Quote:
Originally Posted by SCBMW02
Interesting comments on the new M3, here are mine. I spent 3 days last Oct driving the new car on the Nurbergring F1 track and got to take a ride on the 13 mile Nordschleife with one of the instructors at speed. (yes you do go airborne at phlantzgarten!)I have owned an E36 and E46 M3 and have driven both on the track. Let me just say this car blows them away in every way! Have you seen the numbers from Road and Track? 0-60 4.1 / 1/4 Mi 12.5 / Grip 0.98g
Forget what you might think about weight, this car feels much lighter than the E46. We did numerous exercises with the car including a ton of hot laps. Understeer? Forget it .You can toss this thing with ease. We did some autocross type drills and this car is balanced and changes directions with a flick of the wheel. Acceleration is brutal and braking is typical M3. Steering may have been a tad light, but I think it is overblown and you won't notice it 99% of the time. One tidbit, the German guys like to run the normal suspension mode because that adapts to changing loads, whereas in sport setting it is fixed which may not be the right setup for every section of track. You will have to play with it and set the M Drive for what you like best.
Don't know how many of you have heard this thing in person at speed, but believe me you won't be disappointed! Not a GM v8, but more F1 or GTR. I am sure there will be aftermarket systems for those that need to draw even more attention (I had a Borla on my E46)
I thought the 46 was as good looking as it gets, but that really looks dated next to this. Obviously this is subjective, but in person everything is just right. The fenders are flared just like the 46. I would like a different style wheel and probably will look to change this as I did with the E46.
Seats are great and I never felt like I was coming out of it even in the 140mph sweeper on the back straight. Much more headroom, htough this is probably because there is no sunroof.
Bottom line. This thing is sick, much more of a sports car than the E46. It is quite simply the perfect GT. Already ordered mine. Hope this was informative.
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From my humble encounter with this same car in Miami, this sounds to me more of what I experienced than what was mentioned previously. I am convinced we will be hearing some of the same critical rhetoric when the next M3 succeeds this one. It comes with the turf of such iconic cars as the M. And like I mentioned in another thread, there is something captivating about the first burst of acceleration and high grip cornering you experience in this car, it will remind you why you are so obsessed with the it to begin with.