|
One point that has not been raised here is value. The base 230 is undoubtedly the best value. Adding options is never a good move in terms of value, because they add little or nothing to the resale value, if you own the car, and you pay for them over the term of the lease, if you lease. A loaded 230 brings you up close to a base 240, but with much greater depreciation. By that logic, a more or less base 240 is also a good value, as is an M2, since there are few if any options to be had.
I keep cars as long as I can, so I want a car that I enjoy. The first BMW I ever owned was a stripper 325 that I picked up at the factory. I drove it and loved it for a dozen years. During that period, we had a 5 and a few other 3s, none of them nearly as good. I ordered a 235 when the 325 went into serious decline, with a few more bells and whistles (I had grown a dozen years older) and the ZFAT, because it was so good. I love this car and hope to own it for as long as I owned the 3, if they still let me drive in ten years.
Let's agree to not argue over which car is better. If you want to argue value for money, that is a different story.
|