Extended Test Drives
- Thread starter fastwunz
- Start date
The sales guy was encouraging me to give it a proper boot full when I tested mine, I wasn't expecting that
The sales guy was encouraging me to give it a proper boot full when I tested mine, I wasn't expecting that
When I took the S4 for a test drive I told the sales guy that I was gonna give it a fair boot. The test drive lasted roughly an hour, down some twisty A and B roads. Never overly quick on the straights, but keeping the boot in on the corners. He was surprised at how capable the S4 was by the end of it.
By comparison, when I took the M4 and M135i out back to back, the roads were damp, so couldn't really get the power down in the M4. That's probably why I was personally leaning more towards the M135i out of the two, because it felt more useable day to day, to me.
We got a 2016 M135i, was hoping it would be better in the wet than my Aston, but the lack of LSD means that it's not.
The 135 is a fun little car though. How are you getting on with it in general? I'm finding that it's a lot of car for the money- very little comes even close in the hot hatch market. Did you go for the 306hp or 320hp model? Auto or manual?
Last edited:
Man of Honour
- Joined
- 11 Dec 2002
- Posts
- 10,908
- Location
- Darkest Norfolk
When we got the wifes evoque we'd been dealing with the Norwich Land Rover branch, but they couldn't provide more than an hour accompanied test drive. Phoned up the Kings Lynn branch and said something along the lines of "were pretty much ready to buy, but want to do an extended test drive, what can you do" they gave us a top of the line model autobiography for the weekend while we left the wife's ratty old mazda6 with them....
I didn't go for one. I was really looking to see what the 340i was like, as a potential replacement to the 530d (same as the S4 when I went to look), but they didn't have any in, so let me loose with the 135i, as it's a similar engine, although obviously in a smaller car. They let me take the M4 for a spin regardless of me telling them that it wouldn't be suitable, but was curious to see what they were like. So they just let me go for a spin.
Ah fair enough. The 340i is probably a better buy. We needed something practical, hence going for the 135i (and with it being cheaper).
You must have gone new/nearly new with the 340i. Did you get much of a discount if you bought new, or did you go used? We considered an M140i, but just found it to be too much of a loading over something a year old once all of the options were added. Does the 340i have the B58 engine too?
I didn't get any of them. I was just considering one. I was wanting something more fun than the 530d that was getting replaced, so I was looking at PX-ing it for something like the 340i or an S4 (or the Disco (for a different kind of fun) at one point, and a DB9 was also considered briefly). In the end though, I decided to go a different way, save some money, and get a car I had wanted for a decade (much to the apparent amusement of some on here), so bought my Edition 30, as it came up locally, and at the right price, with the right spec.