[STR8-6IX]

what did you guys consider buying other then the e90 at the time of your decision? if you guys test drove other vehicles, how do they compare to the e90 and what made you pick the BMW over everything else?

looking to gather opinions/ reviews on the e90, how it compares to the competition etc. figure this thread would be useful to people currently in debate.

[Eagle1oh7]

I did not test drive anything. Drove my uncle's E46 325i 5 years prior to buying my E90 and that was all I needed to let me know a BMW 3-Series was for me. I would like to try an ATS, I don't care much for the A4 and C Class.

[STR8-6IX]

Originally Posted by Eagle1oh7

I did not test drive anything. Drove my uncle's E46 325i 5 years prior to buying my E90 and that was all I needed to let me know a BMW 3-Series was for me. I would like to try an ATS, I don't care much for the A4 and C Class.

I like the look of the c class old and new. they also sound really good. interior is decent, definitely alot nicer then the f30. the old c class interior i thought was pretty shitty and the materials were sad for a "luxury" car.

for the cadillac, I heard the chassis and steering is really good, but it misses out on just about everything else. the germans make a much better all around package. theres like 7 different materials combined together in the ATS interior and the CUE touch system is just horrendous. they look decent, but other then driving dynamics its apparently shit. this is all that the corporate bailout brought us? and this is not GM's first corportate bailout either.

for the audi a4, I honestly liked the look of the older one more. I am sick of audi's design and I think it is one of the most bland, repetitive looks on the market today it honestly makes me sick. the interior is quite nice but thats honestly about it.

personally, I would pick an e90 over the f30. I feel like the build quality/fit and finish is better and I like the driving dynamics of the older BMW much more.

[n55jb4]

For me it's very simple and before someone bashes me - it's just my opinion
I consider e90 BMW a premium luxury sport sedan - a German car - so anything less than that - automatically goes to trashbox in my book (that includes all corvettes, mustangs and other domestic trash cars). It's basically down to Mercedes vs BMW vs Audi vs Porsche. Porsche is out for financial reasons - the only car I like is 911 and it's way too expensive. Audi is out simply because it's a poor mans BMW lol. So as many years ago it's Mercedes vs BMW for me. Mercedes as it was mentioned has a inferior interior - if you look at C class interior materials - you'll know what I mean. Besides it wasn't as sporty as e90. So choice is really simple for me

The only downside for me is that for upgrade i'll need something better and it's not easy to find one. F30 doesn't live up to the hype. So I'm down to either M cars or moving to Porsche. Both choices are much more expensive. I wish bmw can come up with some excellent 3 series in upcoming generation - something that will come back to e46/e90 roots to be way ahead of competition in sportiness and fun

[mweisdorfer]

Originally Posted by n55jb4

For me it's very simple and before someone bashes me - it's just my opinion
I consider e90 BMW a premium luxury sport sedan - a German car - so anything less than that - automatically goes to trashbox in my book (that includes all corvettes, mustangs and other domestic trash cars). It's basically down to Mercedes vs BMW vs Audi vs Porsche. Porsche is out for financial reasons - the only car I like is 911 and it's way too expensive. Audi is out simply because it's a poor mans BMW lol. So as many years ago it's Mercedes vs BMW for me. Mercedes as it was mentioned has a inferior interior - if you look at C class interior materials - you'll know what I mean. Besides it wasn't as sporty as e90. So choice is really simple for me

The only downside for me is that for upgrade i'll need something better and it's not easy to find one. F30 doesn't live up to the hype. So I'm down to either M cars or moving to Porsche. Both choices are much more expensive. I wish bmw can come up with some excellent 3 series in upcoming generation - something that will come back to e46/e90 roots to be way ahead of competition in sportiness and fun

An e90 m3 will be very expensive to maintain. Plus it's a gas hog

[natedog7700]

Owned multiple BMW's before i turned 18 and thats what led me to the 335. I was extremely close to buying a Subaru STI though. Would of been a better financial choice due to the resale value alone but i was in it for raw speed and i wanted a reliable 500+whp.

[STR8-6IX]

Originally Posted by n55jb4

For me it's very simple and before someone bashes me - it's just my opinion
I consider e90 BMW a premium luxury sport sedan - a German car - so anything less than that - automatically goes to trashbox in my book (that includes all corvettes, mustangs and other domestic trash cars). It's basically down to Mercedes vs BMW vs Audi vs Porsche. Porsche is out for financial reasons - the only car I like is 911 and it's way too expensive. Audi is out simply because it's a poor mans BMW lol. So as many years ago it's Mercedes vs BMW for me. Mercedes as it was mentioned has a inferior interior - if you look at C class interior materials - you'll know what I mean. Besides it wasn't as sporty as e90. So choice is really simple for me

The only downside for me is that for upgrade i'll need something better and it's not easy to find one. F30 doesn't live up to the hype. So I'm down to either M cars or moving to Porsche. Both choices are much more expensive. I wish bmw can come up with some excellent 3 series in upcoming generation - something that will come back to e46/e90 roots to be way ahead of competition in sportiness and fun

I have high hopes for the next 3 series. I really hope it does not dissapoint me.

the thing you said with the shitbox domestic cars was well put lol.

I must say, I like the interior on the new c class. it seems to have improved alot but i am honestly dissapointed with the f30.

Originally Posted by mweisdorfer

An e90 m3 will be very expensive to maintain. Plus it's a gas hog

but.. but 8400rpm redline. I will agree that it is a gas hog though, it gets the same MPG on the highway as the 6.2L AMG because low end torque = efficiency

[natedog7700]

Originally Posted by n55jb4

For me it's very simple and before someone bashes me - it's just my opinion
I consider e90 BMW a premium luxury sport sedan - a German car - so anything less than that - automatically goes to trashbox in my book (that includes all corvettes, mustangs and other domestic trash cars). It's basically down to Mercedes vs BMW vs Audi vs Porsche. Porsche is out for financial reasons - the only car I like is 911 and it's way too expensive. Audi is out simply because it's a poor mans BMW lol. So as many years ago it's Mercedes vs BMW for me. Mercedes as it was mentioned has a inferior interior - if you look at C class interior materials - you'll know what I mean. Besides it wasn't as sporty as e90. So choice is really simple for me

The only downside for me is that for upgrade i'll need something better and it's not easy to find one. F30 doesn't live up to the hype. So I'm down to either M cars or moving to Porsche. Both choices are much more expensive. I wish bmw can come up with some excellent 3 series in upcoming generation - something that will come back to e46/e90 roots to be way ahead of competition in sportiness and fun

Yeah, not to bash but 2010+ domestic cars are not bad... unless you get an eco box like a focus or something lol those still suck.

[justpete]

Didn't look at anything else, bought it for the chassis and to get HR off my ass. That was five years ago so comparing against cars from five years ago is not really meaningful, imho.

[jtt328]

A 7.3 Powerstroke Crew Cab. Hard to find a "low" mileage 7.3 that hasn't been abused. Low mileage being very relative (~100k).

The e90 was/is less expensive.

[BSM n54iS]

Originally Posted by n55jb4

For me it's very simple and before someone bashes me - it's just my opinion
I consider e90 BMW a premium luxury sport sedan - a German car - so anything less than that - automatically goes to trashbox in my book (that includes all corvettes, mustangs and other domestic trash cars). It's basically down to Mercedes vs BMW vs Audi vs Porsche. Porsche is out for financial reasons - the only car I like is 911 and it's way too expensive. Audi is out simply because it's a poor mans BMW lol. So as many years ago it's Mercedes vs BMW for me. Mercedes as it was mentioned has a inferior interior - if you look at C class interior materials - you'll know what I mean. Besides it wasn't as sporty as e90. So choice is really simple for me

The only downside for me is that for upgrade i'll need something better and it's not easy to find one. F30 doesn't live up to the hype. So I'm down to either M cars or moving to Porsche. Both choices are much more expensive. I wish bmw can come up with some excellent 3 series in upcoming generation - something that will come back to e46/e90 roots to be way ahead of competition in sportiness and fun

Look into the ///M2 if you find yourself at the point

[Flyboy161]

I've owned a lot of cars over the years, but when I was looking to buy something in 2014, I test drove a Mustang, a Challenger, an Audi A5 and an E90. The mustang and challenger suffer with what felt like a CVT. To my old ass it feels like the transmission is slipping. No defined shift points. The A5 is my wife's car, and while it was at the top of my list for comfort, I don't care for the ergonomics. The armrest is too far away from the steering wheel. And I slide around in the seat. The E90 M-sport filled in all the gaps. I drove it, bought it, and now my daughter drives it. I replaced the empty slot with an E92 M-sport, and now it just feels complete. I like the way everything seems to have been designed for the driver, as well as the maintainer. Fit and finish, ergonomics, style...these cars have it all. IMHO.

[Th3Guardian]

I like the Audi A7/S7.

[stamonkey]

I bought my e90 this past November to replace my bought back VW as a daily driver. I had a budget of $40k, my requirements were awd and a stick shift. I test drove an A4 and S4 both autos, never did find a decent stick, an STI which I really liked besides the spoiler and the interior, and an F30 335xi. I wasn't blown away by the F30, but had pretty much settled on it.

I had the dealer alert me whenever they got any 3 series x drive manuals in and they had a lowly e90 328xi come in on a trade. It was clean, low mileage, and most importantly it was a stick with the sports package. So I bought it, and have been quite happy with it. It certainly isn't fast, but an F30 isn't $25k better.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by STR8-6IX

I have high hopes for the next 3 series. I really hope it does not dissapoint me.

the thing you said with the shitbox domestic cars was well put lol.

I must say, I like the interior on the new c class. it seems to have improved alot but i am honestly dissapointed with the f30.



but.. but 8400rpm redline. I will agree that it is a gas hog though, it gets the same MPG on the highway as the 6.2L AMG because low end torque = efficiency

I forgot, remind me, which car company is based out of Canada?

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by Flyboy161

I've owned a lot of cars over the years, but when I was looking to buy something in 2014, I test drove a Mustang, a Challenger, an Audi A5 and an E90. The mustang and challenger suffer with a CVT. To my old ass it feels like the transmission is slipping. No defined shift points. The A5 is my wife's car, and while it was at the top of my list for comfort, I don't care for the ergonomics. The armrest is too far away from the steering wheel. And I slide around in the seat. The E90 M-sport filled in all the gaps. I drove it, bought it, and now my daughter drives it. I replaced the empty slot with an E92 M-sport, and now it just feels complete. I like the way everything seems to have been designed for the driver, as well as the maintainer. Fit and finish, ergonomics, style...these cars have it all. IMHO.

Wait, what?

[Flyboy161]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Wait, what?

CVT- Continuous Variable Transmission

The salesman was like, "you get used to it"

[STR8-6IX]

Originally Posted by Flyboy161

CVT- Continuous Variable Transmission

The salesman was like, "you get used to it"

um, im pretty sure they dont have CVT's.

[Flyboy161]

Originally Posted by STR8-6IX

um, im pretty sure they dont have CVT's.

Uh, I'm pretty sure you weren't in the car with me, so there's that. But I edited to add "With what felt like". It probably just needed an oil change.

[Delta0311]

F30 3 series looks depressing as shit. The sleek athletic curves we first saw in the 06 330 e90 have been replaced with a feminine design. It's like the car went from juiced up bodybuilder at Mr. Olympia to Caitlyn Jenner.

Was at the gym this am and one was parked next me (I know the nerve, right); the hood looked like a chicks bubble butt. Granted the m sport makes the car look a bit more aggressive but it still doesn't have the same eye grabbing look like the e90 did. Maybe because the design at the time was new or mabybe because every car out there has copied it, where now the Accord looks more aggressive than a F30.

[STR8-6IX]

Originally Posted by Delta0311

F30 3 series looks depressing as shit. The sleek athletic curves we first saw in the 06 330 e90 have been replaced with a feminine design. It's like the car went from juiced up bodybuilder at Mr. Olympia to Caitlyn Jenner.

Was at the gym this am and one was parked next me (I know the nerve, right); the hood looked like a chicks bubble butt. Granted the m sport makes the car look a bit more aggressive but it still doesn't have the same eye grabbing look like the e90 did. Maybe because the design at the time was new or mabybe because every car out there has copied it, where now the Accord looks more aggressive than a F30.

the f30 is a decent design, but its the interior and the shit build quality of the newer ones that ruins it for me.

pre LCI e90 was meh.

the e46 has aged the best IMO.

[Delta0311]

Originally Posted by STR8-6IX

the f30 is a decent design, but its the interior and the shit build quality of the newer ones that ruins it for me.

pre LCI e90 was meh.

the e46 has aged the best IMO.

My fiancé has a loaded 228(with the hids). Originally we found a f30 328 loaded with m sport and she went for the 228. Her decision was based purely on, and in her own words "the 228 looks mean in the front". Which is true the F30 3 no longer has that mean look to it.