I drove both the 135i and 370Z extensively over a few weeks time.
I love both cars for various and different reasons.. I think they are BOTH a sound buy.
The biggest factors you need to think about are going to be:
-Do you need a back seat?
-Are you going to leave your cars stock? Lots of risk toying around with a Turbo vehicle (I've blown a few in my time)
-How important are looks to you? The BMW is very very low key.. it's got a look that says "I'm your average BMW, nothing more".. 370Z screams "I'm an attention whore, look at me!!"
-Do you value handling more straight line performance? 370Z will out handle the 135i in stock fashion all day long and every day.
-Options on the BMW will destroy all your hopes and dreams about keeping the cost down.. If you equip the 135i just like the STANDARD features of the 370Z.. it will end up costing you an extra 4 grand or more. However, I will say a fully loaded 135i is a bit nicer than a fully loaded Z sans the Navigation.. Nissan's Navi system is leaps and bounds better than BMWs iDrive + GPS system. BMW has a few options (which all cost extra) such as the electronic folding mirrors (god I loved these for parking in garages) and a telescopic steering wheel which is nice for various sized folks and don't forget the heated mirrors, windshield wipers and steering wheel if you please. So many awesome features at a HUGE premium.
-Mod for mod, 135i will out pace the Z, at a cost of reliability.. You'll contract "Boost fever" and risk blowing turbos and your engine.
On a personal note, the BMW was much nicer commuting in than the Z is... there's no blind spots like I have on the Z and it was overall a more lofty, floaty ride and the Z is rock-hard and you feel every bump in the road along the way.
The Z fits like a glove and the BMW felt a little less wrapped around my body..
Price kept me away from the 135i at the end when a fully equipped model was 46k and the Z was 37k. I couldn't deal with paying 9 thousand more dollars.. just didn't seem worth it.
-Div
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