perhaps not quite. .1 second off maybe.

[JSpira]

I spent almost a week with a Z4 sDrive23i and, as much as I love speed, I was quite satisfied with the performance (see my write-up here).

I've also driven the sDrive30i extensively (definitely faster than the 23i) as well as the 35i - so the short answer is

No, you won't be disappointed - the Z4 sDrive30i is super.

[rmorin49]

Originally Posted by JSpira

I spent almost a week with a Z4 sDrive23i and, as much as I love speed, I was quite satisfied with the performance (see my write-up here).

I've also driven the sDrive30i extensively (definitely faster than the 23i) as well as the 35i - so the short answer is

No, you won't be disappointed - the Z4 sDrive30i is super.

I have now driven both cars and while the 35i is a tad faster, the 30i will be fine. In fact, I found the 35i to be a bit slow off the line as compared to my 335i E93. I also like the fact that the 30i is a tried and true engine with no chance of a HPFP issue and I really like that it is not turbocharged. I have never found myself needing the extra UMPH of the twin turbos but then again I am an old fart trying to extend my life and not driving like a teenager.

BMW's figures say that the 30i is only 0.5 second slower from 0-60 than the 35i.

[Alext]

Any comments on the difference in sound between the engines? Any one have any comparison videos?

[Rubber Ducky]

Originally Posted by rmorin49

I have now driven both cars and while the 35i is a tad faster, the 30i will be fine.

Stick or step?

[BlueZ4AZ]

Originally Posted by rmorin49

I have now driven both cars and while the 35i is a tad faster, the 30i will be fine. In fact, I found the 35i to be a bit slow off the line as compared to my 335i E93. I also like the fact that the 30i is a tried and true engine with no chance of a HPFP issue and I really like that it is not turbocharged. I have never found myself needing the extra UMPH of the twin turbos but then again I am an old fart trying to extend my life and not driving like a teenager.

BMW's figures say that the 30i is only 0.5 second slower from 0-60 than the 35i.

The BMW 0-60 figures are unreliable. I drove both the 30i and 35i before I bought the 35i and in my opinion the 35i feels every bit the 1.8 seconds faster to 60 that Motor Trend confirmed it to be.

But the decision on which car to buy really depends on what each individual needs, so there really is no wrong decision.

[Vintage]

I love my wife's 35i with DCT - amazing and we ordered almost all of the options to go with it. If I were buying one for just me I would have considered strongly a Manual 30i with almost no options but Premium Sound and Sport Package.

[msimon18]

I drove both before I ordered the 3.0. Unless you are a real speed freak the 3.0 is much more than adequate. I had a 335i prior and could not deal with the HPFP and other issues over a 2 year period. Additionally, I find the DCT a bit rough although novel.. Ia m aalso afraid of the reliabiliy of it as the HPFP...... We alll know tghat BMW is not top in the reliability arena but in performance and the 'other' stuff they can't be beat.

All in all the 3.0 seems the best option, at least for me.

[Memphis1]

Originally Posted by msimon18

I find the DCT a bit rough although novel..

dude, i can't even feel the changes and they happen instantaneously... what are you talking about "rough"

[zEdP]

I have somehow the idea that BMW makes the best performing cars available for testing and even 'tune' up the turbo engines pressure a little bit so it is faster than the stock version.

35i 0-60 in a 4.3 seconds is very optimistic, 6 seconds for the 30i is the opposite of that. There is a Spanish car magazine that tested a 0-100km/h (0-62mph) within ~5,7 seconds.

Then about the feel and 0-60 specs. I have driven car that felt fast but didn't have impressive 0-60 specs. I think the flat torque curve of the 35i can make it feel 'slower' than a engine with a increasing torque characteristic.

EdP

[Memphis1]

Originally Posted by zEdP

Then about the feel and 0-60 specs. I have driven car that felt fast but didn't have impressive 0-60 specs. I think the flat torque curve of the 35i can make it feel 'slower' than a engine with a increasing torque characteristic.

EdP

amen to that brother...

[BlueZ4AZ]

Originally Posted by zEdP

I have somehow the idea that BMW makes the best performing cars available for testing and even 'tune' up the turbo engines pressure a little bit so it is faster than the stock version.


EdP

Unless you can prove it without a doubt, then this IS nothing more than just your unproven theory.... ..and even if it were true for BMW, then a strong case can be made that other Mfg do the same thing. It is impossible to believe only 1 of the 50 or so car Mfg would do this. So if they are all doing this, that means we can't rely on ANY of the other performace car test figures, and we're all being duped???!!!
Very hard to believe that.

Test results vary from car magazine to car magazine. My previous car (2007 Corvette with Z51) had 0-60 times published anywhere from 4.1 - 4.5 seconds, depending on which magazine it was. It's the same for every car. There are any number of variables at test time, such as temp/humidity/altitude, etc.

I think what we CAN say without a doubt is that the Z4 35i has had test runs of between 4.3 seconds (Motor Trend) - 4.8 seconds (Road and Track).

I don't clock my own 0-60 times, don't have an interest in it, and even if I did, and I did not achieve 4.3, it wouldn't matter. It is good enough, at least for me, to just to know that the car is capable of 4.3, given the proper conditions.

[matt_435xi]

i gotta test out the launch control trick i read in the manual yesterday, i just passed break in miles! maybe at the right temps in the dry desert i can achieve 4.2

[zEdP]

Originally Posted by BlueZ4AZ

Unless you can prove it without a doubt, then this IS nothing more than just your unproven theory.... ..

It just an idea. If a 0-60 low 4 secs is the case, I can't come up with a different explanation. I guess they don't test it down hill.

I can image that BMW is very carefully with the cars they make available for the press. These need to be flawless and top performing, so not an engine with a power tolerance of -5%, but the one with +3%.

[BlueZ4AZ]

Originally Posted by zEdP

No, it just an idea. If a 0-60 low 4 secs is the case, I can't come up with a different explanation. I guess they don't test it down hill.

I can image that BMW is very carefully with the cars they make available for the press. These need to be flawless and top performing, so not an engine with a power tolerance of -5%, but the one with +3%.

My car feels every bit that fast so maybe I got one with +3%.

[rmorin49]

Originally Posted by Rubber Ducky

Stick or step?

I'm thinking about going with a 6 speed manual if I get the 3.0 for fun but I'll bet the Step is actually faster unless one is very good at speed shifting and this is really hard on the clutch.

[rmorin49]

Originally Posted by VintageBMW

I love my wife's 35i with DCT - amazing and we ordered almost all of the options to go with it. If I were buying one for just me I would have considered strongly a Manual 30i with almost no options but Premium Sound and Sport Package.

This is actually what I am considering as well but the wife really wants the Ivory White interior.

[Dr Strangelove]

Hello,

I'm new to this forum and was intrigued by the 4.3 sec. 0-60 time found by MT.

When I first read this, I dismissed it like most people. However, I've read several articles over the years and one by Automobile Magazine where they put the BMW Inline 6 twin turbo engine on a Dynometer because many guys who were drviving 335's, etc. felt that this engine puts out a lot more than 300 hp. and 300 lb. ft. of torque as BMW declares. If you had the opportunity to read these articles, they ALL came out with higher ratings than BMW. In fact, Automobile Magazine after several runs on the dyno estimated the engine actually packs about 350 hp. and 360 lb. ft. of torque. Other ratings were 328 hp., 330 hp. etc.

If these independent tests are at all accurate and you perhaps average them, a run of 4.3 sec. 0-60 under optimal circumstances (low humdity, etc.) is possible.

Dr Strangelove

[richard in NC]

I can tell you my Z4 is plenty quick.

Although, in 6 months I've yet to try a max acceleration run. I have squalled the tires off the line and hit red line a few times (mostly in 2nd).

[msimon18]

Hey memphis, I drove a 2009 35i and it shifted extremely harsh in accelerated driving and in normal driving in both normal and sport mode. It shifted a lot better (smoother) than the single clutch version I drove several years ago but still a lot harsher than the 6 speed auto in the 30i.

Maybe it was the car I test drove but it was enough of a difference to make me make the decision to get the 30i.....