Convertibles have always had a bit of a stigmatism surrounding them in terms of femininity, noise, handling and comfort. Not so is the case with the new BMW 335i Convertible. Agent008 and myself had a chance to drive this new ‘vert for a week and came away from it thinking there really isn’t much we’d want to change on the car. We got to push this car to its limits and back again out in the desert roads of Arizona, never once being disappointed in driving a convertible through these windy roads. As the fastest 3 series to date, and BMW’s first hardtop convertible in history, we are positive no one else will be disappointed either.
With this new hardtop retractable roof being the first ever produced by BMW, it is quite obvious they did their research on it, and went through many revisions. The tight tolerances they were able to achieve(we’re talking ½” from one moving part to another) shows off just how much technical engineering went into layout out this design. What’s even more amazing, is there is still trunk space left even with the roof folded up into it. Not exactly a ton of space, but certainly more than enough for 2-3 bags of groceries, or your golf shoes, a broken putter and maybe a sleeve of balls. OK, so grocery shopping still has to be done with your X5, but this car was made to drive, not sit outside the Whole Foods. Under 60mph, wind buffeting was very low, even without the wind diffuser setup over the rear seats. Both myself and Agent008 could carry on a conversation at normal speaking levels, even while winding it out down the highway. Having had my fair share of convertible drives, this was a pleasant surprise. Perhaps not as big of a surprise was how well the hardtop did with keeping in the heat with the top up. Even though we were in the desert, it was still the winter and the weather was 40s-50s depending on the time of the day. With the top up, it warmed up just like the coupe, and never had that draftiness you felt with BMW’s older ragtop 3 series. A big bonus for us Northeasters, this is now a four season car.
Hardtop functionality is totally hands off, there are no latches and no levers to push or twist. Simply use the button next to the iDrive, or use the key fob to complete the transition from coupe to convertible. Be warned though, our biggest “disappointment” and only problem we ran into with the car was with the key fob control over the roof movement. We found it to be very quirky with limited range. US Spec cars are required to have the driver within an arms length of the car in order to active the roof(up or down), but we found it to work erratically around the car, and often we had to be right up against the window. These were pre-production cars and were assured any type of issue like this would be resolved before production. European Spec owners need not worry, they have the ability to use the key fob from up to 40 feet away. US buyers can thank their “we can’t trust you to watch your kids around this moving roof/guillotine” lobbyist for that one.
This was my first drive with the new 335 engine and all I can say is wow. A 300HP, 300lb-ft torque, 0-60 in 5.5 seconds, twin turbo inline 6 cylinder unleaded premium gas guzzling rocket. Mash the throttle at any speed and at any RPM and the revs just climb, and climb fast. I own a 2001 BMW 330i, which is “quick”, but this 335 is “fast”. I’m talking E46 M3 fast. Instant power, zero turbo lag, flat torque “curve” and geared just right make this a man’s man kind of convertible, perhaps a first in automotive history(not including those cars that come out of Italy of course). Even the gearbox felt smooth, well, ok, not smooth, but noticeably easier to maneuver then the E46 transmission which is notoriously known as a horribly shifting tranny. The clutch was light, but with a definitive pick up point, and it seemed to grab instantly, where as the E46 suffered from some sort of clutch valve which would moderate just when and how fast the clutch would engage. A very annoying aspect most enthusiasts sought out to remove. So E46 owners looking to move up, rejoice, this thing finally shifts like every other car out there. We didn’t drive the automatic, as Agent001 has it this week, so check for his review soon. Another thing to rejoice about, the DSC is now less invasive. It no longer engages when you’re trying to pull out into traffic, totally cutting off your power. It no longer randomly engages going over bumps or potholes, and it no longer makes itself present when you’re just trying to have *a little fun*. It acts more like the M3 DSC. It will show up to save your ass when you need it, and let you be otherwise, bravo BMW, from everyone who has suffered the fate of traction control kicking in when you REALLY want just the opposite, we thank you.
Perhaps the success of the new DSC has to do with the new suspension as well – this car is glued to the road. You might not have seen it in the video (we would like to keep our good standing with BMW ?), but we tried our hardest to test out the limits of the suspension. Every time we thought we had pushed the car enough, the suspension would just keep on...suspensioning. Well ok I made up that word, but I think it’s appropriate, this convertible has literally raised the bar in terms of stiffness, low body roll and lateral grip. The body is incredibly stiff, but the suspension is not at all harsh, the car emits very little body roll, even without the added stiffness of having a roof and when pushed to the real limits, the car understeers in a very controllable manner. Now I know this is a convertible, which really aren’t track cars, but this one just screams to be driven hard. The suspension is sporty when needed and soft when not, built-in under steer will keep you from becoming a permanent fixture in a guardrail and the Active Steering makes it simply enjoyable to drive, fast or slow. And there is no concern of blowing a tire as all 335i Convertibles come with runflats. These runflats provide a nice sense of security, and no noticeable increase in road noise or harshness. Runflats have come a long way in the last 3 years, and it is obvious the suspension engineers design the suspension with these tires in mind.
Moving on into the inside of the car, the first thing I noticed when I sat in the drivers seat was the added knee room. When I get into my E46, 9 out of 10 times, my knee bumps up against the dash. I’m 6’3”, so taller than the average driver, but the added space was well appreciated in the front seat, although I would not want to be in the back seat, ever. We drove a LOT of miles in this car, 220 to be exact, which is a lot for a press drive. Never once did I stiffen up or feel the need to reposition myself in the seat; things I find I am often doing in my car. The seats are very comfortable and offer the standard array of fine adjustments. Ingress/Egress with the top up was on par for other coupe type cars, with the top down, getting in and out was pleasantly easy for this tall driver. Rear seat ingress/egress was tough no matter what position the roof was in, consider this car a 2-seater with extra cargo room.
On the electronics side, our car was outfitted with the full deal, navigation, iDrive, Bluetooth, iPod hookup, and none of it I found to be overly complicated, however it does take some time to become comfortable with it. The menu system isn’t as intuitive as others(Infiniti I find has a very intuitive system) and some features like changing the map display were hidden 4-5 levels deep into the navigation. However, the features of the navigation system far exceed the E46 – a lot more map options and tons more points of interest have been included. Better zooming and map positioning control have been integrated, although I worry about the older crowd adapting to it quickly. I think after about 2 weeks of owning the car, you’d know all of its ins and outs, but having only been able to work with it a few hours, I don’t think it’s appropriate to say whether or not the new system has any major flaws. I will give this one warning, watch out for the cup holders, top heavy drinks have a tendency to go flying out of the holder in high-g turns.
One of the most appealing attributes of this car is obviously the fact it has a hardtop. Not only does the hardtop provide a quieter ride, it also helps the car keep its coupe-like appearance. With the top up, it’s very hard to distinguish it from the 335i Coupe, with the top down it screams “let’s floor it and have some fun!” and not “I’m a chick car, this is my first time, go easy on me”. The looks back up the engine hidden under the angular hood. An aggressive front fascia, a ground hugging suspension drop, big-wide tires and a shallow wheel gap all help this car maintain its masculinity, all while still keeping the look of elegance that will attract female buyers.
Is it a car you buy for yourself, or a car your girlfriend buys but you somehow end up driving all the time, kind of like her old Mini? Too masculine to have owned a convertible in the past? Too worried about how cold it will be in the Winter? Well, we think this car is going to change a lot of people’s minds; it drives like a coupe, accelerates like an M, is fun like a convertible and still feels like a BMW. We think this hardtop is going to change a lot of people’s opinions about convertibles, just like it has ours. This one is a winner, nothing in its segment compares.
Watch Our Video Review of this Car