BMW E36 328i Sport Vs Honda Integra Type R (DC2)
Discussion
hi, i've recently graduated and i'm looking to get my first proper car. i currently drive a E36 316i Compact and i am enjoying my first steps in a RWD car, it's so much more fun than FWD, even with the lack of power i get from the 1.6 (105bhp). i've got a budget of around £4k so if i were to get a DC2 i'd be looking at average condition UKDM or slighly worse condition JDM's (i prefer JDM) whereas with the BMW i would be looking at mint conditioned E36 328i Sport's. The thing i look for most in cars is handling, even with the E36 being RWD i'm not sure it will handle well with it's weight close to 1400kg 
just from that figure alone i feel it wouldn't be an entertaining drive down a quite country road? The ITR DC2 has some awesome reviews and even made the top 10 in EVO's top 50 greatest cars test. The ITR is slighly quicker in a straight line and has been dubbed the best handling FWD ever made but will it be more fun than the E36 328i?
which car would you choose and why?
just from that figure alone i feel it wouldn't be an entertaining drive down a quite country road? The ITR DC2 has some awesome reviews and even made the top 10 in EVO's top 50 greatest cars test. The ITR is slighly quicker in a straight line and has been dubbed the best handling FWD ever made but will it be more fun than the E36 328i?which car would you choose and why?
98C4S said:
A completely standard E36 328 Sport Coupe all day long, I've been there.
It's a much more classy car, think about the girls you will be taking out? and the Straight Six is lovely.. esp on the motorway, its effortless
Well, birds aside...It's a much more classy car, think about the girls you will be taking out? and the Straight Six is lovely.. esp on the motorway, its effortless
I must admit, I do love driving bigger engines as they're so satisfying when pottering about!
Sure they're a bit heavier on juice, but they're so much more relaxing than 4 pot stuff and when you get to a tunnel....windows down and enjoy the noise
Integra is very raw, e36 is fairly refined so fairly different style and depend what sort of driving you do. I'd get some insurance quotes and see if that rules one or both out though, import integra might cost a lot more than a uk car and e36 with larger engines are hard to insure if under 25
Speaking as an ITR (UKDM) owner, i'd say go for the Integra. JDM cars are generally cheaper than UKDM cars by the way, but you will pay more on the insurance on an import. It depends what you want really, before I bought mine I was also considering a 330 Coupe, I just found the Integra much more engaging and fun, plus the noise when VTEC engages is spine tingling. If you want comfort and something to cruise around in, go for the Bee-em. If you want something that will put a grin on your face everytime you drive it, get the 'teg. Contrary to what some say here, the Integra is a practical car. If you drive it sensibly the fuel consumption isn't bad at all, the boot is big and you can seat four (unless you and the passenger have the seats fully back). A word of warning though, it's a pretty basic car. It's noisy, the interior is crude and it can be a pain in the arse around town. But you forget about that as soon as the VTEC kicks in 
ETA: As for the birds, remember: VTEC gets you laid and no fat chicks allowed unless you want to collapse the bolsters on the recaros!
ETA: As for the birds, remember: VTEC gets you laid and no fat chicks allowed unless you want to collapse the bolsters on the recaros!
Edited by BaronVonVTEC on Friday 30th January 00:26
Crusoe said:
Integra is very raw, e36 is fairly refined so fairly different style and depend what sort of driving you do. I'd get some insurance quotes and see if that rules one or both out though, import integra might cost a lot more than a uk car and e36 with larger engines are hard to insure if under 25
insurance won't be a problem, i'm under trade insurance. we've already had some good points in just over 30mins (i love PH) a mate of mine has an ITR DC2 and he can't rate it high enough, i've also noticed that most of the people that have put their vote towards the 328i currently own a BMW, the same goes for the ITR comments too 
edit : is there anyone here that has driven both? or similar i.e 318is/323/328 + DC2?
Edited by SarlechS on Friday 30th January 00:41
Edited by SarlechS on Friday 30th January 00:41
SarlechS said:
edit : is there anyone here that has driven both? or similar i.e 318is/323/328 + DC2?
Nope, but give me the keys and I will quite happily give you an unbiased opinion!I think the main reason for the owners answering is because it's the best form of experience and if people can offer a balanced POV of their respective cars, then it makes it easier to decipher the pros and cons between the two...well, as long as both parties don't put the rose tinted specs on everything that is!
vz-r_dave said:
BMW is more refined yet driven by chavs
Type R is not refined at all and a pain in the ass but atleast its a drivers car and although some on here would say its a chavish It really isnt.
whether or not the bmw is driven by chavs has no bearing on it being a drivers car. I'd go for the bmw because I like balancing the car on the way out of a corner, which fwd doesn't do.Type R is not refined at all and a pain in the ass but atleast its a drivers car and although some on here would say its a chavish It really isnt.
My neighbour is a chav, owns an E36 328i sport convertible with the hardtop roof too, and despite my dislike of him, his car is very nice. I doubt he paid much for it, but he's lowered it slightly and stuck Alpina rims on it, looks even better IMO. Looks fairly comfortable too with a full leather interior.
Take the Bimmer
Take the Bimmer
Kawasicki said:
vz-r_dave said:
BMW is more refined yet driven by chavs
Type R is not refined at all and a pain in the ass but atleast its a drivers car and although some on here would say its a chavish It really isnt.
whether or not the bmw is driven by chavs has no bearing on it being a drivers car. I'd go for the bmw because I like balancing the car on the way out of a corner, which fwd doesn't do.Type R is not refined at all and a pain in the ass but atleast its a drivers car and although some on here would say its a chavish It really isnt.
I would also say that the 328 would be left behind in any situation, whether on track on or a bumpy b road.
I ran a 1995 328 Coupe for four years.
Wonderful car. Reasonably quick, handled well, sounded great. Let down only by mediocre steering.
Rear wishbone bushes will be shot at 60k, watch out for rotten rear wheelarches, listen for rattly tappets and check to see whether it had a Nikasil recall when it was a baby.
Oh, and make sure the heater fan works...
I needed to replace the rear wheel bearings at about 65k and had the front and rear wishbone bushes replaced at the same time. New bushes transformed the handling.
Buy a Supersprint cat back exhaust and it will sound absolutely wonderful.
The 328 motor in the E36 was deliberately strangled by BMW to keep the output under 200bhp. You can buy modified 325 inlet manifolds and inlet kits that release another 20bhp.
They are even pretty cheap. I sold mine for £1600 and there was plenty of life left in the old dog.
Wonderful car. Reasonably quick, handled well, sounded great. Let down only by mediocre steering.
Rear wishbone bushes will be shot at 60k, watch out for rotten rear wheelarches, listen for rattly tappets and check to see whether it had a Nikasil recall when it was a baby.
Oh, and make sure the heater fan works...
I needed to replace the rear wheel bearings at about 65k and had the front and rear wishbone bushes replaced at the same time. New bushes transformed the handling.
Buy a Supersprint cat back exhaust and it will sound absolutely wonderful.
The 328 motor in the E36 was deliberately strangled by BMW to keep the output under 200bhp. You can buy modified 325 inlet manifolds and inlet kits that release another 20bhp.
They are even pretty cheap. I sold mine for £1600 and there was plenty of life left in the old dog.
hmmm. tough one.
I've driven both (but owned neither) and can see the appeal on both sides. I guess it really depends on where you place your priorities.
The Teg is a fantastic piece of kit. On a charge down a b-road it is just fantastic. The turn-in is soooo sharp, the way you feel the diff hook up and then as the v-tec hits the noise and the speed out a maaahoosive grin on your face. The way it corners so flat with loads of information coming up through your hands and rear end is really quite special. Practical too, big boot opening, fold the rear seats down and there plenty of room. Back seats are ok for shorter journeys but I wouldn’t want to sit back there on a run across Europe.
The Bimmer is the more grown up car. No question. Built like a tank and feels like it. But that doesn’t mean its not fun. Switch the traction control off and it will happily slide the back end out of a junction (err.. racetrack junction next to the airfield round about). Down a b-road it is lots and lots of fun. And at big speed on the motorway its positively relaxing compared to an integra. Great balance, engine note, good brakes and the floor hinged accelerator is kinda cool! But the steering feel is a let down – especially around the first quarter turn, there just is not much information coming up through the wheel.
Somehow I just think that for me if I went 328 I would really really like it but somehow had sold out and not gone hardcore enough. But then I am prone to making dumb decisions.
After much scientific testing in controlled environments and can also add that a E36 328 is neck and neck with my 306 rallye up to about 100leptons. After that the Beemer slowly pulls away. A fully wrung out teg gets the jump on the pug right from the off and the gap just keeps getting bigger with speed.
One more thing. 4k will get you a mint 328 and only an ok teg. (feel free to flame but that’s my feeling)
I did the 4k thing a couple of years ago – and went for my lovely timewarp-spec rallye – and hopefully later this year will be at the 7-8k barrier. Just as tricky, do I spend 7k on a minty mint mint interga that’s still a 1.8 FWD or ‘graduate’ to an E36 M3 or late classic scoob STI?
One thing about the old car decision making process. It never ends!
I've driven both (but owned neither) and can see the appeal on both sides. I guess it really depends on where you place your priorities.
The Teg is a fantastic piece of kit. On a charge down a b-road it is just fantastic. The turn-in is soooo sharp, the way you feel the diff hook up and then as the v-tec hits the noise and the speed out a maaahoosive grin on your face. The way it corners so flat with loads of information coming up through your hands and rear end is really quite special. Practical too, big boot opening, fold the rear seats down and there plenty of room. Back seats are ok for shorter journeys but I wouldn’t want to sit back there on a run across Europe.
The Bimmer is the more grown up car. No question. Built like a tank and feels like it. But that doesn’t mean its not fun. Switch the traction control off and it will happily slide the back end out of a junction (err.. racetrack junction next to the airfield round about). Down a b-road it is lots and lots of fun. And at big speed on the motorway its positively relaxing compared to an integra. Great balance, engine note, good brakes and the floor hinged accelerator is kinda cool! But the steering feel is a let down – especially around the first quarter turn, there just is not much information coming up through the wheel.
Somehow I just think that for me if I went 328 I would really really like it but somehow had sold out and not gone hardcore enough. But then I am prone to making dumb decisions.
After much scientific testing in controlled environments and can also add that a E36 328 is neck and neck with my 306 rallye up to about 100leptons. After that the Beemer slowly pulls away. A fully wrung out teg gets the jump on the pug right from the off and the gap just keeps getting bigger with speed.
One more thing. 4k will get you a mint 328 and only an ok teg. (feel free to flame but that’s my feeling)
I did the 4k thing a couple of years ago – and went for my lovely timewarp-spec rallye – and hopefully later this year will be at the 7-8k barrier. Just as tricky, do I spend 7k on a minty mint mint interga that’s still a 1.8 FWD or ‘graduate’ to an E36 M3 or late classic scoob STI?
One thing about the old car decision making process. It never ends!
I can't comment on the ITR, but I've run CTRs for almost 4 yrs now and used to regularly use my dad's 328i Sport which he had for 3 yrs. The BMW was great - refined and that engine is epic. But I never felt 100% comfortable in it, maybe because I was only 18 but it always felt big and never shrank around me like the CTR does on a country lane. RWD is great but the E36 doesn't give you a lot of reaction time. It's not like the E46 M3 he had where you could hang the tail out and it'd sort itself out. You had to tiptoe in the wet where in the CTR you can nail it all day long.
It will depend entirely on what you want. My mate's got a E46 320i Coupe and all the girls think it's great where they don't notice my little Chavhatch but dynamically the CTR is superior in my opinion. The ITR will only be better still dynamically.
If it was my money, I'd go hardcore and get the ITR as the VTEC scream and lightweight is so much more satisfying, but it's your money and only driving them will fully inform you.
It will depend entirely on what you want. My mate's got a E46 320i Coupe and all the girls think it's great where they don't notice my little Chavhatch but dynamically the CTR is superior in my opinion. The ITR will only be better still dynamically.
If it was my money, I'd go hardcore and get the ITR as the VTEC scream and lightweight is so much more satisfying, but it's your money and only driving them will fully inform you.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff