I too switched from a 135i to a BRZ. Some of you may know me as the first and only person to put rally armor mudflaps on a 135i. My car had a set of VMR wheels 1" wider all around with 225/255 Direzzas, and a GIAC flash tune only, and was one of the fastest raw time cars at auto x events here. I miss the engine in my 135i, but other than that the BRZ is better in every way for me so far (except practicality). I found my car started nickel and diming me even with CPO warranty and only 70000km on it, and promptly sold it. The running costs of the BRZ are just so much lower, I spend on average 3 cents a km less in fuel alone, a set of tires is only 55% of the cost of a set for the BMW.

Nice I'm pretty stoked to see so many former 1addicts members over here haha

If this car had an N54 that would be pretty sick lol. Minus the issues with the HPFP and other stuff :p

Yep, luckily my dad still has a COBB tuned 135i as his winter car so I can probably borrow that here and there in the summer when he drives his other car.

Cool. It may sound weird but I came from a Coyote5.0 Brembo to a 135i and I have to say now I'll consider forum support in my next purchase. If this id anything like 1Addicts Im one step closer to being fully sold on the BRZ! Mustang forums suck! At least that was my experience. :thumbsup:

Oh almost forgot, how do you guys compare the driving feel? Is the difference in power so horrible as portrayed elsewhere? I havent dynoed but I have kittyless DPs, DCI, BmwPE, jb4 G5 (n54 of course!).

#notorque

My dad's got a ~380hp/420ft-lb 135i as his DD. The BRZ is just nothing at all like it in terms of power and power delivery. The N54 makes all its torque in the low and mid range, the BRZ has none down there (maybe a bit harsh, but it will certainly feel like none after a 135). The N54 tapers off as you really get up it where the BRZ finally gets its legs at about 5k (and you'll still be wondering where the torque is hiding, lol).

Luckily you have ~400+ fewer pounds to haul around and suspend through corners, so the BRZ still feels somewhat quick (or at least not slow?), and it feels a lot more agile than the 135. Also the steering feels better on my BRZ IMHO, which I didn't expect since the BRZ is electrically assisted and the 1-series' steering is hydraulically boosted. The BRZ has a quicker rack as well, which is also nice.

New M235I will be good

Only if 3600 lb is considered "good"...

Unless your dad's done weight reduction on his 135i, your BRZ is more like 600 lbs lighter.

3373 lbs - 2762 lbs = 611 lbs.

The 135i is thick boned for its size.

Thanks for the info! How about FI (specifically turbo?). I loved driving my gf's mini cooper S, even while having my 5.0. Very nimble and quick. Although torque delivery came very early there as in my 1er. I'll be heading to a dealer today to test drive a frs (we dont get the brz, too small a market for both cars).

Hmm, still have my doubts about the 2 series. I believe itll be a bit bigger than the 1er. And the ASS...no thanks! (Auto start/stop), also the rear bumper, the hood cutoff just brfore the front bumper, etc overall design just doesnt appeal to me that much. :(

It is noticable but not world-ending as portrayed. I still have a blast revving the engine out, plus I don't have to worry about hitting 120mph in 3rd gear lol

Just drive it for yourself for abit. My FRS outdoes the 135i in corners handily.

Can't comment on FI cars since I haven't driven one yet, but there are certainly people making a lot more power from these engines. Oh, and if you like the way the Cooper S drives you're going to go nuts over the 86-- it's got a similar light, flat-cornering, nimble feel to it, but the power comes out of the right end! I think you'll like it.

Wow, I thought the 135 was more like 3,200 and was being kind to it by rounding our cars up to 2,800. 3,400lbs is pretty fat, no wonder it feels like such a handful when you're trying to slow it for corners.

Regarding the new new 2 series, it will be "good", but not great. The M235i USDM is ~3400 lbs, no LSD standard, and it's rather expensive ($43K). I'd rather buy a lightly used Cayman at that price point. The 228i on the other hand could be an interesting DD, base is $33K and it's "only" 3200 lbs.

Most of the called sport car out there is like north of ~3,250 lbs compare to the twin at 2,750 lbs. Just can't believe that is 500 lbs differences for real number. I would never carry 2 extra linebacker in my rear seat on the race track even if I'd added 450hp turbo. :)

When you look at a 1 series you wonder how it can be so heavy or why its so heavy, but the cars were similar in a lot of ways to the last Supras, that's the Toyota they should be compared to not the '86.

It's so funny how I still have a stigma that the Supra is a big fat porker of a car and yet it's considerably lighter than most modern sports cars and sedans. I mean hell, my Audi is 4,060lbs!

I think the M235i will be a nice car but it's not for me. I would much rather buy a couple-year-old 335i or a 2008-09 M3 for similar money

This whole thread basically represents my feelings. I had a 128 I bought sight unseen from a guy in Florida(photos of course) because my pops has 135 which I loved driving, and the only practical difference is N54 vs N52. My wife and I dumped her POS ford she bought to save gas after her 10 MPG lifted wrangler wasn't practical, she took the 1 and i got a BRZ. I was underwhelmed looking at on paper numbers, but the pure driving enjoyment is staggering. I never thought I'd be so happy to be back in a non-Euro car

Drove my mom's Cobb tuned N54 135i last weekend for the first time, it would have blown my GIAC tuned N54 135i out of the water in a straight line. Almost made me ask her if she wanted to trade for my BRZ...

I recently tried both, and had very high expectations for the 135i (M-sport Package).

Granted, these are my opinions, so take it with a grain of salt. I felt interior-wise, it was subpar compared to the same model year, '12 MB C350 Coupe I had. The build quality wasn't quite there for a German vehicle.

Seating position was dismal - and I was not a fan of the 6 speed manual gearbox. The seat at its lowest position was still so high, and the gearbox definitely didn't feel as tight as the BRZ's.

I hear wonderful things about the 1-series' steering, with it being the last of its kind prior to going the electric route. What's amazing is that the BRZ felt a lot tighter to me.

Power - boy is that power delivery pretty insane! You can break traction with all aids on in 2nd or 3rd gear around town! It's fast! My roommate also tested this car (it's his favorite car) and he said it didn't feel as planted as he would have thought for something this heavy.

Overall, I can't say I'm a huge fan. I know it's a good value these days and it's wicked fast, but the shape doesn't really speak to me, nor does the interior.

Interestingly, I recently had a chance to drive an M235i fairly hard, and I have to say, I was quite impressed. It felt very balanced, VERY powerful, and had a really wonderful exhaust note when revved up too. It was easily the best handling BMW I've driven in the past couple of years (and that includes the 128i with the M-sport suspension, though I will admit that I haven't driven a recent M3). It's a fantastic little car, and it looks nice too. It is still fairly heavy though...

I haven't seen one still trying to imagine how and why they pack so much weight into a fairly small car. I guess its an autobahn safety thing, ashame they can build E30 weights. Every time I drive my mom's show-room condition '88 325is I ask what happened to BMW. My parents quit buying BMW's when the 5 series started having mechanical problems in the late 90's.




No doubt the the twin turbo 1 series will be sought after collector items with the turbos and I-6 they are supra-ish.

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86 looks much nicer. great comparison.

^Thanks

We also have to keep in mind the 1-Series is a much older design.