Honda vs. BMW... choices...

[Renegade_]

Alright... new car time coming up... And Im looking for some things I might have missed. AWD and RWD are all viable, but RWD is just oh so fun.

Budget is around 12-13k

Right now I am torn between S2000 and a 330CI... Who here has experience with both of these? Is 12-13k enough to get a facelifted 3 series (Ill entertain 325CI...)? How bad is the rear subframe issue?

Anything I should know about S2000?

[mx931]

your gonna have trouble finding a 330ci and a s2k in that price range with decent miles....if you go with the bmw you can find one its just gonna have a lot of miles and you will need part after part...and lets be honest, german parts= $$$$. We have a 335 and used to have an m3, but i still enjoy driving my buddys s2k from work. 2 seats vs 4 (or5)? another thing to look at....but i feel like a 325 ahh youll get bored of pretty quickly. An s2k, you wont get bored of, same with a 330 though.
its basically your call, the s2ks a honda....i mean reliable is what your gettin, bmw is a whole nother animal. Just my opinion

[Chris B.]

Back in 2008 I was looking at a used 330Ci ZHP and a used S2000 along with a few other cars. I decided that I needed 4 seats, so the S2000 was out. The 330Ci is a wonderful car, but maintenance costs will probably be higher than the S2000.

I was also looking at a new WRX, Mazdaspeed3, 350Z, GTI, C30, Mustang GT, and a used G35 coupe . Those cars new were the same price as a lower mileage used S2000 or 330Ci ZHP at the time and the G35 coupe was about the same peice as the 330Ci with the ZHP package.

If you need more than 2 seats on a regular basis and have the money for maintenance, a 330Ci is the obvious choice between the two.

[ZX88]

bmw parts = expensive
honda parts = cheap.

[twastheglow]

Originally Posted by mx931

your gonna have trouble finding a 330ci and a s2k in that price range with decent miles....

...UNLESS you plan on traveling to get a car. There are deals out there, unfortunately, in my experience, they're never local to me. lol

Originally Posted by ZX88

bmw parts = expensive
honda parts = cheap.

Indeed!

I'd rather drive a BMW than a Honda (not that I don't appreciate Honda). But I guess that's pretty apparent by my choice of vehicle.

[twastheglow]

Take a flight to Atlanta...

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...&highlight=330

[Renegade_]

I can travel... Im just seeing how viable my choices are at this time. I mean, I would prefer lower miles, and if I can find a 325ci for a proper price I'd jump on that too... I need some coupe-ness. I think I might be able to stretch my budget to a little over 14k...

If there are other nicer rwd sport coupes out there point me in a direction... no RX8s. What are the chances of finding a facelifted 325ci in that price range? I have been browsing websites, and there are cars in that price range, but I haven't found that sweet spot yet... either they are like 10k with 125k on em, or 16 with 40k on em. Its annoying as hell...

[sleeper15]

if it were me, i'd go s2k. but, i'm biased towards honda's.

but, don't know if you're married or have a g/f, but if you don't, and you want to pick up chicks, bmw all the way. You can own a beat up, base model bmw that runs like crap and different color panels, and the girls will still flock to you, cause its a BMW.

i had a buddy sell his s2k cause chicks kept thinking it was a miata, or when he try to impress them, they say "But yeah, it's still a honda." then he bought a beat up 3-series, and said chicks love his car, even though it ran like crap.

[twastheglow]

Originally Posted by Renegade_

I can travel... Im just seeing how viable my choices are at this time. I mean, I would prefer lower miles, and if I can find a 325ci for a proper price I'd jump on that too... I need some coupe-ness. I think I might be able to stretch my budget to a little over 14k...

If there are other nicer rwd sport coupes out there point me in a direction... no RX8s. What are the chances of finding a facelifted 325ci in that price range? I have been browsing websites, and there are cars in that price range, but I haven't found that sweet spot yet... either they are like 10k with 125k on em, or 16 with 40k on em. Its annoying as hell...

Check out www.roadfly.com and go on the classifieds on www.bimmerforums.com.

[jspek]

What about a 350z? If you search hard enough, you'll find plenty of deals. When I was looking for a car after crashing mine, I almost got a s2k for 11 with 67k miles on it.

[lawlhonda]

i say s2k cause there oh so pretty.

[twastheglow]

In my opinion, search to see what kind of average prices you're looking at for both cars. If they're similar (and I think they will be), decide what you're looking for in a car. These are two completely different vehicles in many different ways. I would also suggest driving each to get a feel for the driving dynamic of the car and see what you like more. Everyone on here is going to have their own opinion which won't necessarily help you in your decision...not to mention most of us will be biased towards one or the other.

[Renegade_]

Oh I know, but I love it when people voice their opinion and disagree with me...

But here is the reason I want a 325ci:



And here is the reason why I want an S2000:



Both cars can be so damn classy in so simple of ways... Im really torn. Ive driven an S2k and it feels like a playstation on wheels. But how BMWs drive just cannot be replicated imo. The S2k is like a midship chassis, but the BMW has a straight 6 and WAY more torque than the S2k... which is good because I plan on doing a rear diff on whichever one I buy so I can slide the thing on the weekends...

[turboman808]

Even though 95% of the time you can get by with a 2 seater convertible, at some point you will need a bigger car. Unless you have more then one car I would get the BMW.

If you have another car then it's time for a roadster my friend. Roadsters are just alot of fun. I have 3 so they must be fun.

[Renegade_]

Ill need a bigger car in the future... but as far as I am concerned the only people I am going to be driving around is me and a friend, or me and the girl im with... Im NOT a taxi service.

325CI... I need to find one, it seems more viable than a 330.

[jpalamar]

Used GTO is in your price range and it will be more pleasure to drive then most cars in the price range. RWD, lots of power, functional back seats. Minumal maintnace needed but the aftermarket isn't huge and upgrades cost a bit more.. but also deliver alot more.

I would never buy German anything. Overengineered and they cost too much to keep on the road. S2k is nice, but I you won't find one with less then 70k miles for that price and it will be 10 years old. Good car or not, I wouldn't drop that kinda money on a car that is that old.

[O2SpecV]

heres two nice ones
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum....php?t=1475514

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum....php?t=1479373

[i_ride_fieroGT]

There 2 very diffrent cars and you really cant compare tioe 2 to eachother. only ways are

BMW (from my experiance) not reliable expensive on insurance hard to fix. Most caces can only be fixed by the dealership.

Honda reliable cheap to fix.. able to fix yourself. huge aftermarket following still going to be a killer on insurance. plus in your price range your going to be lucky if you find either of your choices with low miles and that hasent had the crap beaten out of it. not a real problem with age though. i just dropped 11K on a jeep and its 8 years old but low miles and never off roaded. also has a huge history to them. Its not bad if you buy a model that hase a long standing following. S2K's have not been around all that long.

[twastheglow]

Originally Posted by i_ride_fieroGT

There 2 very diffrent cars and you really cant compare tioe 2 to eachother. only ways are

BMW (from my experiance) not reliable expensive on insurance hard to fix. Most caces can only be fixed by the dealership.

Honda reliable cheap to fix.. able to fix yourself. huge aftermarket following still going to be a killer on insurance. plus in your price range your going to be lucky if you find either of your choices with low miles and that hasent had the crap beaten out of it. not a real problem with age though. i just dropped 11K on a jeep and its 8 years old but low miles and never off roaded. also has a huge history to them. Its not bad if you buy a model that hase a long standing following. S2K's have not been around all that long.

I have yet to take any of my BMW's to the dealership. I do all the work on them myself. They are definitely not more difficult to work on than the next car. I would say parts are a bit more expensive than your "average vehicle", but if you know that going into it, it's not that big of a deal. I do however agree with the insurance aspect to a degree. They do tend to be slightly more expensive than your "average car" again...unless you compare it specifically to the S2000...which will also have higher rates.

[MPowerKai]

Originally Posted by twastheglow

I have yet to take any of my BMW's to the dealership. I do all the work on them myself. They are definitely not more difficult to work on than the next car. I would say parts are a bit more expensive than your "average vehicle", but if you know that going into it, it's not that big of a deal. I do however agree with the insurance aspect to a degree. They do tend to be slightly more expensive than your "average car" again...unless you compare it specifically to the S2000...which will also have higher rates.

Actually I find BMW parts to be average among european cars. My E46 M3 was cheaper to insure than my S2000.