05BMW330i

I just completed the car shopping experience. I test drove all the major Japanese and German cars in the 25-35k range.

The short list included the IS and BMW 3 series.

I absolutely love the IS 350 but I didn't want to spend 40k on it so I set my sights lower and checked out both versions of the IS 250 as well as the 06 BMW 325i. The 325i was a lot more fun then the IS250 but BMW really uglified it both in and out. The IS 250 is a beautiful car but the performance and handling is severly lacking for a 30-35k car. Neither would do.

As my user ID indicates I ended up finding a demo '05 330i at an unbelievable price. They also gave me more for my Saab 92x then I paid for it almost a year ago and I put on over 15k miles. So I met all of my criteria: a good looking(OK the design is a little long in the tooth, but it has the classic good looks and great interior thats worthy of the BMW logo, unlike the e90) and good reliability (OK stop laughing, Consumer Reports rated the 05s much better then previous years) and best in class handling. It's accelerates decently and in a satsfying manner. Lots of low end torque. The driving experience thus far has beem extremely satisfying,

So even though the IS 250 is easily forgetable, the IS 350 has been haunting me since I've driven it. I can't seem to stop looking at the brochure.

RaZoRaMoN

Congrats on your purchase, the 350 is a great car but if the price was right on the 330i then you can't be mad at that.

Redpaste

iTrader: (4)

I think you should have waited till these cars cooled off. Im sure maybe the end of fall or winter you could have gotten a good deal on a IS350. If you keep looking at the brochure, you may have bought the wrong car.

Anyways, hope the 330 works out for you and congrats on a new car

ptmIS350

You're credibility is shot due to the saab 92x.....just kidding congrats on the 330, it's a great car. No regrets!

PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

Congrats on the Bimmer. Keep looking out for that 350 in the future, and stay with the forum to keep watch on any changes for the 350. Until then, enjoy the 330.

SeattLexus

I just purchased the '06 Lexus IS350, with the Sport Package. I'm very happy with it as I am with my '04 BMW M3.

The Bimmer is a raw, well-balanced, driver's car. The IS is a polite road burner with 4-doors and all the techno-gizmos.

One thing I find odd is that the IS has LED tail-lights, but bulb-driven rear turn signals. My Bimmer has amazing LED tail-lights and very cool LED turn signals, which came stock. But that's my only complaint.

gsrthomas

iTrader: (1)

Does the 330i have the Performance Package?? That is a MUST if you are getting a 330i e46.

erock901

Throw the IS brochure away. You've made your decision. Enjoy the bimmer, it's a great car. And when you see an IS350 on the road, don't worry, you'll probably be in the market for a new car in just a few years anyway. By then, maybe you'll be able to buy a 6 speed IS500!

05BMW330i

The Saab 92x is a really decent car. AWD and when modded will give the IS350 a run for its money. I had it at stage 1 via a Cobb Accessport and the acceleration was amazing. 0-60 was in the low to mid 5 range. The handling was very good as well. The bottom line though is that it was based on the low end Suburu Imprezza which was apparent everywhere. The ride was loud, sheet metal was thin, the interior was spartan with just the basics, the seats were way to bolstered and really were not comfortable. But, if I didn't get such a great deal on the 330i coupled with the high trade in value of the Saab, I would still be driving it.

Lem144

In CR, the newer a car is the better its reliability rating is simply because not enough time has lapsed for things to start happening. Most cars have red circles when they are just a year old. Hopefully yours will stay red for more years to come, but over the long term the Lexus would have been more reliable.

Good luck! Sounds like you got a great deal.

pwndzzled

I don't believe this is how they do it.

05BMW330i, Trash the brochure and enjoy the BMW... it's a great car that you can't go wrong with... can't say the same for the IS, but I do still like it as well.

05BMW330i

A couple of things that turned me off of the IS initially is the lack of bluetooth unless you buy the navigation system. I have BMW's first implementation of bluetooth in the E46, it's primitive but effective. I also like the automatic wipers which would be part of the luxury package in the IS. So effectively I would need to get the luxury package and navigation to get these two very practical options.

The 05 330i seems to be the ultimate compromise for everything that I was looking for, performance(not the fastest car I've owned, but it's very satisfying), handling(best in class) and looks(it's the silver gray color with gray leather interior and is so much nicer then the e90 both in an out) and with most of the right options. Also the 330i comes with the sport tuned suspension. Considering I paid $28,500 for a practically brand new e46 that was CPO'ed as well (warranty until 04/2011 with free maintainence until 04/09) and got over $21k for the 92x I can't complain. Plus my insurance dropped over $400 per year. I still can't undstand why that 92x was so expensive to insure.

OK so I'm trashing the IS brochure and not looking back. BTW I'm really loving the 330i. It truly is the Ultimate Driving Machine. Lets just hope it proves to be reliable.

Foxberry

Good luck to you with that. I suspect this issue was a major factor for those of us who were deciding between the IS & the BMW. I know it was for me.