Just thought I'd give an update of my current state.
The short summary is I think it's 50/50 and I'll baiscally be happy with either one, but they're so close on pro's and con's and also fairly different that it's tough to make a choice for which trim to go with for the next 10-15 years.
So here's the recap.
Back in September I test drove the xDrive28i. I was impressed with performance and set it w/cold weather, paddles and sunroof options. I then hopped online and did some reading and was still fine. Then I had an near incident that was out of my control but I wondered if xenon would have widened the safety gap. I used the online configurator and realized it was $400 difference between the 28 w/prem, cold and paddles and the 35 w/cold and paddles. Now open the floodgates of information as I began to disect each one to find the best fit for myself.
Since I had not driven the 35 I test drove it just over a week ago. I was more impressed. They didn't have a 28 to compare side by side and were closing early on a Saturday so they were going to call me when they got a 28 in stock and I would come by at night to see both and check out the xenons for myself.
Last night I went and drove the 28 with xenons first. I played around with the power seats a bit and I admit they can get that 100% 'perfect' feeling. I do come from a manual seat background so I wouldn't miss it since I've never had it but I wouldn't mind it if I had it either. The dealership does not have any non-powered seats I could test out, so here is my first question for those who have the experience.
How good do non-powered seats feel compared to powered? Is it hard to find a 95% perfect seating position with manual or is there such a gap in adjustments between the two that manual seats should never be bought?
First off in the 28 (Which was actually had the M package) I thought it somehow felt different than the 35 I drove the week before. I'm not sure what it was, but it didn't feel as good as the 35 I tested a weeke before (and not to spoil what I'll say later, but when I got in the 35 and was going 5mph it was like being home). Even sitting still or going 5mph it didn't seem right. Maybe the seat was too far back but I thought it was setup the same as the 35. Maybe it was the thicker M wheel, maybe the specific seat position, but just sitting in it I felt less confident/nimble than the 35. Maybe it's the lack of servo steering but the feeling was more that the car was more boxy/less or nimble/ready in relation to vehicles around it, but it was more than just handling, I was more aware of it and had to focus more on cars nearby to not sideswipe and so on (Not that I would have but my mind went there more easily) -- maybe it was just all in my head, or that it was the first test drive of the night -- but it seemed like something was off. Not sure it was the side bolsters in that M line that threw me off but I just can't put my finger on what was off. Strange... I wouldn't think an engines response could be the reason but maybe it can?
When driving the 28 there were 3 times when I stepped on the pedal I didn't like what happened. Once I noticed the 'hesitation' where it accelerates nicely, then seamed to pause for a fragment of a second, then proceede. My thought is that the hesitation is fairly minor, and wouldn't keep me from that transmission but it would be nice if the pause weren't there. I did however have two instances where going about 20mph and then pressed on the gas where I did not like what happened. Once at 20mph I pressed the pedal to the floor and it took about 3/4ths of a second to react before the car began to accelerate. This is an important test to me because if you were to suddenly see a problem and need to move, you want the power immediately with no pause. The second time I tried this I was going about 20mph as well and lifted my foot entirely off the gas pedal for two seconds and then floored it (In the sitatuion where you think you can just coast but then you realize you need to move quick and floor it). It took well over a second, easily 1.3-1.7 seconds before the car engine began to accelerate. I was completely shocked, I've never had any car pause this long or even half as long, it was really, really strange. It wasn't turbo lag either. My guess is that the transmission took its sweet time in deciding what gear to pick, maybe I was on the edge of two gears and it was going to say go into third, switched to third, then the car had slowed down .01mph and it decided, oops, no second. I've never had any car (turbo or not and I've driven several with turbo's too) that had as big of a pause when the pedal was floored as this particular time. Maybe it was a fluke but it was unreal. It worries me so here is my second question.
Have any of you experienced this large of a gap when flooring the gas? What is the cause?
So now on to the 35. Got in, played with the power seats as well to get the right position and a nice lumbar support (which I like). It was slightly cold and this 35 had the cold weather package so I turned on the heated steering wheel. I can tell you that if only the 28 or 35 had this feature, I would have my car picking finished -- and that shows you how far on the fence I am between the two. Went around the same test drive loop and I can tell you that I really like the 35 engine HP/response more, but honestly who wouldn't want more power and I wonder if that's just the speed greed talking and it should be put away (My wife quickly told the SA I'll be taking the 28 as soon as I accelerated for the freeway
She'd like me to have less HP
. The car felt good, maybe I had a better seating position or because this was the second test drive through where I had just been. I felt confident in the car, like it was ready for anything I threw at it. Maybe my subconsious is playing at me too knowing it's "The bigger BMW -35"
I tried to repeat the exact same gas pedal tests and there were different results. I did get a few half second pauses for power (acceptable/normal for any car) this time and I also had experiences where it just went, no gear change, just pure power which is obviously the best scenario. I assume this is because the engine is more powerful and there are fewer gears to pick from that if you request all the power it A: is less likely to pause to change gears and B: the engine can pull harder so it might not need to change gears to give you the requested instant acceleration. A couple times when I floored the gas I was expecting the 35 to downshift but it didn't, it just went and that was nice. In short I'd say it drove like most cars with 5-6 gears (duh) but it had the power to move at the same time. I'm also confused because I thought the shifting in the new 8spd trans was so quick it shouldn't be noticeable. I can say there did seem to be a huge difference, half second or more (but maybe the 'testing' I was doing isn't real-world or the car wasn't used to this and was confused) and I thought there shouldn't be that big of a difference between the two transmissions. I'm also refering to the point where you can first feel any acceleration, not the amount of acceleration. Simply comparing transmissions. So here's a third question.
Should the 8 speed transmission always be quicker than the 6 speed? And why could there appear to be such a major difference?
Other thoughts:
I did do a break test (40-0) on the 28 and it stopped more than fast enough IMO, I didn't do the break test on the 35 (wanted to but my wife gets car sick and half way through the test she asked me to drive gently for the rest of it). Since the 35 has bigger brakes I can only imagine it's the same or better, but better is always better when it comes to brakes for me.
I can't remember which car (I think it was the 28 M package actually) but it felt like it swayed/rolled more, not much at all but a few times I thought, "huh", ... strange...
I'm getting xenon but not for the xenon lights themselves, but for the adaptive lighting. This is worth it to me. Xenon you can see a little better but having lights that go where you're going is great. The cornering lights were nice but I'd want them to turn on at higher than 20mph, maybe this can be re-coded? 20MPH is nothing considering where I live there are lots of corners you take at over 20mph.
The rear-dimming mirror annoyed me at first, I had headlights behind me and it seemed to take 20+ seconds for it to remove the glare. The side view dimming mirrors are nice, but not a game changer. I think I'd prefer to be the one that controlled if the dimming mirror is on or off, not a sensor. I wonder how long the mirrors stay dimmed for, on slow winding roads around here it's easy to have headlights behind you come and go every 10-60 seconds and I'd get annoyed if the dimming turned on and off all the time. Anyone know how long it stays dimmed once it gets activated but looses lights behind you? I know it turns off when you go in revese but again I'm not sure how quick.
After all this, here is where I'm at.
I think going with the 28 I'd actually use some of the premium features and enjoy them, primarily the lumbar support but I don't _need_ it if the manual seats aren't horrid. Convience keys could come in handy but not often. If the dimming mirrors worked well those could be nice. I still think leather could be a downside if they aren't ideal for wet regions/snow, kids, and keeping the car 10-15 years.
I do think I'd enjoy the more powerful engine of the 35 though too. I like the performance wheels on the 35 and I actually wonder if I like servo more than just plain hydrolic steering, and bigger brakes could be good. But going with the 35 and also adding the premium package on the 35 wouldn't solve what I really think is making this choice difficult.
The 35 has the power but it comes at lower MPG and I'm not sure if the power warrents probably $4-10k in extra gas expense over the next 10-15 years. It's money, but I could spend that on another things as well. I will admit I am stretching just slightly for the X1. I do okay, but I don't make 6 figures. This might be the only BMW I ever have (or it could be one of many if life goes well) so in case part of my wants to get the 35 instead of the 28 (for the same ((well $400 more)) price) because any '35 is a little more respected than a '28. Or maybe someone just needs to slap me and tell me it doesn't matter. I want a safe car that handles well and is fun, hence a BMW in my opinion since they do make good handling cars with performance in mind. The X1 is almost identical to my current hatch in height, width, length, and capacity which I have liked, but 1000lb's more. It just has the handling, safety and more power that I need and liked during test drives. I've test driven Lexus, Subaru's (Gutless), an EX35, and audi (talk about being disconnected from the road) and none are near what I like about my car and the X1.
I've seen threads where people say they got a 328 and wish they got the 335 for more power and I wonder if that could be me. I also saw threads where people just got more frustrated at the world because they had 300hp and everyone drove poorly or too slow for them to use the power and it just made them more frustrated. Everyone wants more HP right? -- it's addicting. When I first drove the 28 it had more than enough I thought.
But I think I liked how the 35 didn't have to pause as often or much and pick gears too, but I'm not sure if my test drive was a fluke. I'm just can't decide. Estimating shows about $700 more a year on gas which adds up over 10-15 years.
As far as regrets, I think there could be times where if I got the 28 I'd say "I wish I had more power" but I could even do that with the 35 too, an M3 would be fun right? I'm only very minorly worried I could say that phrase and mean it. I think the only con of the 35 is the gas millage (And I hate that knowing future gas prices is impossible), but at times I wonder how different it is since the 28's MPG is really in question right now anyway... 5MPG, 3MPG? I guess there could be times where I'd say, "I wish I had power seats" or the convenience package if I'm carrying kids or groceries to the car but I live without it now.
Since I want to keep the car so long, I really wonder what really is up with the 28's transmission. I'd like to know if it pausing so long to pick a gear (not the hesitation quirk either but the 1.3s-1.7s pause) is a real issue. Test drives are so short and really don't give you a chance to understand the car in real world/daily driving so that's a bit why I'm here rambling and hoping someone else can shed some light based on their experiences. I think if the 28 truely was responsive to flooring the gas and is enough power for real-world driving I'd get that, enjoy the premium features and suck up my HP greed and enjoy the better MPG. If there is enough difference in pedal to the floor response difference between the two I'd probably go for the 35 and suck up having to fill up more often. My wifes Tiguan gets 21MPG, so I'd just be on par with her. I'd probably not get the premium though on the 35 to help offset the lost MPG and I just hope I don't miss the power seats and convience keys.
I live about 15 miles from the suburbs and work from home (but that could change into 40 minute commutes in stop and go traffic at any time). Driving would be 30% 55mph backroads, 30% freeway, and 40% city. I have a heavy foot and like to be the first one across the intersection and find more open spaces on road with no one ahead rather than sitting contently in clumped groups of cars.
I will be happy with either model, but I will also miss either features, MPG or horsepower regardless which one I pick. I come from a 130hp hatchback that's 2800lb's and nimble for sharp cornering and I liked that except when I had 2+ people in the car then it gutlessness shines when I accelerate and that annoys and worries me if I ever got into a dangerous situation.
But first and formost, this car is for safety first, not power. that's why I'm concerned that when I floor it there's power and not a 1.2s+ pause while the 28 transmission picks a gear.
Sorry for the rambling and probably repeating, it's tough to get my thoughts into words so anyone with some thoughts on my experiences can enlighten me. I'm excited about getting the X1 and will put the deposit down within 2 weeks and do a late spring ED pickup.