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      05-08-2013, 09:16 AM   #45
PrometheusM3
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I bought my Dakar E36 M3 without ever driving a BMW, or even knowing how to drive a manual. Had to have my dad cosign the loan and drive the car home . Once I knew what I was doing I took the car for a spin, and knew I made a great decision.

Bought my E46 M3 (6MT) a few years later without ever driving that particular model either - simply had it on my dream car list ever since it came out. Worked out great as well.

I've actually driven both DCT and 6MT E92 M3s before ordering this time, but even if I didn't, I wouldn't be worried one bit.

The car is awesome. The transmission decision is a lot harder, though. I had a difficult time deciding, even with extensive test drives. Good luck!
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      05-08-2013, 09:23 AM   #46
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I drove a few e46 M3s before buying one, but when it came time for the e90 M3.. the first time i drove it was after I paid for it and had the title in my name already !

It was everything I hoped it would be !
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      05-08-2013, 09:34 AM   #47
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I had driven a couple of E92's before I pulled the trigger on mine (both at dealerships and one owned by a friend), but I never drove the actual car I bought. In general, I find it very hard to really test-drive a car at a dealership -- much better if you have a friend who is nice enough to let you drive it for a longer period and in a driving style that suits the vehicle
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      05-08-2013, 09:55 AM   #48
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Bought mine through the Interwebs halfway across the country without driving the car. I just knew in my heart what I wanted, even after deliberating between the Audi A5 and Infiniti G37S.
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      05-08-2013, 10:08 AM   #49
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mdefalco25 View Post
First time I drove my M3 was after I got off the plane to drive it 1100 miles home. Best drive ever!
Same here but just had to drive about 400 miles. Although auto-stop feature did freak me out the first time it kicked it.
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      05-08-2013, 10:09 AM   #50
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This is a great thread. I too kinda did the same thing. But I did the same when I bought my RS4. A short trip around the dealership never really tells u anything. I've been able to drive a friends 06m3 pretty hard and that's enough for me. Glad to hear I'm not the only one. Cheers
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      05-08-2013, 10:40 AM   #51
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Drove a few E92 M3's that I rented from BMW Welt extensively. All day kind of deal. However, I bought my car sight unseen, and it was MT, whereas Welt cars were all DCT.

110% happy with my decision.

Quote:
Originally Posted by CBS View Post
I wanted an M3 since 1989 when I had an E30 325i. Marriage and then Kids made me concentrate on other priorities.

In 2007 I eagerly read about the 2008 M3. I think I had every magazine article memorized.
Unbelievable, a V8!!!!

In the Spring of 2008, with the Family in the SUV we were driving past the BMW Dealership and I pulled in. I left the motor running and told my Wife and Teenage Kids I'd be back in a few minutes. They all yelled, "what are you doing?" I returned in 5 minutes and told them I had placed a deposit on a new M3 without ever having driven one. Surprisingly everyone said "Finally!" I guess I had been driving them nuts!
That is bloody epic
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      05-08-2013, 12:37 PM   #52
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I sat in a 335 to make sure I fit but the first drive of a 3 series was my M3 during the victory lap in the Welt. Great car, great trip! European Delivery is a fantastic time and if you can go, you should without a doubt.

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      05-08-2013, 12:50 PM   #53
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This is my very first M3....and never drove one till the day I picked her up
dont know a single info or spec beside the two big characters..M3..thats it

and i picked the wrong car...
With all the great mods available out there that I can't afford
and the gorgeous M3s here and off the forum that make me jealous
definitely picked the wrong car I can't keep up with..lol...

One thing for sure....i OWN one and driving it!!!
That's PRICELESS!!!!
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      05-08-2013, 04:41 PM   #54
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I ordered my first M3 while I was deployed to Afghanistan..the first time I drove it was the day after I got back to Germany...love at first drive...prolly the reason why I bought another one 😄
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      05-08-2013, 04:50 PM   #55
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Im basically in the same situation as Genro757 Im in Afghanistan and just sold my Evo 9 to order an M3. Never driven or had the chance to even ride in an E92 but doubt I will regret my decision. Cant wait till July!!
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      05-08-2013, 07:40 PM   #56
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I ordered my '09, with DCT, in the late summer of '08 without ever laying eyes on one in person, let alone a test drive. It was my 3rd BMW and I was driving a Z4M at the time, but took a big chance on the DCT. No regrets.
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      05-08-2013, 07:49 PM   #57
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Currently driving a 135i comming off lease. Test drove a M3 ZCP DCT about 10 miles. Knew it was the car for me. Ordered mine that day. It just got built and its at the port waiting for the next available ship.
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      05-08-2013, 08:20 PM   #58
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I come from a bmw family.....my mom had a 2002......but have never driven a M3. I am coming from an rsx type-s and was amazed at how high sprung the M3 is. Truly awesome. It's kinda fun not having a test drive. Just makes it that more amazing.
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      05-08-2013, 08:31 PM   #59
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Quote:
Originally Posted by crashprash View Post
Never driven a bmw, let alone an M3 (not even a test drive - actually refused test drives from the dealerships). There was nothing else I wanted.
Quote:
Originally Posted by OneRib View Post
I think the more time passes, the more I can see that line of reasoning. I think certain cars are so good and so focused that their traits are well known and consistent. As car enthusiasts, we generally know what we want in a driving experience and could probably do a decent job of predicting how we would feel about many cars just by reading up on them in magazines and forums.

I am actually happy I haven't driven an M3 more than once because now my car will feel even more special to me.
Quote:
Originally Posted by radiognome View Post
Same thing here! =) Bought it from an owner, and the first drive was back home through freaking DC after 7 years of driving no manual cars at all. That was a nightmare, but the best nightmare in my life so far =)
I did a fair amount research on forums, read every article I could find, watched every video review there was. At the end of the day, what other hard top 4 seat convertible, rwd, N/A, european, driver's car is there in this price range?
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      05-08-2013, 08:34 PM   #60
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The M3 is my 5th BMW, but I still drove it first.

Personally I have learned to *never* buy a car without first test driving. Great that so many here dove in blind and ended up happy, but for me I've just had too many huge surprises over the years.
  • Had a deposit and PPI done on a 2001 Lotus Esprit. Drove it and my dreams were shattered. Ill always love that car but never want to drive one again
  • Test drove Gen 1 Viper GTS, Gen 2 ACR and SRT 10 and in each case discovered that, again, they were cars I could just never own.
  • Owned a C5, but test drove a C6 Z06 just to see if the uberness of it could override all of the things I just never liked about the C5. Turns out nope, absolutely not.
  • Test drove the FR-S and learned that while I really do love "light and tossable", and like the BR-Z/FR-S a whole bunch, it's just not 'me' at this stage of my life and there is also (for me) a point of "enough power" and "not enough power".
  • Test drove a classic MKIV Supra Turbo, taking as a *given* that I would definitely trade my (at the time) 1998 NSX for it only to learn that there was *no way in hell* I was making that particular trade.
  • Test drove E46 M3 back in 03 considering trading my 01 330xi in and ended up being hugely underwhelmed
  • Took a lap in a late model Mustang GT at a PDE day and it ended up being the longest lap of my life. Couldnt wait to get out of that thing

I think its really wise to take a drive before spending 10's of thousands of dollars honestly. You don't need a hot lap around Le Mans, but at least just to make sure you like the seating position, visibility and "feel" of the car that you are about to commit to living with.

I find that the consensus opinion of others is *somewhat* helpful, but ultimately pretty meaningless when it comes to the subjective things (that matter a ton to me), for me personally. Having driven a whole bunch of different cars there have just been too many times where "BEST CAR EVAAAAAAR!!!!" according to the masses becomes "never again!" for me.

Then again there are plenty of people who still get married before having sex with each other too right?

Last edited by mlambert890; 05-08-2013 at 08:47 PM..
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      05-08-2013, 08:47 PM   #61
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Drove them all a decent amount before buying. 3rd BMW I've owned personally at this point, and love it more and more everyday. I think I'll always have a BMW in my garage and maybe this the one I'll keep.
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      05-08-2013, 09:23 PM   #62
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mlambert890 View Post
Personally I have learned to *never* buy a car without first test driving. Great that so many here dove in blind and ended up happy, but for me I've just had too many huge surprises over the years.
You might be the most pragmatic person in the world.

One thing BMW tends to have going for it's bread and butter 3 series is that despite making them bigger and heavier each year, they still know how to build a really good driver's car.

If you were to buy something sight unseen, generally speaking, you know exactly what to expect from the German car manufacturers like BMW, Audi, Porsche, Mercedes, VW etc. You could probably drive each blindfolded and have a pretty good guess which car is which.
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      05-08-2013, 09:31 PM   #63
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I have the only E90 LCI 6MT from BMW Hong Kong, and it was a custom order, so no test drive before purchase.

We're allowed Imports as long as the car is Right Hand Drive and that the car exists in HK, so there could be Gray Imports.

I didn't test drive my previous car, the VW R32 before purchasing it either.
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      05-09-2013, 12:26 AM   #64
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I didn't test drive since BMW did a buy back and the wife really liked the Melbourne Red and we ended up with the car after we turned in the vehicle.
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      05-09-2013, 12:32 AM   #65
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I purchased mine through a dealership in San Diego and had it delivered to me in Scottsdale. Never drove a E9x M3 prior.
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      05-09-2013, 01:29 AM   #66
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i didn't even see the actual car until it was delivered. never had been in an m3 before
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