Quote:
Originally Posted by upsidedownfunnel
Quote:
Originally Posted by mcjohnsonsg
I think their conclusion rather misses the point. The review makes it clear that M340 is the better car in most aspects that people care about, including practicality. With that as a baseline, I think the price difference is not as relevant as they make it out to be. I think for most people, if you can afford the better car, you buy the better car. You don't sit down and think "is that car worth $12k more than the other one"! After all, there is no way you could say a Ferrari is $150k better than an M3, but if someone can afford the Ferrari, 9 times out of 10 they will buy it.
|
lol, we're not talking about Ferraris here. In this price range, people are still thinking about value. Shoot, even while shopping for $150k cars, I know people that hem and haw over $1000 options.
The price difference between the cars is about 20%. That's significant in the entry luxury market. Also, as the review states, the G70 has things that it does better as well. The review says the main reason the BMW won was because it drove a bit better. Let's be honest, most people even on these forums ask questions like "should I get the M340i or the X3 M40i?", most people even on the forums don't care about driving dynamics. |
I can see where you are coming from, but the BMW beat the G70 in lots of ways... quality of the engine, performance, practicality, interior quality, etc. and in many of these areas the G70 didn't seem to be very close to the M340.
The G70 only really beat the BMW on ride, and that is fairly subjective. What is a stiff ride to some, is not to others. When you really read the details of the review, the M340 won convincingly, and a 20% price difference seems reasonable based on that.
At the end of the day, they are both great cars at their price point. Whichever one you choose, you would probably be happy. I guess my point about "people will buy the better car if they can afford it" is more relevant to enthusiasts than the broader buying public. To me, the price difference is well worth it for the much better engine, the significantly better performance, and practicality.