Bmw 328
 

What do you think of the new 328 2.0 engine? I actually like the wagon better with the old i-6 but the new i-4 gets much better mileage and is said to be quicker. I really liked the i-6 in a 325 i test drove a few years ago. Despite having only 184 hp it felt powerful and torquey. I did not think the rest of the car was particularly great. I still enjoy the rx8 but i need a car with real backseats and more conventional to drive to work. I do like the 328 wagon but the mileage is not that much better than in the rx8. The 2.0 is ok but is out of character for this car. Is it Mitsubishi sourced?

Faster than the i6? I would love to see your source...just don't see how they did that.

Unless they put some pretty decent turbo boost on that i4...

In any case you need to compare a boosted to a boosted, so how does the boosted i4 stack up against that twin turbo 6?

Yes, the new turbo'd I-4 from BMW in their new F30 3-series got quite a lot of punch. Twin scroll turbo'd 2.0L pushing about 240hp and 258lb-ft of tq. 0-60 in 5.6 seconds and getting 33mpg highway. It is both more powerful and more efficient than the last NA BMW I6. There is no comparison between the old NA I-6's and the new turbo'd I-4 in terms of efficiency and power together.

The new turbo 4 blows the old 6 out of the water on all fronts except for the smoothness and sound of a great BMW I6.

I finally test drove both the old i6 and the new i4 turbo.

The i6 (e90) coupe model year 2009 with sport suspension and a manual transmission. I must say this was a nice car. The shifter was as smooth ans as direct as in the rx8, maybe a little rubbery. The handling was much less direct. Going over railroad tracks it felt much more cushioning so I thought it would suck in turns - not so, it handled really well in turns. Steering felt balanced and well weighted. The inline six was very quiet and smooth. Like the RX8 i would redline it frequently and it felt smooth but not too powerful. It felt torqueier at low speeds.Overall the car felt as capable as the rx8, more luxurious and less dramatic. I would say 328 has a little more room. rX8 is more fun to drive, especially at its limits. Finally, for me to take a test drive that 328 had to be jump started. There may have been a reason for that but it was enough for me to pass. Plus the city mileage is only 18 mpg, not too different from my RX8's 15 city mpg. Still if you were to own a bling car with good performance this would be a great choice.


Now, the f30 i4 turbo was a totally different experience. It was an eight speed automatic transmission with the speed selector thing. As any turbo car it had turbo lag but it was seriously quick. Like the magazines say, the steering is very light but the car handles. The mpg gauge showed 21mpg city driving with frequent redlining, not too bad.

The interior in both cars was good but with cheap looking plastic and not above RX8's. After the test drives going back to my rx8 GT did not feel like going back to a lesser car. Based on what i read i would think that 328 would be less reliable than the rx8, mine has been trouble free, and the cost of service at the bmw dealership is rediculous. Buying a "luxury" car and having to go to random service stations for maintenance seems like a downgrade from the mazda ownership.

Due to low trade in value in my 2006 rx8 and lack of superior choices on the market i think i will hold on to it longer.

Good choice for now. They are not building these cars anymore, and it will be a unique car in the near future. I will keep mine until I get exhausted with it...lol

guess BMW decided to get serious with their 3 series. It used to be the 3 series was the "wanna-Be-emer" car. I remember seeing a Fail Poster that said, "The BMW 3 series: because girls can't tell the difference anyway."