Anyone want to talk me into/out of a 135i?

[charles28 130]

Had mine a year, no regrets.

Mines a one trick pony roll race machine, but it's fun taking it to track events and beating cars down the straight that cost 10x more.

An example, this one's probably only worth 5x more though.

 

 

 

[Herbmiester 922]

I will say that that the 130 vs 135 argument goes out the window when you drive them back to back. That turbo torque is just addictive.  

[Eagle 1661]

Probably goes out the window when you compare repair bills too. Personally i don't see one being better than the other as they both meet different requirements. 

[Herbmiester 922]

On 7/13/2022 at 8:13 PM, Eagle said:

Probably goes out the window when you compare repair bills too. Personally i don't see one being better than the other as they both meet different requirements. 

One is a lot faster than the other. Drive one then drive the other and its very evident. I was taken in a bit by all the 130i fans here raving about the 130 and in isolation it was quite a nice drive but the 135i is a rocket in the comparison. As to the repair bills my mates n55 is no more expensive to maintain than the N52 in his old 5 series.  N54's yes can be expensive but as most will know it what's bolted to the engine that has issues rather than the engine itself. 

[Eagle 1661]

Ive driven both in stock form and i agree about the power difference, don't think anyone is arguing on that front. Guessing the raving come from the fact that the 130i has a much lower initial cost, cheaper to run, last N\A six, not fast but not exactly struggling to perform in typical road usage.  

Yeah going to be exceptions but generally the N\A version of a engine is going to be cheaper to run and maintain over time given the same condition. 

[Jacko 2153]

Have you seen the state of NZ roads?  If its a track car, year for sure a 135 is going to be wicked faster in a straight line, however in the real world ya just cant use a million BHP on the road without ending up in a ditch. 99% of the time you'll never be able to use the power, but your still paying the maintenance etc etc.... I totally get it, 135i's are cool (1Ms are way cooler though...) but we live in the real world. 

I drive my 130 pretty hard, down some of NZs maddest B roads, and the smiles it generates as you slot through the gears, being able to use the power it has... hard to beat for the price (for any brand of vehicle - a rear wheel drive hatchback with a manual gearbox option and arguably one of the best NA 6 cylinders ever made - There aren't many competitors). 

Also, I like driving my car rather than having penis size competitions on dyno numbers. 

Edited July 16, 2022 by Jacko

[M3AN 4016]

Yeah, agree with many comments above, I don't think it's a vs thing, they're different cars for different purposes.

As a street/road car the 130 is really good, for high HP ambitions the 135 is a great platform, one doesn't negate the other.