Ok let me start by acknowledging these seem like two highly unlikely cars to compare, but these two contenders are at the tippy top of my list for a new recreation car for next year;

Intended purposes of the car is for LONG summer road trips with sometimes questionable weather conditions and as a weekend track vehicle for some AutoSlalom and maybe Solo1 later on.

Main wants are basically a very comfortable car to drive and exceptional performance, a standard tranny is also a must. Not looking for something to aggressively styled as to keep myself out of trouble, that is why such cars as the STI & EVO are not on this list as well. I also don't want a convertible, I am a coupe man.

Things I don't really care about is rear seat or trunk space, not overly concerned with reliability (which both Audi & BMW suck for right now) as it will just be a summer car and have pretty low miles put on it.

The 0-60mph for these two cars is very close (I think 4.8s), the quarter mile again is close but favoring the BMW slightly, skid pad is only 0.2g apart, but again favoring the BMW.

I did look at the GTR as well, but dealers are tacking on 30-40K more for the price and I have a feeling it will be a target for police.

The Audi S5:
Pros: Luxery Interior, AWD, 255 stock tire width, lots of standard features included, R8 style headlamps, 365hp V8.
Cons: Pretty bad MPG, heavy, considerably more than the BMW


The BMW 135i:
Pros: Upscale Interior, Visibility out of this car is fantastic!, Bi-Xeon headlamps, very good MPG for a car with this much power, tunable for more power later on, invites to BMW track events, 300hp TwinTurbo-6.
Cons: Maybe not as comfortable, only 205 tire width, RWD is not so great for bad weather conditions, add nearly 30% to base price for features to match the Audi, general perception of the 1 series as a "cheap" BMW, recent recalls related to the fuel pump.


Anyway, post up your comments. My mind is still not made, MPG and AWD trade offs are a tough one to choose between.;) If it was you, what would you choose?

 

In my opinion the 1 series is far too expensive to be sold as BMW's "lowest class." Maybe if it were cheaper it'd be nice, but it's knocking on 3-series territory.

Also is mileage really that big of an issue when you're already shelling out so much? Plus I'm assuming "recreation car" doesn't mean daily and like a weekend showy car?

Also I don't know much about Audi, but BMW's reliability shouldn't be an issue nowadays.

 

I love the 1er, but id so take the Audi in a heart beat!
I have serious love for the A5/S5! Mmmmm!

 

Firstly, it's technically illeagal in Canada to sell a car above MSRP.

Now, from an automotive technician/mechanics point of view, the BMW is better. However, in my opinion, it's still the lesser of two evils. Plus, with BMW, the 3.5TT motor is not intercooled. If you drive it for more that 6-7 hours straight, it will overheat and it's not warrantied by the dealer. Audi's have always been konw for their unreliability. Looks absolutely gorgeous, but crap underneath. Personally, I'd wait for the new AWD G37. Better build quality, cheaper to maintain and cheaper to purchase. Plus, if you want to tune it, there will for sure be more options. Also, in that price range, you could also "kick it up a knotch" and grab a Porsche Cayman or Dodge Challenger (manual?)

If it was me and I was spending that kind of money, I'd go for a IS-F or C63, since I'm a sedan guy. More power, more versatility, More trunk space (I'm a goalie for hockey). But they're also auto's

 

the S5 without a doubt...

 

Tell that to CALGARY FISH CREEK NISSAN (just in case anybody does a search on google). Bunch of a$$holes, I read stores of people in Edmonton having the same problem with dealers there.

They are asking 120,000$ for a GTR, the retail in Canada is something like 81,000$. :mad:

Nice cars for sure, but neither come with a standard tranny.

True, but the BMW is the cheaper car here by about 15K to 20K after options in Canada. Everytime I add on the extras I end up around 52,000$ CAD.

Yeah this car would not be a daily driver, I already spaz when people ding my Fit. For touring, road trips in the summertime & also track use. Maybe once in a while for going out to a nice resteraunt where the Fit wouldn't fit in ;)

 

MSRP stands for Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price, there's nothing in that anagram that says it is the price for which it has to sell. I'd be pretty interested to see if there actually is a law that says a dealer has to sell a car for what the manufacturer suggests.

In any case I'd take the Bimmer.

 

^^Still 40,000$ over the MSRP is pretty unethical. That represents pure profit at the expense of exploiting somebody else.

The bimmer is pretty sweet, I saw a black one today on my walk home from work. Gives me goosebumps :p

Seems to be some major problems surfacing through, new rumors of the return of overheating engine that the first wave of 335i's experienced, serious fuel pump problems & now air bag problems.

 

Oh don't get me wrong I'm not for crazy markups.

Sucks about the BMWs though, on paper the 135i is such a sweet car hopefully the problems from the 335 don't carry over.

 

BMW's quality has gone down hill A LOT lately. Silly things like door handles breaking off to using water cooled alternators. ( which by the way are upwards of $1400!)

Audi has never been known for good quality. The only reason people keep driving them is because they've spend so much money on them already they don't want to get rid of them. "what else could go wrong?" They are absolutely gorgeous though. Love the looks of the Audi's.


Go with something Japanese man. Or, grab a Shelby. Fun to drive, worth a lot in the future and you'll love the sound of the V8 rumble. Wait for the new Camaro? Challenger? AWD G37s M6 is the way to go in my opinion.

 

Would be nice, but the engines are identical; N54 twin turbo

The first wave of 335i's all had serious overheating problems when they hit the track. Apparently they would go into limp mode after a couple of laps on a hot course.

From what I heard the solution was a bigger oil cooler, but now that more people are taking them out the overheating problems are starting to surface again.

That might be enough to sway me, I have had my share of overheating cars and it is no fun ;)

 

Yeah that Shelby look like a lot of fun! :D I have priced it out a few times, but I would get in WAAAYYYY too much trouble with that car. I would be staring at a judge after getting tickets for doing donuts in intersections :rotfl:

I like the G37, but performance specs are not so impressive; yeah it has just over 300hp, but it is heavy. The new styling doesn't do it for me either. I actually like the last generation of G35 coupe styling better. I can't really put my finger on it, but it has fallen out of my favor.

Same goes for the 350Z, great car... but I know somebody who has a supercharged one and I hate being second best :p

 

i agree with tyler: the a5/s5 fo shizzle.

the 135 is a great car, but its no 2002, and maybe no one would car if bmw hadn't touted it as such.

and while i don't mind the bimmers looks, the a5 has it owned all over the place as far as style is concerned, so much in fact, that the performance benefit you'd have with the bimmer is a moot point imo


fit of rage has stated that audi's have done horribly as far as reliability goes, but they have come leaps and bounds on the most recent generations. some people just don't know how let go of the past.

get the audi sugar. get it!

 

i know its not on the list.. but IS-F! but its a lil more than the 40k bimmer

 

yeah the is-f is not that bad either...

 

a5/s5. no comparison here.

 

Would consider, but it is really heavy and I don't think it comes with a manual tranny either.

lol, I think I just about died laughing at your new Avatar :rotfl:

Yeah the more I look into it the more the Audi comes out as the superior car. The big advantage the BMW has is gas mileage; the BMW gets 17/25 (City/Highway) while the Audi gets only 14/21.

But this isn't about gas mileage, I have my Fit as my DD from now on and it creams both of them in that category :D

What the Audi looses in MPG it gains in traction, superior tire width, creature comforts and style. The performance between them is pretty negligible, at least with the V8 you get some good old naturally aspirated reliability. Seems like even stock FI setups are the first to fail once you hit the track and really push a car.

Thanks for the comments guys!

 

Seriously dude, trust me. DO NOT GETAN AUDI/VW!!! They're horrible cars. you might as well take your chances with an overheating BMW. At my shop, we have one and only one rule:

"NO VW/AUDi's on Fridays!"

Avoid anything from VAG like the plauge!

 

It is a tough call, I have been hearing the N54 engine (335i & 135i) is only good for about 60 minutes of track time tops before overheating issues start setting in.

The S5 is supposed to be a brand new platform for Audi, have you guys had any in for technical problems yet?

 

i've had 1 S5 and 1 A5. The S5 was ok and the A5 had an Evap code that had to do with teh charcol canister. THere was also a minor coolant leak. (like all of themdo)The S5 only had 5000km or so and teh A5 had 13000km.

I've heard of idle issues too. Roughness.