Quote:
Originally Posted by jd501
Entirely valid point that LA / West Coast is likely a different scenario than NY / East Coast. Yes, there's tons of traffic, but there's also some pretty great roads and even stretches of freeways within 20 miles of downtown.
I suppose part of it is I work from home almost 100% of the time I'm not traveling, so every time I get to drive it's still fun for me, even in traffic.
For me the M3 still feels entirely capable and not stiff or rough at all in downtown LA, and to your point, SD / OC / and even West LA / Santa Monica don't really count as "city" driving.
My E36 and E46 were 5MT / 6MT, ended up getting DCT in the E92, that may be part of it too. It was frustrating getting in first and then getting out of first every minute for an hour in traffic with a manual, DCT not so much.
I guess my point is that I can't imagine I would be happier in traffic in a 335, or really any other car.
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Good post. Yes, we certainly have world class roads here in SoCal.
I had a 6MT which has extremely tall 3/4 gears and so the only way I could enjoy 3rd was to go 110moh which is getting a little crazy. Further, the motors true character is from 6krpm up and thus it takes a LOT of shifting to keep the motor on the boil....which I found, almost, tiring.
The DCT has much shorter gears and is much more effective at keeping the motor where it needs to be and thus would greatly enhance overall enjoyment in normal life. Had I owned a DCT car I might have a totally different opinion of the car. I may try one out just to scratch that itch because the car is pretty awesome.
But as others have said, it does take effort to extract performance from it - it is not a car that just rips at every throttle tip in. Quite the contrary - unless you are in the perfect gear it can feel lethargic in the real world. A 335 never feels lethargic and so a prospective buyer should understand this.
The E9XM is a purist car that requires deliberate effort to really perform. When driven correctly it is one of the most thrilling experiences one can have. If you don't put in the effort it is does not reward you.