trade my Z for a bmw 135i?
Hey guys,
Please don't give me crap as I know this is sacrilegious (had to look that bad boy up), to discuss getting rid of a fantastic car for a bmw, but just hear me out please.
I am in the process of potentially trading my 09 370z touring sport for a 2012 135i. I have done plenty of searching with some help, but not enough to make an informed decision. This is mainly for anyone who has owned or driven both as the main reason I am making the trade is power. My Z is great, like new, w/typical bolt on's and uprev tune. My absolute only gripe is, it's just not quick enough for me. I've owned it for 4 years and have had a blast with it every time I drive it. I have tapped out most of it's potential without spending another 2000g to gain 20hp or so (N/A is quite the bummer sometimes). FI would cost 8g minimum to liven it up significantly and that's not an option for me.
I am in this solely for the power and driving experience. I will be test driving the potential 135i this Saturday at Carmax. They gave me a reasonable offer for my car given the fact that it's winter in Chicago which is a terrible time to trade in a RWD sports car. The reason I don't want to wait until summer is the fact that it's very difficult to find a MT 135i coupe black/black for a reasonable price. I already ordered a charge pipe and JB4 tuner so I can really get a feel for how the car will perform at it's true potential during the Carmax 5 day return policy. I figured in stock form it wouldn't knock my socks off. I'm not sure if I can get my Z back if I return the BMW, but hopefully that is an option because the 370 is an awesome car and it would be brutal to start all over again. I do understand the 135 is hideous inside and out, so the sacrifice would have to be well worth it. With a set of nice rims and a few other ext. mods, the bmw passable as a clean car.
Anyone who has owned both cars please chime in. Love to hear about the 135i with at least the jb4 vs. 370Z with typical bolt ons (intake, exhaust, test pipes, tune). This is purely about straight line power, and I mean throw me back in my seat fun. The 135 would have to feel significantly faster and be that much more fun to drive in order for me to make the trade. I got the Z from carmax and had a great experience there. I have a motorcycle as well, so I only drive about 3500 miles per year including driving the Z including through Chicago winters.
For the minimal miles I would be putting on the car, I would assume the reliability of the bmw wouldn't be a big problem, but I do plan on mashing the gas every chance I get. The Z has been bullet proof for 23000 miles with relatively hard driving. The BMW would be braving the winter as well, but I only have a 1 mile commute to work. My Z only has 23000 miles with zero mechanical issues, the 135i has 47k and they want 24,600$. After plenty of research, this is a very reasonable price. If you know of any reliability issues around the 50k mile mark of the 135, please advise as I'm not looking to deal with unexpected costly repairs.
My apologies for the rant and long message, but I'm short on time and I don't want to make a bad decision for me. I'm a bit impatient and impulsive when it comes to something I want, but usually it works out for the best.
P.S. I recently test drove two LS2 supercharged corvettes and I honestly was not impressed at all. I drove the corvette's like I stole them, foot to the floor, and they didn't seam much faster than the Z (unbiased as I wanted them to be faster). I'm sure they were detuned or poorly tuned, but I'm not a fan of the car anyway.
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