Before I order a 125i on Sunday...

[BMWRX]

I know that my WRX is a much more involving drive when going for a spirited run. You hear, feel, and even smell every nuance of the road. Is it faster point to point than the 135i? Most probably not. But it sure as heck feels like you're going quicker, and holding on by your fingernails.

So, this may be why some go for the S3, as it's not a quicker car, but a more involving drive. Personally I went with the 135i as I want a comfy cruiser 90% of the time, but also the ability to light it up when I'm in the mood.

[CT135]

I drove the S3 when looking at the 135 ... and all I felt was turbo lag.
Put the foot down and there is nothing nothing nothing THERE IT IS. Similar to the feeling in my WRX a couple of cars ago.

[CT135]

Originally Posted by BMWRX

Personally I went with the 135i as I want a comfy cruiser 90% of the time, but also the ability to light it up when I'm in the mood.

exactly

[dk130i]

Originally Posted by Taymaishu

Got it from Kloster BMW in Newcastle, after Col Crawford decided they don't like customers. I heard bad things about CC, but decided to give them a shot. Then it came to a point when the Finance Manager laughed at me, and they thought I was just 'another kid' at 23 seeing a car.

Kloster were absolutely terrific. The car was bought (lease) on the Thursday afternoon, rego'd Friday and prepped, ready and picked up Saturday at 8am.

And they have fantastic post-sales customer service, the type of shit BMW are renowned for.

Can't say the same for Col Crawford.

If you think CC's pre sales service sucks wait till you take your car for a service there, you aint seen nothing yet.....

[Taymaishu]

Originally Posted by dk130i

If you think CC's pre sales service sucks wait till you take your car for a service there, you aint seen nothing yet.....

Thanks for the tipoff! My lease pays for my servicing (schedules & unsched) so i'll drop it to Sydney @ Rushcutter's Bay. I've heard they're pretty good @ services down there?

Kloster gave me 3 calls the week i got my car to make sure it was going well, and 2 of them were return calls with answers to my questions (brake dust & full-auto seemingly jamming into gear going down-hill coasting)

[chylld]

Well I just had a chat to my boss, he's offered to do a company car deal (which I'll number crunch tonight, but I'm sure it's the way to go) with a limit of $71k onroad. Not bad at all

In the 45 minutes I had with the 125i I had way too many opportunities to get into trouble already so the extra power is nice albeit excessive at this point, and I don't think I'll find a 135i demonstrator for $71k. That said, I'm more than happy with the 125i... however, it's the only sports car I've ever driven.

Tomorrow morning I have a booking to test an Audi S3, I've read lots of differing opinions on it so there's only one thing left to do really. After that it'll be test driving for the rest of Saturday and Sunday and hopefully sign on the dotted line by Sunday arvo.

omgfun :P

[janus77]

ALS Performance also does scheduled servicing for BMW, i was happy with the sway install, will probably take my car there for sservicing.

[chylld]

Originally Posted by Taymaishu

Col Crawford decided they don't like customers. I heard bad things about CC, but decided to give them a shot. Then it came to a point when the Finance Manager laughed at me, and they thought I was just 'another kid' at 23 seeing a car.

I have this everytime I walk into an Audi dealership. No one gives me any attention at all. BMW on the other hand I walk into wearing a t-shirt and cargo pants and I get service within 20 seconds.

[BMWRX]

Originally Posted by chylld

I have this everytime I walk into an Audi dealership. No one gives me any attention at all. BMW on the other hand I walk into wearing a t-shirt and cargo pants and I get service within 20 seconds.

I had the exact same experience with Audi in Brisbane city. I was there for half an hour and even after asking for assistance, I still couldn't get anyone to talk to me............and I was wearing shirt and tie, so it's not like I looked like a hobo.

[bfi2906]

Originally Posted by chylld

I don't think I'll find a 135i demonstrator for $71k. omgfun :P

Dont be so sure.

If that's what you want, I think it's do'able - but it'll take work.

Be prepared to "sign up now" and use that. But actually be prepared to do it. This is the last weekend of the 3rd quarter. They'll be pushing for business. If you can manage your end of the deal so they can sell and deliver it in Sept, that'll be VERY attractiive for the dealership.

Your biggest challenge will be finding demo or stock car that's not full of expensive options, that you may or may not want.

Try BMW at Chatswood - I've always done well with them. (recently and in their previous incarnations)

[janus77]

Just got a letter from BMW Chatswood saying it's been bought by a private concern, hopefully they're all pushing to get lots of sales to impress the new principal..

[Taymaishu]

Originally Posted by BMWRX

I had the exact same experience with Audi in Brisbane city. I was there for half an hour and even after asking for assistance, I still couldn't get anyone to talk to me............and I was wearing shirt and tie, so it's not like I looked like a hobo.

BMW Sylvania: pretty good. Had a good chat to the guy there. Ran us through options and pricings and said he'd answer any questions. We 'left' and he spotted us looking at a 125 outside (after looking at a 135) and he came out to show us over the car. Outstanding service.

Audi Sutherland: Didn't even acknowledge us. Had to walk to the desk to get attendance and they didn't even bother standing up and showing us around. Fucking terrible.

BMW Col Crawford: Lovely salespeople, immediately attended to. Once the business end of things came, the Business Manager was pretty much saying i was too young to buy a BMW. It's a shame as they're my local dealer and i'll never step foot in ANY Col Crawford dealership again. They're shit.

Kloster BMW: Found out Thursday i was buying the car. Ready Saturday morning, no hassles whatsoever. Even called me Friday to let me know my rego!

Subaru Sutherland: Fantastic. Looking at the STi, immediately had service and were talking pricings.

[bfi2906]

Originally Posted by janus77

Just got a letter from BMW Chatswood saying it's been bought by a private concern, hopefully they're all pushing to get lots of sales to impress the new principal..

CONFIRMED!!!

Thus my suggestion above.

[dk130i]

Originally Posted by Taymaishu

Thanks for the tipoff! My lease pays for my servicing (schedules & unsched) so i'll drop it to Sydney @ Rushcutter's Bay. I've heard they're pretty good @ services down there?
)

Ummm, been there, done that, won't be going back.
Had them replace rear brake pads, they failed to adjust the handbrake and forgot to put all of my wheel nuts back on, luckily the ones they did put back were tightened. And it cost me something like $650 for the pleasure. Premium prices for substandard service.

Anyway, I now go to a specialist in Brookie, one man band so you get first hand feedback, good prices and he seems like an honest guy.

Originally Posted by chylld

Well I just had a chat to my boss, he's offered to do a company car deal (which I'll number crunch tonight, but I'm sure it's the way to go) with a limit of $71k onroad. Not bad at all

In the 45 minutes I had with the 125i I had way too many opportunities to get into trouble already so the extra power is nice albeit excessive at this point, and I don't think I'll find a 135i demonstrator for $71k. That said, I'm more than happy with the 125i... however, it's the only sports car I've ever driven.

Tomorrow morning I have a booking to test an Audi S3, I've read lots of differing opinions on it so there's only one thing left to do really. After that it'll be test driving for the rest of Saturday and Sunday and hopefully sign on the dotted line by Sunday arvo.

omgfun :P

Sounds like you will have fun test driving some nice cars!

[Zuzu]

Originally Posted by Taymaishu

BMW Sylvania: pretty good. Had a good chat to the guy there. Ran us through options and pricings and said he'd answer any questions. We 'left' and he spotted us looking at a 125 outside (after looking at a 135) and he came out to show us over the car. Outstanding service.

Purchased my first BMW from them back in 1987 when they where at Canterbury before they expanded and have been their customer for 22 years and six new beemers later...

[sparoz]

In my opinion the M-Suspension is way too soft, and definitely not as well balanced as previous incarnation of M or non-M suspension of previous BMW. I think 135i is definitely the way to go if it's under 80k. Although my wife's loving her car, I sometimes wonder if it would have been better if she's got the 135 too - better autobox, and lots of options on the 125 are standard on the 135, plus some missing cool features like electric seats, xenon, auto tilt mirror on reverse etc.

[chylld]

Originally Posted by bfi2906

This is the last weekend of the 3rd quarter. They'll be pushing for business. If you can manage your end of the deal so they can sell and deliver it in Sept, that'll be VERY attractiive for the dealership.

Your biggest challenge will be finding demo or stock car that's not full of expensive options, that you may or may not want.

Try BMW at Chatswood - I've always done well with them. (recently and in their previous incarnations)

I like the sound of this looks like i'll have some exciting news to report over the next few days!

The guy I dealt with at BMW chatswood was real nice, definitely looking to go back there tomorrow.

[oldman]

Between Sydney and Newcastle you also have my dealer... Worthington's on the Central Coast.

They are definitely the best dealer I have come across in my 40 odd years of buying cars.

How many sales guys ring you up after 10 months of buying the car to ask if I'm driving by some day, would love you to call in so I can hear your BMW Performance Exhaust. (Been to the Service Department earlier to check on warranty if I fit it)

And by the way, if you would like one, I've saved a spare BMW Performance promotional desk pad and mouse pad for you.

Gets the vote in my book for after sales service...

[d3syd]

Originally Posted by Taymaishu

....The sound of the exhaust is just phenomenal.

As the head of BMW M Division has said, exhaust isn't about "quantity, it's the quality of the sound"...And fuck do they have that correct!!!

......The Freeway ripper? No worries - She hits 200km/h without a worry and just idles at 110km/h.

I've never heard the exhaust note of a 125i. How does it compare to a 135i's exhaust note?

Yes my car always feels like it is doing 30 - 40 kph less than it actually is. 200 kph is such a dawdle for it. Even at the speed limiter the car feels like it wants to give more. It was rock solid at an indicated 255kph in spite of the road being a secondary country road...

[chylld]

What a day!

First thing I did was go straight to a 125i and sit in the seat and get comfortable. mmmm very comfortable, I thought my idea was to return to the bmw throughout the day so that i had a reliable comparison going.

crossed the road to audi and went out for a drive in the s3. straight away, the seat (non bucket seat) is NOWHERE near as comfy as the 125's. the seat base is harder, shorter and has one angle setting: flat. when you brake hard, you go forward also the backrest is way too wide and non-adjustable, so in corners you move around so much. in the middle of the test drive i had to pull over to the side of the road to try and adjust things, but that was all in vain.

it's a very fast car, but it doesn't sound as sweet as the 125's six. it sounds just like a golf gti actually, except the fun is over much quicker. and the lag!! i dragged a 325i sedan at 3 consecutive red lights, and every time the beemer got a full car length ahead before the s3's turbo kicked in. not impressed.

had a quick look at the new audi a4, didn't like it that much, seating problems again. then had lunch and went back to chat to the salesman at bmw and set up a meeting tomorrow. then went off to nissan to try the 370z - that is one heck of a monster of a car! floor the throttle in that and it feels like the world is moving backwards. unfortunately there is so much road noise and the lack of a cover over the cargo area and the lack of rear seats means it's a no-go. that said, contrary to what i'd been told, the ride was softer than the 125 with m sports pack.

then had a quick look at lexus and ended up test driving the base model is250. this was the biggest surprise of the day; it was just so comfortable and smooth and came with a lot of gear compared to a 125i at the same price. unfortunately it's quite slow, but for what it is it's pretty good. plenty of time left in me for this type of car afterwards tho, no need to go all retired yet. the leather in the lexus though is second to none, so soft and plush and smooth...

went back to bmw to have another sit in 125i and again thought "yeah this is the one for me." it's almost as comfortable as the lexus, and almost as sporty as the 370z, i.e. a good compromise without feeling like it's lacking anything.

at this point my friend with an evo x tells me to have a ride in his car tomorrow morning; on paper, it has the 370z beat for speed and equipment-wise it's also right up there with satnav, leather, keyless entry etc.

so it looks like a fight between the 125i and the evo x. will give another update tomorrow

[CT135]

Originally Posted by chylld

so it looks like a fight between the 125i and the evo x. will give another update tomorrow

isn't an evo x closer to 135 money? i.e. i'd be comparing the evo x to a 135 rather than a 125.

[chylld]

Originally Posted by CT135

isn't an evo x closer to 135 money? i.e. i'd be comparing the evo x to a 135 rather than a 125.

i can get both evo x mr sst and 125i msport for under 70k... 135i is over 80k.