I didn't read the whole thread but im sure there were a fair share of jabs thrown left and right between 28 and 35 owners, and we probably have not seen the last of it either...
IMO
Having driven both over lengthy periods (my friend/neighbor works at a dealer, hence he had a new company car every few months) I settled on a 128. Why?
Cause it suits my needs. My daily drive consist of 15mins one way to work. On the weekends I'll go for the occasional cruise though the twisties up north. The only place I can imagine I would want the power of the 135i is at the drag-strip (which btw is not my thing...i'll leave that to the ricers and muscle cars)
The 128i's power is plenty, balance of the car is near perfect, and reliability is un-compromised. It fits my needs perfectly. The guys that are going to argue that the 128 has no power compared to the 135; i'll ask you what car did you come from to "settle" on the power of the 135?
And quit honestly, nobody needs more power than what the 128 has to offer for daily use on public roads. Lapping, well thats another story.
BTW my previous car was an e46 with a 3.2l
, that I purchased new, so please don't tell me that I don't know what power is, nor that I couldn't afford a 135.
IMO if you are scraping between the cost of the two models, you shouldn't be buying a BMW period. (new or used) The difference in cost is marginal at best.