Quote:
Originally Posted by swamp2
+1 on the other comments about the M3. 2nd place - UNREAL! 
This car just is not in the 911TT nor GT-R league, yet it totally held its own. It is an honor to even be invited to such a test IMHO. It even scored the fastest at more than one spot in the track. What an accomplishment  . The damp conditions (as noted above) absolutely helped all of the other AWD-ers and hurt the M3. It would also be very interesting to know if the car had MPS or MPSC+ tires. That makes a big difference. The M3 has already basically matched the R8 at the N'Ring, when both had similar tires. Also recall the M3 has already also "bested" even the mighty GT3 by the judgement of a German magazine. Sure we all know which is faster in most straights and the corners, and which is clearly the better track car, but this comparison took some practicality, comfort and cost points into consideration. Like I keep saying M-DCT will continue to narrow the margins against such respectable "competition". |
Actually that comment is a little off, SportAuto commented at the time that the R8 didn't perform as expected which was proven with it's trap speed on the long straights, also the original test car was fitted with sport suspension and not the Magneticride which is believed to make all the difference. The R8 has since been tested by them and according to an insider the new time is 7:58.
Maybe DCT will bring the M3 closer to this new times but on anything other than the ring the R8 will always hold all of the cards, and rightly so when you consider the extra dosh involved.
P.S.
I have read this article a few times now and is it me or does anyone else get the impression that the GTR doesn't provide the driving experience as any of the other cars in the test. It sounds to me that in their opinion you are going through the motions without actually living them, especially so on the track. The comments that the 997tt draws you into the experience, the M3 being the most playful and the R8 providing the most tactile feel with the sweetest gearbox on the planet, none of these comments were leveled at the GTR. Sure it was the quickest and was incredible value considering the performance and practicality but for me I got the impression of watching you favourite movies in stereo, not surround sound and not in colour but in black and white.
For the money I reckon I fell happier spending the same amount on the slower, more practical M3 with all of the experience and emotion turned up to 10.