It's Official: G37 Trounces BMW’s 335i

[AZhitman]

zerothread/260025

[HashiriyaS14]

Am I a big dork for being most curious about what the Buick ("most fun since GNX") is?

I figured the G37 would walk all over the 335i, although I'd be interested to see how each car would fare against the other with a $2,000 mod budget. Vishnu-chipped and turbobacked 335's are quick.

[iwantans13]

I'd take either...

[AZhitman]

Am I a big dork for being most curious about what the Buick ("most fun since GNX") is?

As a HUGE Grand National fan, I'm looking forward to reading that as well.

[dickie]

if its anything like the other newish buicks in the lineup, it will be heavy, ugly and endorsed by tiger woods. i dont see how that could be anything close to the grand national...

[nametakennow]

Buick... interesting car? Wow... It'd be cool if they did something completely mad like the GNX again.

Anyway, Greg, I'm not sure "trounce" is the right word, but it's a very interesting victory. I think that, BMW oil issue aside, it may still have gone to the G because of the difference in price tag for what you get. Mainly, that BMW seems to think that their electronic trickery can replace a true mechanical limited slip on a car with that kind of power. That's just one of the things from the article that made it sound like the G was the better driver's car.

This only adds to my want to drive a G. Of course, I'd be interested in driving a 35 and a 37 back to back to see if the changes are as dramatic as magazines have made them out to be.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

Mainly, that BMW seems to think that their electronic trickery can replace a true mechanical limited slip on a car with that kind of power.

I thought the same thing... and yet the Bimmer beat the G in acceleration... Maybe their electronic magic has some soundness to it?

[nametakennow]

In a straight line, it did, but in the twisties they talked about how the gizmos had to come on in corner exits with a light mist on the road. I guarantee that's shaving some of the fun and the speed out of every corner.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

Very true. I bet the more rear weight bias helped too. I also noticed that its peak torque is at a diesel-like 1400 Rpm

[nametakennow]

That twin-turbo engine is damn cool, there's no doubt about it. And yes, BMW's obsession with practically equal weight distribution probably helps the BMW in the acceleration department.

However, as cool as that engine is, I think the VQ37 would be a very different, and possibly more fun, experience. The BMW engine is relentless and has the flattest torque curve I've ever felt. The VQ, from all accounts I've seen, is similarly relentless (I want to say the powerband is supposed to get fat around 2000rpm all the way to redline, someone brought this up in another thread), but just keeps getting better as you wind it up further and further. The BMW just makes a little bit more noise, though it never wails, and you never get the sensation that it's making any more power as the revs go up.

Certainly with the way technology is going (CVTs and whatnot), more cars will probably start to seem like that - constant power but never any sensation of gaining power. Call me an old fart (jeez, I turn 20 next month), but I like that sensation that the engine is running up the revs eagerly and getting more feverish as it goes.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

So true... With engines like that, the # of Rpm's has a direct result on the smile on my face, and thats what its really all about.

Then again stomping the pedal and immediately taking off is pretty cool too.

[cmfireman]

Certainly with the way technology is going (CVTs and whatnot), more cars will probably start to seem like that - constant power but never any sensation of gaining power. Call me an old fart (jeez, I turn 20 next month), but I like that sensation that the engine is running up the revs eagerly and getting more feverish as it goes.

I agree here. I test drove an 07' Tundra a few weeks ago, and it just felt boring. When I put it to the floor, it just smoothly and evenly accelerated and didn't snap my head back. It was quiet and rode very smooth so there was no sense of speed. I swear it felt like I was going 45, and I looked down at the speedo to 100mph!

Not saying all these are bad traits, and would be warmly welcomed in a dd, but I enjoy something oldschool that snaps your head back to the passengers seat and roasts the tires when you punch the throttle.

[nametakennow]

I have to wonder if there's a way of compromising. The VQ37 apparently has a similarly huge powerband, but is reported to be much happier with revs.

I wonder if, using complex variable valve lift and duration systems, you couldn't give it both. A seamless power delivery that is both solid and economical, and then, on a different cam setting (this could be electronically controlled), unleash the beast within. It seems to me that the technology is already in place, and I seem to recall hearing of it on certain vehicles, but what ones and to what degree I don't know. Generally variable valve systems simply change profile depending on throttle position and/or RPM, they don't distinguish between whether the driver wants to just mosey about or whether they're digging through curves and having a good time. With the number of cars offering "sport" modes that, by pressing a button, firm up the suspension and open up the exhaust or the like for a few extra ponies, it wouldn't be more than a few additional bits of circuitry to offer truly different driving experiences at the push of a button.

The 335 in sport mode, for instance, changes character a lot, but it still doesn't have any real emotion.

To clarify, I mean that often current sport modes free up more power and a firmer suspension tune, but they don't change the character of the engine. If the car has a dull powerband, it's still dull, and that sort of experience doesn't entice me as a driver when I hit the back roads.

[r34 gtr]

I dont know if i would use the word "trounce", and I dont really see how the g37 won. the bmw is faster, corners better, produces less emissions, and gets better gas mileage. I havnt driven either, but on paper it seems the only reason they gave the G the nod was that it didnt take a dump on them during the tests. I'm not bashing the G, but I thought the article was a little off.

[nametakennow]

Well their reasoning was twofold.

One, the BMW has a lingering issue, and they said that it would be fixed.

Two, the BMW is only marginally better in anything, but is a lot more expensive to get the same equipment.

[Veriest1]

I dont know if i would use the word "trounce", and I dont really see how the g37 won. the bmw is faster, corners better, produces less emissions, and gets better gas mileage. I havnt driven either, but on paper it seems the only reason they gave the G the nod was that it didnt take a dump on them during the tests. I'm not bashing the G, but I thought the article was a little off.

I agree, of the two I would buy the G but I still wouldn't say it trounced the 335. Trounce kind of implies it bested the Bimmer in almost every category. In reality it just costs less and the Bimmer may encounter cooling issues if you didn't get a sport model built before March (these have factory oil coolers and why they ditched it I haven't the foggiest).

I believe it would be more accurate to say the G is clearly the better deal as opposed to saying it trounced the 335.

[SeVa-S13]

This just in:G37 buttrapez the Kraut Kart.

[JimmyMethod]

"New GNX": 5.3L LS powered LaCrosse.

http://www.edmunds.com/insidel...09673

FWD ftl.

[SeVa-S13]

Wow, blech.

[Jesda]

"New GNX": 5.3L LS powered LaCrosse.

http://www.edmunds.com/insidel...09673

FWD ftl.

Wrong. That car is the Buick Velite RWD roadster. A sweet SWEET car with an amazing interior, not related to this Lacrosse nonsense.

[JustinStrife]

What a waste of reading. Sorry guys but I found the outcome a bit illogical considering who was winning in each category. Reading what I did, I'd rather have the manual 335i over the G37.

And I'm not exactly a BMW fan...

[JimmyMethod]

Yup, wrong image.

[NSR_s30]

Yay G37.

[Jesda]

Yup, wrong image.

Eww....

[JimmyMethod]

I'm curious to see how a 300+HP LS performs in a FWD car.

It seems like a lot of failage will occur.

[Jesda]

I'm curious to see how a 300+HP LS performs in a FWD car.

It seems like a lot of failage will occur.

FWD in a 300HP car isn't that unusual. Cadillac did it successfully since 1993 with the Northstar, same for Acura. Chevy does it in the Impala SS with less success, however.

In a less advanced car like a Buick Lacrosse it sounds like it won't work very well, like the current Maxima.

[AZhitman]

The current Maxima is comparatively very impressive - Not even in the same category (if we're discussing putting power down in a FF configuration without nasty effects) as the Gimpala.

If MT even HINTS that the abomination in the pic JM posted is anything like the GN in any category besides color and number of wheels, I'm cancelling my subscription on principle alone.

Buick needs to go the way of Oldsmobile. Now.

(...and I'm still a member of the Buick Club of America...)

[JimmyMethod]

The current Maxima is comparatively very impressive - Not even in the same category (if we're discussing putting power down in a FF configuration without nasty effects) as the Gimpala.

If MT even HINTS that the abomination in the pic JM posted is anything like the GN in any category besides color and number of wheels, I'm cancelling my subscription on principle alone.

Hm... the Lacrosse is the same platform as the Impala, the Super will have an LS4 (same at the Impala SS)...

I'm thinking it's going to be the same car with a nicer interior.

[AZhitman]

Bleh.

[MinisterofDOOM]

I think the fact that everyone who thinks the 3 should have one is ignoring is the price difference. The G is arguably better, absolutely comparable, and yet costs less. Bingo. G wins.

For what it's worth, though, I think the Bimmer is a THOUSAND times better looking. Every time I see the new G fascia I want to smash something. It's horrible. Reminds me of a late model SC430.

Hm... the Lacrosse is the same platform as the Impala

'09 Impala is going to be RWD. Is it the current Impala or the '09 that the Buick will be based on?