Let me just say I absolutely love my 05 G35 Sedan. This car just flat out flys. I know everyone says the 6 speed is the only one to get for performance but the Automatic is plenty fast enough for me. Heck with the way cops are arround here you can't do more than 5 over. My wife got an 18 over in her Honda PILOT! Anyway even the auto is pretty fast and it handles like a dream. Besides that the car just seems to work the way it was designed. I don't have any rattles. My steering doesn't feel loose or vibrate like my 02 330i did. The controls are easy to use. The Back seat is huge. The trunk is even bigger! And the intelligent remote works perfectly for me. That alone sold me on the car. I even like the tire pressure sensors. At first I thought they would just be annoyances that would eroneous go off all the time like my BMW used to have. Whenever you didn't shut the gas cap exactly perfect in the 330i then the Check Engine light would come on. No big deal accept the darn thing wouldn't go off until you had driven it for a long distance up to 16 times. It would take about 5 days before it would go off after you fixed the gas door. I had the tire sensor warning light come on two days ago in my G35. I thought great here we go again. I checked my tires visually and they looked fine so I went home and got a gauge. Sure enough the temperature had dropped about 40 degrees(103 to 63) so the tire pressures were reading about 5 PSI to low. I refilled them and then drove it 1 mile at 20+ MPH. The light went off. No problem. That is why I really like this car. It just seems to do everything right!

 

Which 330i did you have?

Which options?

 

I had an 02 330i 5 speed manual with the sport package, premium package, and heated seats. The car looked awesome it was dark grey with the "M" sport wheels. However, it was slow. It felt more like my old 99 Honda Accord. I really don't believe the numbers they used to post for that car. Bone stock I don't believe it could do 0-60 in less than 6.6 seconds. I have seen numbers as low as 6.1. My wife loved that car and she despises my G35. I just can't figure it out. The G35 is better in every single category but she just refuses to like it.

 

I agree. I had a 540i and although I still sometimes miss the V8 power and the 540's sport suspension, I sure don't miss all the repair costs and the headaches of a BMW! I also agree with you regarding the automatic being fast enough, the automatic on the 05 G35 is simply great.

 

To each his own. If your 330i sport felt slow, you may have had some performance issues. I've never driven a more balanced vehicle under 45K. However, I love the sweet power of the G. I may purchase a slightly used 330i ZHP. I love the short throw easy to shift machine. You're connected w/ the road.

The most balanced vehicle I've driven was a boxster S.

 

I do admit that the high cornering of the G is sometimes sketchy. It just seems to twitch alot more than the 330i did. However, the old 330is just were not fast. I drove my hard alot and I tried a couple of 04s to see if it was just my car. None of them felt fast like the G35. The great handling of the BMW's is fine. But there is no where safe to come near the limits of these cars except the track. And how many people actually take their 4 door sedan to the track? Remember high speed cornering is always illegal on the street. Going 0 to the speed limit is only illegal if you peel out or the cop can say you were racing another vehicle. I still love to rip through the gears getting to 65 MPH on on-ramps! I didn't enjoy that with the 330i!

 

Nail her in the backseat. She'll have fond memories of the G from then on out.

 

Depends, she may then complain about the head room in the back...

 

i had an 02 325ci 5spd, sport pkg., etc. and i thought it was fairly quick. i could keep close to my friends 96 impala ss, especially after 60 mph. too bad i paid more for that than i did for my G, cause the G is alot more quicker but IMO the bmw felt more "luxurious"

 

The G is flat out awesome! We all know that, that's why were on this board (most of us). However, if the BMW 330i Loaded Sport/Premium were the same price as the G, none of us would have a G (Ok, maybe a few of us would).

At 5-10K less the G wins hands down. I'm considering a 330i ZHP ('04 or '05), cuz the price is more competitive. No other reason. I can assure you. The ZHP will keep up w/ a g35 6MT, no problem. It's 0-60 is below 6, just like the 6mt G. But it's suspension is better, and it fits you like a glove. It's the closest you can get to a M3 sedan right now (from Beemer). It's also got a sweeter exhaust note.

 

I wouldn't drive a BMW if you gave it to me. I'd sell it and buy something that you didn't see 450 ba-zillion of everyday.

Disagree - the 05 G Sedan exhaust note makes the 330 sound like a kiddie car.

 

She is 5’2” so I don’t think she will complain about the head room!

 

True, you do see a lot of regular base model 330, and their 328, 323, and 325 counterparts. But you do not see a lot of 330i Sports, and the 330i ZHP is almost rare.

I'm with you on the base model. Looks outdated, and boring. The ZHP does not.

The 330i ZHP exhaust note is not the same as the other 330i.

Maybe you wouldn't buy one, but those on here who know what a BMW is, would definitely consider it. Especially if it was the same price as a G.

 

Know what a BMW is? WTF does that mean?

I know exactly what a 330 ZHP is, as well as what other BMWs are. Don't think my lack of appreciation for the brand is based in ignorance. Quite the contrary. I'm on a Navy base filled with a couple of THOUSAND military flight students who all think they're Tom Cruise. The base is crawling with BMWs. I've driven them all - 540 Dinans, M3s, 740s, etc. I don't see what all the hoopla is about. They are all very nice, very overpriced cars.

Again, if you gave me one I'd sell it and buy something I appreciate.

'Understanding what a BMW is' has nothing to do with it. I understand 'what they are' and I'm not so impressed that they would be on my short list. When I bought my G I could have easily afforded a smattering of different BMWs. No thank you very much.

 

I tend to agree with Downtown on this. If the 330i With sport, premium, and Cold weather packages was about $34000 most of us would have had a hard time deciding between it and our beloved G35. However, the fact remains that the 06 330i is between $43K(Manual no Nav) and $47K(Automatic Nav) when properly equipped. That is between $10K and $14K above what I paid for my loaded(except no Nav) Automatic G35. There is simply not anything they could do to the 330i to make me spend an extra 10K on it. Much less an extra $14K. The 330i is a very nice car that is simply $10K over priced. I am sorry most of us just don’t have 10 grand to throw away. Apparently, there are thousands of 330i owners who do though? The only reason I bought my 02 330i in the first place was because it was 1 year old with 9K miles on it. The original sticker was $41K and I bought it for $32500. Like I said before take ~$10K off the sticker and then it makes it a tough decision. Nothing like a new car though!