dcaron999
New member
Im fortunate enough to have in my possesion a 2011 135i tuned for the track, and a 2011 X3 35i as a daily driver. Bought both vehicles pre-owned, like I did for all my previous 6 or 7 BMW's over the last 15 years. I do a fair amount of DIY - a must when you are a HPDE instructor, and want to cut down on costs.
When the 135i came into my life in 2013, it's purpose was to be used at the track first and foremost. It's not without some small flaws as a track car, but it has a relatively nice and affordable potential for performance modifications. My 135i gets used on the track mostly during the warm seasons here in Quebec (April to October).
The 135i is entering it's 5 year as dual-duty (80% track/20% street ratio). What has blown me away with this car, is the relenteless performance of the N55 engine, especially with a stage-2 tune. The thing will not quit! Keep in mind that I take meticulous care of maintenance items such as engine oil, manual transmission oil, and differential oil changes. The engine oil gets changed about once a month during HPDE season.
This brings me to the inspiration on how I got my pre-owned, fully-loaded 2011 X3 35i, about a month ago. With the track record and my very good experiences with the 135i, I had to opt for the N55 turbo-6cyl engine over the N20 turbo-4cyl. I personally think that there are no replacement for BMW straight 6 cylinders engines, either N/A or Turbo's. It is the soul of the BMW brand, and what gives it character, and uniqueness. No disrespect to 28i owners, but I am not as passionate about this engine, the sound it makes, and refinement it offers.
The 6 cylinder N55 engine does it for me, and it has been put through torture tests at the track for more than 4 years, and just deliverers. The trick is maintenance. Dont be afraid to swap your engine oil as a DIY, and do it often.
Besides the N55 engine in the F25 X3 35i, the next thing that seduced me was the wonderful ZF 8-speed automatic transmission. This statement is from a three-pedal, manual-tranmission track rat crack head... ;-) The ZF 8 speed is just fantastic in how smooth, how quick it shifts gears, and how easily it's personality can be changed via the normal, sport, and sport-plus settings in the M-sport pack X3. It's behaviour and performance is very close to a dual-clutch automatic found in more unique and exotic cars. How cool is that!
Last but not least. EDC. This just blows me away how at the the touch of a button, everything tightens up, and becomes almost as sharp a sport 3-series sedan, or back to highway cruising plush mode.
Over and out. Just wanted to share the love ... ;-)
When the 135i came into my life in 2013, it's purpose was to be used at the track first and foremost. It's not without some small flaws as a track car, but it has a relatively nice and affordable potential for performance modifications. My 135i gets used on the track mostly during the warm seasons here in Quebec (April to October).
The 135i is entering it's 5 year as dual-duty (80% track/20% street ratio). What has blown me away with this car, is the relenteless performance of the N55 engine, especially with a stage-2 tune. The thing will not quit! Keep in mind that I take meticulous care of maintenance items such as engine oil, manual transmission oil, and differential oil changes. The engine oil gets changed about once a month during HPDE season.
This brings me to the inspiration on how I got my pre-owned, fully-loaded 2011 X3 35i, about a month ago. With the track record and my very good experiences with the 135i, I had to opt for the N55 turbo-6cyl engine over the N20 turbo-4cyl. I personally think that there are no replacement for BMW straight 6 cylinders engines, either N/A or Turbo's. It is the soul of the BMW brand, and what gives it character, and uniqueness. No disrespect to 28i owners, but I am not as passionate about this engine, the sound it makes, and refinement it offers.
The 6 cylinder N55 engine does it for me, and it has been put through torture tests at the track for more than 4 years, and just deliverers. The trick is maintenance. Dont be afraid to swap your engine oil as a DIY, and do it often.
Besides the N55 engine in the F25 X3 35i, the next thing that seduced me was the wonderful ZF 8-speed automatic transmission. This statement is from a three-pedal, manual-tranmission track rat crack head... ;-) The ZF 8 speed is just fantastic in how smooth, how quick it shifts gears, and how easily it's personality can be changed via the normal, sport, and sport-plus settings in the M-sport pack X3. It's behaviour and performance is very close to a dual-clutch automatic found in more unique and exotic cars. How cool is that!
Last but not least. EDC. This just blows me away how at the the touch of a button, everything tightens up, and becomes almost as sharp a sport 3-series sedan, or back to highway cruising plush mode.
Over and out. Just wanted to share the love ... ;-)