Instrumented Test
TESTED
Deciding to buy a 4-series coupe over the 3-series sedan is not exactly a rational decision. The four-door is more practical, less expensive, offers the same powertrains, and is, at its core, the same as the coupe. Buying a coupe then, and really, any coupe, is a vote for style. It’s an emotional purchase, a victory of passion over logic. It’s also a selfish choice, one that says you’re okay with making rear-seat riders a bit less comfortable.
Once you’ve decided to scratch your 4-series itch, another conundrum awaits. Should you buy the more fuel-efficient 240-hp 428i or the 300-horse 435i? Opting for the 435i costs $5500 more, and based solely on the performance numbers, the 428i makes a compelling case for saving the money. Equipped with the eight-speed automatic, a 428i we tested hit 60 mph in 5.3 seconds and chased through the quarter-mile in 14.1 seconds at 99 mph. Add an estimated 0.3 second to that 0-to-60 time for the manual version (a 328i manual managed the 0-to-60 sprint in 5.6 seconds).
Six Therapy
A 435i with a six-speed manual was barely quicker than the 428i automatic. In testing, our six-speed manual 435i managed a 5.2-second run to 60 with the quarter falling in 13.7 seconds at 105 mph. Although we haven’t tested an automatic 435i, we fully expect it will match the 335i automatic’s time of 4.6 seconds to 60. But life isn’t just about performance numbers, which is why we’d go for the slower 435i with the rewarding and involving six-speed manual. Sure, the shifter can feel a little rubbery, but it snicks into gear with just the right amount of force and without a fight, every time.
BMW’s 2.0-liter turbo four is arguably the best four-cylinder engine available today. But the 3.0-liter turbo six is one of the best engines available in any sub-$100,000 car—period. It’s as smooth, powerful, and quiet as a turbine wrapped in a down comforter. To select the six might not be logical, but to sit behind it is to witness greatness. Whether it’s idling or revving to its 7000-rpm redline, the engine never displays any signs of stress. We’d actually like to hear a little more noise from it, and there’s a brief whiff of lag that you’ll notice if you’ve just driven a naturally aspirated or supercharged car.
Spending the extra dough for a 435i manual, when you could have an almost-as-quick 428i automatic, doesn’t make sense until you actually sit in a 435i and work the engine. When that happens, it’s impossible to resist the temptation of the machinery. Logic loses, and you’ll suddenly figure out a way to find the $5500: “Sorry, kids, we’re going to Sandusky, Ohio, instead of Hawaii this year.”
Touchy Feely
We’ve written a lot about the light and relatively numb electric power steering in the 3-series, and the system in the 4-series is better but isn’t drastically different. Light and slow to respond when you first turn the wheel into a corner, the 435i almost feels as if it were skating through corner entry, even though there is 0.90 g of grip available on the skidpad. Our test car came with the $1000 Dynamic Handling package, which bundles variable-ratio steering with electronically adjustable shocks. The unbearable lightness of the steering is mitigated when you switch from Comfort to Sport mode by pushing the switch next to the shifter, but the steering vagueness and a feeling of being disconnected from the front wheels remains. Sport mode also quickens the throttle response and firms up the shocks. The result is a 435i that feels more awake. Yet every time you restart the car, the 435i defaults to Xanax mode, which necessitates a push of the Sport button to reawaken the beast. You eventually adjust to the lack of feel, but all it takes is a short drive in an old 335i coupe or an Audi S5 to realize what you’re missing.
What you can’t miss are the fetching flanks of the 435i. Bearing the $3100 M Sport package like our example, the 435i looks as if it could be the new M4. Paint one Estoril blue, a light blue metallic, and you’ll find yourself giving it a second or third take as you walk away from it in a parking lot. Second looks only happen when you’re emotionally involved, and that’s more likely to happen when you’ve chosen to drive a coupe.
