My mom always told me never to discuss either religion or politics in polite company, but hey, who said this was polite company?
Listen, it's clear from your posting name where your passions lie, but hey - if you're going to be a badge whore, why not follow my lead (as well as others), and be promiscuous about it?
I believe the new M3 will follow what appears to be a rigid line dating back to the E30 model. Namely, the new car will be pretty much a better overall car than its predecessor, except that due to size and weight, it'll be less fun to drive. This is in the responsiveness and tossability area. More tonnage equals less fun to drive.
Our E46 M3 (now gone) was less fun to drive than our E36, and again, it was due to size and weight. Of course, it was also a better overall car. The new one will be terrific (really), but you can already read in every road test I've seen that it has lost something in the fun-to-drive sweepstakes - even compared to the E46.
I really tend to like BMWs in general (though Bangle has me a little upset), and the M cars in particular, but I really like Porsches as well. In fact, I can tell you I'm also pretty excited about what Hyundai is currently doing.
Really.
As for Porsche, both of our sons own 911s. One of those is in our garage since Thanksgiving, and will be for three or four more months while his house is undergoing cubic money alterations and updates. He works in Manhattan, but feels compelled to drop by every so often - to visit, but also to get a Porsche hit, so to speak. Yeah, they've also got a six-speed A6 (and a Rover), but the Porsche is special.
It's a 996 Cabrio, and of course I've gotten to compare it with our E46 over some of the more fun and challenging roads here in semi-rural Lancaster county.
Result? Cabrio, hands down. The M3 was a little quicker down the straights, with just as much stick, but understeer (plus wheelbase and overall heft) put the brakes on big fun when you got to pushing a little.
The Porsche has this amazingly tactile steering feel, and simply amazing brakes as well. It's pretty tossable by comparison with the bimmer, and feels a bunch lighter, even though it's probably not.
Our other son has a 997S, and frankly, that car is even better over the same roads. Faster, possibly even more stick, with at least as much of that marvelous steering feel.
Speaking of being a promiscuous badge whore (OK, I mean to say having an open mind about cars), he also has an '05 GTO making about 600 HP (511 at the rear wheels under SAE net rules) that is a pure giggle to drive. The chassis is quite good (Holden Monaro from the Aussies), but it'll pull your face out of shape going into fourth at 100 or so, and it just keeps flying from there. Sure, it doesn't have the moves of either a Porsche or bimmer, but it's still a blast to either drive or ride in.
chicagobimmerboy, my point is that there are bunches of cars out there that are a complete blast, and it doesn't make sense to restrict yourself to a single marque and be a hater of others, even if Freud or Oedipus have something to do with it. Two of the most fun cars I've ever owned have been Dodge Neons fergoshsakes.
Bruce
Edit: PS - I just read that the new bimmer is going to come in at over 3700 pounds in U.S. trim! This'll win me a quick $100 from another noting participant, but I can't say I'm happy about it. Good lord, what were they thinking?
I'll tell you what they were thinking: GT car.
That said, the car is really, really fast given its weight and mission, but physics is a bitch.