Is the 135i a sedan?

dtla1 · 04-02-2019, 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gray_Panther

Ignorance is bliss.
E82 is a coupé.
But maybe I will tell Geico my 1er is an SUV to get that haircut on my premium like someone else stated.

If enough of us do it, the insurance companies will think it MUST be true.

duder13 · 04-02-2019, 04:43 PM

Check out this two-door E21 “high performance driving machine cleverly disguised as a family sedan.”

Or this two-door 2002 “world’s best sports sedan.”

Gangplank · 04-02-2019, 05:33 PM

Ok I've changed my vote. It's a 2door Sports Sedan. It's the modern 2002 after all.

JimD · 04-08-2019, 01:29 PM

It doesn't bother me whether it's a coupe or a sedan. Relative to the size of the back seat, my two kids, both grown and married, liked to ride in my e88 when it was new. My son, who is over 6'2", had to move his seat up a bit so that my daughter, who is 5'9", could sit in the back. Neither felt like they had a lot of space but they were comfortable for short trips. Now that the newness is worn off, both want to take a different vehicle. My daughter has also decided the back seat is insufficient for my grandson's car seat - which is really big.

One of the things I like about my e88 is it reminds me of my first car, a 1966 Mustang. The mustang's back seat was pretty small but I occasionally had 4 people who thought they were adults in it. It had a 200 cubic inch straight six and a three speed manual transmission. I am quite glad that the e88 handles a lot better and has a lot more power. But both my e88 and my old 66 are and where sporty cars for their time.

dtla1 · 04-08-2019, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimD

......

One of the things I like about my e88 is it reminds me of my first car, a 1966 Mustang. The mustang's back seat was pretty small but I occasionally had 4 people who thought they were adults in it. It had a 200 cubic inch straight six and a three speed manual transmission. I am quite glad that the e88 handles a lot better and has a lot more power. But both my e88 and my old 66 are and where sporty cars for their time.

My dad has a '66 mustang with the 200CI Straight 6. I haven't tried crawling into the back recently, but next time I'm at my parent's I'll give it a try to compare with the 1.

xQx · 04-09-2019, 12:59 AM

Well, BMW calls it a coupe, and that's the definitive answer.

My previous definition of coupe vs sedan was defined by the number of doors. By that definition it's a coupe.
A competing view is that it's by the roofline. By that definition, it's a sedan.

The car manufacturers definition seems to be determined if they're targeting it to a 'sporty' or 'family' audience. So, my revised definition is as follows:

If it's got two doors and a boot and it's performance is wholly uninspiring, it's a sedan.
If it's got four doors and a boot but the roofline makes the back seats totally un-usable by anybody over the age of about 5, it's a coupe (or a GT coupe).
If it's a SUV and it's ugly as hell, it's either a coupe or a Tesla model X.
Otherwise, if it's got 2 doors and a boot, it's a coupe. 4 doors and a boot it's a sedan.

So by this revised definition, the 135i, 128i and 125i's are a coupe's.
The e82 variants of the 118d, 118i, 120i, 120d, 123d's are 2-door sedans.

EDIT: and to answer your question "Is the 135i a coupe or a sedan" ... Mine's a convertible. I really don't mind if you want to call it a ragtop or a cabriolet if you're that way inclined.

Tommm · 04-09-2019, 01:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimD

It doesn't bother me whether it's a coupe or a sedan. Relative to the size of the back seat, my two kids, both grown and married, liked to ride in my e88 when it was new. My son, who is over 6'2", had to move his seat up a bit so that my daughter, who is 5'9", could sit in the back. Neither felt like they had a lot of space but they were comfortable for short trips. Now that the newness is worn off, both want to take a different vehicle. My daughter has also decided the back seat is insufficient for my grandson's car seat - which is really big.

One of the things I like about my e88 is it reminds me of my first car, a 1966 Mustang. The mustang's back seat was pretty small but I occasionally had 4 people who thought they were adults in it. It had a 200 cubic inch straight six and a three speed manual transmission. I am quite glad that the e88 handles a lot better and has a lot more power. But both my e88 and my old 66 are and where sporty cars for their time.

68 Firebird Convertible here. The back seat had plenty of room for two, and decent room for four when the alternative was stay home.

Quote:

Originally Posted by xQx

...
EDIT: and to answer your question "Is the 135i a coupe or a sedan" ... Mine's a convertible. I really don't mind if you want to call it a ragtop or a cabriolet if you're that way inclined.

Call it either of those, just don't call it a roadster.

xQx · 04-09-2019, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tommm

Call it either of those, just don't call it a roadster.

Lol. A Roadster has two seats.

A roadster should also have a long bonnet, but I'm willing to compromise on this point.

But, if it has four seats, it's not a roadster.

duder13 · 04-11-2019, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xQx

Well, BMW calls it a coupe, and that's the definitive answer.

My previous definition of coupe vs sedan was defined by the number of doors. By that definition it's a coupe.
A competing view is that it's by the roofline. By that definition, it's a sedan.

The car manufacturers definition seems to be determined if they're targeting it to a 'sporty' or 'family' audience. So, my revised definition is as follows:

If it's got two doors and a boot and it's performance is wholly uninspiring, it's a sedan.
If it's got four doors and a boot but the roofline makes the back seats totally un-usable by anybody over the age of about 5, it's a coupe (or a GT coupe).
If it's a SUV and it's ugly as hell, it's either a coupe or a Tesla model X.
Otherwise, if it's got 2 doors and a boot, it's a coupe. 4 doors and a boot it's a sedan.

So by this revised definition, the 135i, 128i and 125i's are a coupe's.
The e82 variants of the 118d, 118i, 120i, 120d, 123d's are 2-door sedans.

EDIT: and to answer your question "Is the 135i a coupe or a sedan" ... Mine's a convertible. I really don't mind if you want to call it a ragtop or a cabriolet if you're that way inclined.

Yep, I definitely agree that it's a coupe at the end of the day, because that's what BMW calls it. Just wondering if they made the right call.

Those definitions are pretty good, although they leave out the older cars that inspired this thread: the 2002, E21 and E30, which were sporty, 2-door sedans with usable back seats.

duder13 · 04-13-2019, 07:19 PM

I've been thinking more about older cars, because I've long thought that the E82 was a bit like a BMW 2002 mixed with some Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV. Now, the Alfa is what I consider to be one of the more beautiful cars ever built, so I'm not saying the E82 is that pretty, but the E82 is kind of muscular in the same way, and they are both curvier than the 2002, have a high belt line, and have that bevel running through the top of the doors and fenders.

Of course, Alfa considered the 2000 GTV a coupe, and BMW considered the 2002 a sedan, so I'm trying to parse out the difference. The Alfa has a b-piller (although its small) and somewhat bubbly roof like a sedan, but it has a rear seating situation somewhat like the E82, and it's overall character is more sporty looking than the 2002 sedan.

I really think all three of these cars blur the lines between sedan and coupe, but I'll concede that, like the 2000 GTV, the E82 is more muscular looking than the 2002 (and E21/E30,) so that's probably what helped push it over the edge into coupe territory.

04-02-2019, 04:43 PM	#68
duder13 Captain 767 Rep 904 Posts Drives: Cashmere Join Date: Mar 2018 Location: US iTrader: (0)	Check out this two-door E21 “high performance driving machine cleverly disguised as a family sedan.” Or this two-door 2002 “world’s best sports sedan.”
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04-02-2019, 05:33 PM	#69
Gangplank Brigadier General 1540 Rep 3,071 Posts Drives: 2011 e82 135i n55 Sport w/ DCT Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Vero Beach, FL iTrader: (2) Garage List 2011 135i [0.00]	Ok I've changed my vote. It's a 2door Sports Sedan. It's the modern 2002 after all. __________________ 2011 135i w/ DCT \| ZSP Sport Pkg \| PPK \| Ohlins R
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04-08-2019, 01:29 PM	#70
JimD Brigadier General 368 Rep 3,547 Posts Drives: 128i convertible Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Lexington, SC iTrader: (0)	It doesn't bother me whether it's a coupe or a sedan. Relative to the size of the back seat, my two kids, both grown and married, liked to ride in my e88 when it was new. My son, who is over 6'2", had to move his seat up a bit so that my daughter, who is 5'9", could sit in the back. Neither felt like they had a lot of space but they were comfortable for short trips. Now that the newness is worn off, both want to take a different vehicle. My daughter has also decided the back seat is insufficient for my grandson's car seat - which is really big. One of the things I like about my e88 is it reminds me of my first car, a 1966 Mustang. The mustang's back seat was pretty small but I occasionally had 4 people who thought they were adults in it. It had a 200 cubic inch straight six and a three speed manual transmission. I am quite glad that the e88 handles a lot better and has a lot more power. But both my e88 and my old 66 are and where sporty cars for their time. __________________ 128i Convertible, MT, Alpine White, Black Top, Taupe Leatherette, Walnut, Sport Ordered 5/22/09, Completed 6/4/09, At Port 6/9/09, On the Georgia Highway 6/13/09, Ship Arrived Charleston 6/24/09 at 10pm, PCD 7/21/09
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04-09-2019, 12:59 AM	#72
xQx General 903 Rep 1,003 Posts Drives: 2008 BMW 135i (E88 N54 6AT) Join Date: Aug 2016 Location: Sunshine Coast QLD Australia iTrader: (0)	Well, BMW calls it a coupe, and that's the definitive answer. My previous definition of coupe vs sedan was defined by the number of doors. By that definition it's a coupe. A competing view is that it's by the roofline. By that definition, it's a sedan. The car manufacturers definition seems to be determined if they're targeting it to a 'sporty' or 'family' audience. So, my revised definition is as follows: If it's got two doors and a boot and it's performance is wholly uninspiring, it's a sedan. If it's got four doors and a boot but the roofline makes the back seats totally un-usable by anybody over the age of about 5, it's a coupe (or a GT coupe). If it's a SUV and it's ugly as hell, it's either a coupe or a Tesla model X. Otherwise, if it's got 2 doors and a boot, it's a coupe. 4 doors and a boot it's a sedan. So by this revised definition, the 135i, 128i and 125i's are a coupe's. The e82 variants of the 118d, 118i, 120i, 120d, 123d's are 2-door sedans. EDIT: and to answer your question "Is the 135i a coupe or a sedan" ... Mine's a convertible. I really don't mind if you want to call it a ragtop or a cabriolet if you're that way inclined. Last edited by xQx; 04-09-2019 at 01:07 AM..
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04-13-2019, 07:19 PM	#76
duder13 Captain 767 Rep 904 Posts Drives: Cashmere Join Date: Mar 2018 Location: US iTrader: (0)	I've been thinking more about older cars, because I've long thought that the E82 was a bit like a BMW 2002 mixed with some Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV. Now, the Alfa is what I consider to be one of the more beautiful cars ever built, so I'm not saying the E82 is that pretty, but the E82 is kind of muscular in the same way, and they are both curvier than the 2002, have a high belt line, and have that bevel running through the top of the doors and fenders. Of course, Alfa considered the 2000 GTV a coupe, and BMW considered the 2002 a sedan, so I'm trying to parse out the difference. The Alfa has a b-piller (although its small) and somewhat bubbly roof like a sedan, but it has a rear seating situation somewhat like the E82, and it's overall character is more sporty looking than the 2002 sedan. I really think all three of these cars blur the lines between sedan and coupe, but I'll concede that, like the 2000 GTV, the E82 is more muscular looking than the 2002 (and E21/E30,) so that's probably what helped push it over the edge into coupe territory.
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