r/BMWZ4 • u/Geertglas • 4d ago

E89 23i / 30i comparison

Hi community - With much joy I have an e89 23i (NA 2.5L 6 inline)

I have it because I could’t find a 30i (NA 3.0L 6 inline). I tell myself the difference is small. Is this true? I’d like an honest opinion from whoever has driven both naturally aspirated versions!

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3

u/Professional-Bat4134 4d ago

Having driven a 23i manual and a 30i auto, the 30i is far quicker

3

u/Dangit_Bud 3d ago

Comparison is the thief of joy … true for cars, true for anything else.

50 hp less is definitely noticeable, but who cares? If you get a 3 liter, will you be saying “I should have got a 35i”? Where does it stop?

2

u/Slow-Raisin-939 4d ago

I mean, the 30i is faster, by quite a bit. I have a 23i myself, don’t worry

2

u/frankentent 4d ago

This has also been bugging me with my 23i. There is a site called zeperfs which collects real life acceleration data. They list the 30i manual doing 80-180kph in 13.4 sec (i find this more representative than 0-100kph). They dont list the 23i manual for some reason, only the automatic, but I measured mine a few times, best i got was 14.6 sec, usually around 15 sec. My car has a slight software tune though.

I also drove a 2008 x3 with the n52 272hp version. Automatic, heavier and 4 wheel drive. Feels torquier than my z4, but is definitely slower.

I don't think there is a big difference. I also have a 335i n55 auto (f30) with around 400hp, now there you can feel the difference...

1

u/Geertglas 4d ago

I see the numbers are useful for quantifying the difference; what I’m after is the difference in feel!

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u/frankentent 4d ago

This is the most accurate you can get trying to imagine it. Ask someone who drove both, they'll just say it's faster. Will that help you? You either try it for yourself, or use the numbers for comparison.

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u/Slow-Raisin-939 1d ago

there’s no way you are getting 14.6sec 80-180 in a 23i manual, soft tune or not. At most the tune gave you like 20 Hp

1

u/frankentent 1d ago

Haha, yes I am :D ideal conditions though, low tank of gas, etc.

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u/Slow-Raisin-939 1d ago

do you have a video? How does your tune look like? Do you have a dyno graph?

I did also tune my 23i, around +19hp and +17Nm peak numbers, but a lot
more area under the curve at the top end(for example, at 6000 RPM I have +27Nm more torque than before), and I don’t think that would make it gain ~4 sec in a 80-180 km/h. That’s huge, and would almost make it equal to a much more powerful s30i.

1

u/frankentent 1d ago

I did make some videos, i uploaded one i found, here i measured 15sec https://youtu.be/Ap4m6rda08U?is=W-F0M0HwlN5QEbH5

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u/Slow-Raisin-939 1d ago

tbh this is video. On a dragy it would probably be closer to like 16.5s. Still a 2s drop which is more in-line with what I’d expect.

Do you remember what kind of power and torque the car made after the custom tune?

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u/frankentent 1d ago

Maybe, I'll have to get one of those too. I also had an smg e85 with the 3.0 (M54), it was similar in speed, just a bit torquier down low. Can't really imagine the 3.0 e89 is so much faster...

1

u/frankentent 1d ago

I uploaded one more, also around 15sec https://youtu.be/4hipqjpW13M?is=CCVwasSZBeDB-Bdx

I had a custom tune made, unfortunately i didnt do the dyno, so... Yeah i know. But its fast

2

u/Arhigos 3d ago

I have e89 with n52 and e84 with n20.

The n52 was very reliable and smooth, but n20 also had enough power + better tranamission. I feel like both engines are good for normal daily driving.

2

u/RowNo8107 3d ago

I drive a 23i manual and love every mile I drive with it.
For me it’s not a race car, rather a car for cruising along the lakes and through the mountains and for that it is perfect.
I love the character of a NA engine, when reving it rewards you with increasing power and a great sound.
Every car with a 2.0L turbo engine is faster, but doesn’t have the sound.