[Xiaoxi]

Disclaimer: I have never owned an M car.

With that said, I truly love my 235. I was just on the edge of "really liking it", but after the Fabspeed exhaust upgrade bringing out the sound, it's exceptional. I think the suspension is a great compromise between daily road use and precision handling. Fair to say that the stock M235i is "pretty good", and with some customization, you can take it to the next level in handling, power, noise theatrics, etc.

The one thing I really don't get is the complaint about numb steering. The steering, though not the most communicative, is far from numb. For comparison, I daily drive an NB miata with a Nardi Torino wheel and de-powered steering. By far the best steering feel I've experienced, even better than M cars I've tried. I don't feel that the 235 is egregiously far behind.