gangzoom Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 18 months ago I px my 350Z for a BMW 335i saloon. I wanted something bigger to replace my 350Z but it also had to be just as quick , easy to live with, newish and not break down every 5 seconds. Virtually every car with 4 seats and a decent engine in the £20-30K range was considered. In the end it came down to the 335i or Audi S4 (B8)…the £10K difference in 2nd hand prices meant the 335i ended up on my drive . Ideally I would have gone for a E90 M3, but the wife said no to that. However soon after acquiring the 335i I realized it seems BMW hadn’t really developed the full potential of the 335i and set about putting thing right….It also gave me an excuse to spend the money “saved†by buying a cheap 335i compared to a M3. This is how it looked after I took delivery. The first thing I wanted to sort out was the lack of traction, I still don’t understand why BMW didn't fit the 335 with a LSD. 1 week into ownership the car went down to Birds BMW for a Quaife LSD which has really improved things, the TC now rarely comes on even when really pressing the car. For some reason I’ve always found the standard suspension setup to be a bit soft (even on the much hated Run Flats), steering feel is fab but turn-in was always a touch slow and the rear end always seemed unkeen to get involved in the corners. Under acceleration the backend also seem to always take a few seconds to settle down before launching the car forwards. After some research I ended up uprating the rear sub-frame bushes and antiroll bars. The car is now much more keen to turn-in, and body-roll in the corners is much improved. The ride is now just about perfect, the damping could still be improved but overall the car now handles beautifully. Infact I would say the car now handles better than the 350Z and has a hint of how my old Integra Type R felt. It certainly doesn’t feel like a 4 door 5 seater saloon!! Though the car is also perfectly happy pottering around town at 30mph, which is precisely what I wanted from my Z replacement . After the extended warranty expired I looked into getting some extra BHP. I had good experience with the JB+ tune therefore upgrading to the JB4 tune (ECU chip) was a natural extension. I also added a few other bits to reduce the backpressure (downpipes, and intercooler). I’m more than happy with result of the suspension and power upgrades. The car now performs at a level not far from a E90 M3 , but rather unexpectedly is also surprising economical, this was the mpg read out after a 3hr commute on a Friday night across various M ways (traffic jams and all)!! I should add finding a garage to fit all the various mods was a headache, I ended up going back to Mitz and Andy (Cougar Store) who did all the work on my 350Z, as usual the work was top notch and the service provided puts main dealers to shame!! Thanks again guys!! Some other bits done including braided brake lines, EBC Yellow stuff pads, Alpine speaker upgrade (the standard speakers were awful), and DAB/iPhone input via a Pure 300Di. None of these items were essential but improves on some inherent weakness in the stock car. I’ve also added some exterior changes, spoiler/splitters all of which are cheap copies of more expensive items but funds aren’t endless (and I have to save some money for when/if the turbo wastage/fuel pump/injectors/steering rack decides to fail )… This is how finished product looks, I quite like the fact the car looks pretty much identical to a 320D, even though it now pushing close to 400bhp!! Plan is now to leave the car alone (which means Mitz needs to stop tempting me with things ) and just enjoy it for a good few years.... …nearly forgot the most important Mod any BMW needs..OBD port deletion...if your not sure why its needed search for "Watchdog BMW thefts" on Google Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MITZ@CougarStore Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 Gang, thank you for your custom and allowing us to suppy and work on your car, we'll catch up soon... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 Top write up, enjoyed reading that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S1 HNK Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 That will be on quick car. My brother had a 135i a few years back and in std form it would murder the Zed so a remapped one will be rocket ship. Love the sleeper looks too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jollyranchers Posted October 5, 2012 Share Posted October 5, 2012 Very nice , any under bonnet pics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greido Posted November 15, 2012 Share Posted November 15, 2012 Looks excellent, good work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK350Z Posted November 15, 2012 Share Posted November 15, 2012 Good work, but it's not muck of a looker is it? Not that I don't understand your reasons for getting one of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dblock Posted November 16, 2012 Share Posted November 16, 2012 Good work, but it's not muck of a looker is it? Not that I don't understand your reasons for getting one of course. I think its a handsome car but a coupe is the looker though. Saying that I love most bmw/mercs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoogyRev Posted November 16, 2012 Share Posted November 16, 2012 Nice ride Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wizard Posted November 16, 2012 Share Posted November 16, 2012 Very good writeup! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gangzoom Posted November 17, 2012 Author Share Posted November 17, 2012 (edited) Good work, but it's not muck of a looker is it? Not that I don't understand your reasons for getting one of course. Not its not...thats why I resisted going anywhere near for about 6 months when looking to replace the Z Really starting to appreciate the uprated antiroll bars now...roundabouts are now so much more fun!! Still not where near as bad as this.... Edited November 17, 2012 by gangzoom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dblock Posted November 17, 2012 Share Posted November 17, 2012 I like the 1 series too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK350Z Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 I liked the 1M, but it's odd how the hatch 1 series looks so much worse than the saloon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EH 370z Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 (edited) Great write up The new 1 series is twice the car the old one was in terms of detail and quality of build etc, the new Coupe when it comes will be fantastic... The weird thing with the new 3 series (i.e. the 2012 MY) is that its a BIG car and feels like a 5 series of say 5 years ago, and as such, in the current range the 1 series feels a much more engaging drive. Edited November 19, 2012 by EH 370z Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EH 370z Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 BTW sorry about the small font size I guess this is to spot all the crap spellers!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rabbitstew Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 I like the 1 series too. Yep, i love my 123d M-Sport Coupe. Currently seems to be giving me the best of both worlds. 0-60 in 6.5seconds and im getting 50mpg on my daily commute... not to mention the handling.... awesome! I did toy with the idea of the 335d coupe, but what swung it for me was the size of the cars. BMW`s like a lot of cars seem to get bigger & bigger each year. The 1 series coupe is the same size as an old 3 series used to be back around 1990, and the 3 series of today is the same size as a 5 series used to be! Personally I prefer smaller cars as I feel more confident throwing them about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparky370z Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 with the OBDII delete, how did you do it?? as im thinking of doing the Zed for the very same reason. PM if needed BTW looking pretty cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gangzoom Posted November 19, 2012 Author Share Posted November 19, 2012 Moving the OBD port on the BMW is a 10-15 minute job...no idea how to do it on the Z though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 I have to admit I have been looking at bmw's so a very interesting read indeed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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