mss354

That is an option with getting a set of snow wheels and tires but i want to avoid that if i can. And again AWD has the better grib that im looking for. But everyone is tell me to get the sway bar which ill have to get now if its that big of a difference

snaggle

The sway bar makes a BIG difference in handling. Get that and you will be good. Go for the IS!

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

RWD with snow tires will significantly outhandle AWD with all-season tires and be significantly safer (in the snow that is)


The only time AWD wins in the above scenario is if you need to climb very steep (>10% grade) hills... for things you care about in normal driving like stopping distance, lateral/emergency handling, etc... RWD with snows beats AWD with all seasons.

Tires>drivetrain.

mss354

I did not know that. Its just where I do alot of my dailydriving is hilly, twisty, and narrow roads. Just want to have that safe mind of the tail not kicking out or sliding out on me.

Toronto350

You could always upgrade to F sport springs / struts / sways to make the suspension somewhat comparable to the 335.

But if the roads around you are bad (like they are around me) you can just do the sways and enjoy the very comfortable stock suspension.

Icy350

iTrader: (18)

Its actually Quite simple, it all comes down to what you are looking for, Ive driven both and all I can say is ;

The 335 is definitely faster, and definitely handles MUCH better then the IS, The suspension is firm and theres alot more room in terms of tuning, You get the signature BMQ Steering feel, and you get the power you may be searching for.

The IS350 definitely is more luxerious inside, Is definitely slower then the 335, (Yes we are talking stock) and the steering is very light.The suspension is soft without the aftermarket upgrades and Tuning is EXTREMELY limited to boltons,

If you are looking for a more power then luxary then the 335 is for you,
IF you are looking for more luxary then power, then the IS350 is for you,

Both of them are AWD, Both of them are over 300HP, Both of them have their respective issues,

However, Hands Down The IS350 definitely more reliable then the 335 will ever be.

But LIKE I SAID, its up to you, DO you favor POWER or do you favor Luxary + reliability?

mss354

^ I haven't driven the IS350 so i cant say how it drives but u have driven the 335 and the steering was firm and handled well, but i cant really compare it to the 350 and its power. Im sure the Power is MUCH more different from the 350 to the 335. And not to be picky but i really what Power and Reliability together. From what people have told me yes the 335 is a little my powerful but not by much to make a different really.

snaggle

I would agree on everything you said except the power difference. The 335i really does not have ANY more power than the IS350 from 0-90 mph...

after 90mph is where the 335i will make the difference... but how many times are you gonna do 90-150mph pulls? not that often...

Plus, racing from a dig, the IS350 is quicker, the 335i always has some kind of traction problem and usually does not launch well.

I currently have both these cars, and can say the power is identical on the 2.

I also raced a 335i with my IS350 from 0-85 and won by half a car.. (BARELY)

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Keep in mind folks drove with RWD in the snow for most of the previous century and didn't die.

AWD is a great marketing gimmick, but most people really don't need it compared to just using good tires.

http://www.caranddriver.com/features...price-traction

C&D did extensive testing of RWD vs. AWD using the same car (A mercedes E320 in RWD and same car in AWD), and did the same with FWD vs. AWD using Audis. Then they cross tested with all season and snow tires- testing all possible combos.


For hill climbing, the one place AWD shined, they found all cars handled the 10 and 15% grades, but only the AWD models handled 30% grades.

Everywhere else though... well..

Straight line acceleration-
AWD helped here too, but with snow tires the RWD cars had no problems

Braking-
drivetrain doesn't help (arguably the extra weight hurts); but tires make a big difference... stopping distances are 30-40% shorter with snow tires versus all-seasons. It's a big difference, and the most important reason to use snow tires IMHO.

Handling-
here again, tires are king-



Or you can just skip to their conclusion-(bold added)

mss354

ok so there identical in power pretty much. And have 90 im not that worried. If the suspension is a bit firmer and better in the BMW however, I think I take the IS350 on its reliability.

Icy350

iTrader: (18)

In order for your suspension to match a 335, you would have to upgrade to the Fsport accessories (Sway bar, Steering Damper, Springs and shocks) Or get Coils.

But like you said, you want power and reliability so go for the IS350, The 335 will never be as reliable as the 350.

mss354

That has me thinking now about throwing RWD in my search, I've had bad experince in RWD in my 85 celica supra. Although the i would need to buy an extra set of wheels and tires. And I just saw that the F-sport package is only in RWD and i found one for 36k with 30,000 miles. So I going to aim for that.

Sango

iTrader: (10)

^
Can you detail the experience?

mss354

Well in a nut shell, if it wasnt dry weather, the handling on the car was not good. You could go no more than 30 in a turn or else its super tail happy. I would fish out on my a hand full of times. not this was a project car and has alot of rust and has over 200k. and tires were in fair condition. Im not saying I never drive a RWD besides this car in non dry weather, just my celica was a pain. I'm just on the AWD because I drove a friends Legacy and loved it (drove an STI to and loved it too)

sm1ke

iTrader: (5)

RWD will also sit a bit lower than AWD, and if you plan to go any lower, you won't run into the vibration issues that some of the AWD cars have run into.

**edit: Not sure if the vibration issues are applicable to the 350