135i vs. 911

[lacrosse]

Hey Tag,

Thanks for talking sense. I will drive the Carrera on Saturday. Then I will do the whole pro/cons list thing. Patience has never been a strong point of mine.

[lacrosse]

Update:

The dealer and I agreed to split the difference in lease payments. Looks like it is good bye 2002 Carrera, hello 2008 135i.

[TagMan]

Originally Posted by lacrosse

Update:

The dealer and I agreed to split the difference in lease payments. Looks like it is good bye 2002 Carrera, hello 2008 135i.

Good work.

[lacrosse]

Thank you kind sir!

[str8line]

Just saw this thread while perusing the forums, what a flashback!

So I ended up buying a new black on black 6spd MT 2008 911 Carrera S in February of 2008 and it has been a perfect car even with the kids. At the time of the thread my son was 5-years-old and now he is almost 13 and at 5"9" has bigger feet and hands than me and I'm 6"0". Needless to say he can't fit in the back seat anymore but my 10-year-old daughter can and I pick them up from school in it every once in a while.

The car only has 12,000 miles on it and has had three oil changes and new rear tires and that's it. Never a warranty service or any other kind of problem.

I drive it super hard when I get it out which is once every 1-2 weeks or so in the summer/spring/fall. My wife drives it to work around once a month, too. It still feels like new and the drive is so involving that I really don't think I'll ever sell it.

I think the 911 was the right call in large part because of its timeless design. It still looks amazing. I think the 135i would have made me happy too though. I guess if my question were framed nowadays it would have been the M235i or 911? Or maybe the upcoming M2?

One thing I will say is that I picked up a new 2014 X6M about 1.5 years ago and it is the ultimate daily driver. Ridiculous performance with absolutely no sacrifices as far as I'm concerned. I would sell everything I own for that car, it is unbelievable.

Cheers!

[Yeineken]

911. The 1er is great but not 911 great.

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by Yeineken

911. The 1er is great but not 911 great.

A 911 is probably my dream car. I'm not sure which one, yet, but a big part of their appeal is that they are actually (somewhat) obtainable, unlike many of the super cars people typically dream about.

[tock172]

Any 911 from the entire lineage is timeless. Even the under appreciated 996. The 997 C2S was an excellent choice over a 135i. I'm actually looking to purchase the same thing to replace my 1 series in a year or two.

[champignon]

Originally Posted by tock172

Any 911 from the entire lineage is timeless. Even the under appreciated 996. The 997 C2S was an excellent choice over a 135i. I'm actually looking to purchase the same thing to replace my 1 series in a year or two.

No issue with these specific comments, rather I have issues with the whole idea of comparing the two vehicles.

The 1-Series is the end of the line of the small sports sedan/coupe type of vehicle that BMW pioneered going back to the 1960s with first the 1600, then the 2002, and subsequently the 3-Series which ultimately morphed into a fat and flabby, elongated piece of crap as epitomized by the current 3-Series.

BUT, the precursors of the 1-Series, which met its end in the now defunct E82/E88 models, were never sports cars like the Porsches to which they are being compared in this thread.

So, I can see where someone might want to own one, then could get rid of it in favor of the other, but comparing these two sorts of vehicles is where I completely lose track of the logic in the discussion.

[Bimmer-Bob]

Originally Posted by champignon

No issue with these specific comments, rather I have issues with the whole idea of comparing the two vehicles.

The 1-Series is the end of the line of the small sports sedan/coupe type of vehicle that BMW pioneered going back to the 1960s with first the 1600, then the 2002, and subsequently the 3-Series which ultimately morphed into a fat and flabby, elongated piece of crap as epitomized by the current 3-Series.

BUT, the precursors of the 1-Series, which met its end in the now defunct E82/E88 models, were never sports cars like the Porsches to which they are being compared in this thread.

So, I can see where someone might want to own one, then could get rid of it in favor of the other, but comparing these two sorts of vehicles is where I completely lose track of the logic in the discussion.

I sort of get what you're saying, insofar as the 1 Series and 911 are not the same "class" of vehicle and not direct competitors. But it's not a stretch in my mind to imagine both types of vehicles appealing to the same person, and for many of us the 1 Series is the less practical toy in our garage in the same way a 911 might be - only the 911 is more expensive, exclusive, and pure. It seems like a logical next step to me, and apparently to a few other posters in this thread.

[tock172]

The Porsche 911 is the gold standard to which all other contenders are held.

[champignon]

Originally Posted by Bimmer-Bob

I sort of get what you're saying, insofar as the 1 Series and 911 are not the same "class" of vehicle and not direct competitors. But it's not a stretch in my mind to imagine both types of vehicles appealing to the same person, and for many of us the 1 Series is the less practical toy in our garage in the same way a 911 might be - only the 911 is more expensive, exclusive, and pure. It seems like a logical next step to me, and apparently to a few other posters in this thread.

Not sure that we disagree, but:

A Porsche 911 is an entirely impractical vehicle unless all you want to do is to transport 1 or 2 persons from point A to point B. You could do exactly the same thing with a Nissan Leaf, albeit over a shorter distance. The Leaf has more cargo carrying capacity, however. The 911 has this in common with basically all the other 2 seater sports cars; they can move 1 or 2 people over a certain distance, and hardly anything else.

A 1-Series BMW is a boxy, semi-practical small 2 door sedan or "coupe." Given its size, you can transport a couple of adults, plus either 2 smaller adults or 2 children or several dogs, in the back seat. The trunk is fully serviceable for its size. So long as don't compare the 1-Series car with a hugely larger car, inch for inch, it is a CAR, a practical vehicle.

Comparing a sports car to a sports sedan/coupe, makes no sense other than that both of them are vehicles with 4 wheels that roll.