Is The M3 "The Poor Man's Super Car"?

[Werkz12]

Originally Posted by dexx

It's easy to define poor, it's hard to define rich.. It's nearly pornographic how rich some people are.

But I digress...

M3 doesn't have enough power to be a super car. If it had enough power, it wouldn't have enough traction.

Also still relatively few people can really tell it apart from a normal 3 series, including many M3 owners. That's not super. Joe blow doesn't really know that it costs well over 2 times as much as a base model 3 series, approaching 3 if you get a convertible.

Joe Blow also cant tell a GT3 or Turbo S apart from a base 911- just saying...

[AngelinIsRich08]

I dunno. For some reason I don't think it'd buy a 911 just because of that model name. 911.... Call me superstitious or whatever but I'd skip that Porsche. Though I think it is a brilliant car for its looks and sportiness.

[Werkz12]

When I had the 911 people looked at the car- it got alot of attention, but they sort of looked at you like "F-you"

The M3 also gets attention, but its more "thats a nice ride" type of attention.

[NYCMCBM3]

997tt!!

[ES_TRADER]

No, the m3 is rich man's beater

[FStop7]

When is a $60k - $70k car a poor man's car?!?! We are so messed up with our perceptions.

[Erhan]

Originally Posted by richpuer

No, the m3 is rich man's beater

[SECRET M]

i feel dumber after reading this thread.

[DrakeKemper]

Originally Posted by KIS

I believe M3's are the rich man's econo box.

+1

The GTR or C6 vette is the poorman's supercar

[redduck1]

Originally Posted by SECRET M

i feel dumber after reading this thread.

Wow! This thread wasn't intended to cause any brain damage to any one, just to get thoughts of how others feel or should I just say if others feel the same way that I do about reaching each person's pinnacale car. I was just wondering if others felt that the M3 is that transitional car into a super car or are we all just going to buy another M3 after another M3, year model after year model, Fx, Gx, Hx chasis? Are most of us peaked out with an M3? As for being poor? Once again, this is only a figure of speech. And for my self, I can't afford to say that my M3 is a beater and that I drive a P-car or F-car or even a Lambo for a weekend car. My M3 is some what my super car, for now.

[Leg]

What the chuff has a car got to do with wealth? I paid cash for mine for starters, I couldve put the £56K down on a 430, paid finance for 3 years and handed it back instead of paying the balloon. Does that make me richer? Nope. Looks like I am, but its all fake.

Anyway, my children's school fees make buying a Ferrari look like a bargain. Not to mention utility costs which are equivelent to buying a car these days (try £220 a month for home gas alone never mind electricity, water etc etc).

In fact, now I look at it, I dont love my kids as much as I once thought but a 458 Italia, now that's love at first sight.

If only I wasnt scared of the wife.......;-)

[NYCMCBM3]

^THIS!!, all those guys with ferraris or lambo's lease , i paid $55 k down on my M3 , only owe like 17k , could of bought it outright

[Entrepreneurs In Cars]

Originally Posted by Leg

What the chuff has a car got to do with wealth? I paid cash for mine for starters, I couldve put the £56K down on a 430, paid finance for 3 years and handed it back instead of paying the balloon. Does that make me richer? Nope. Looks like I am, but its all fake.

Anyway, my children's school fees make buying a Ferrari look like a bargain. Not to mention utility costs which are equivelent to buying a car these days (try £220 a month for home gas alone never mind electricity, water etc etc).

In fact, now I look at it, I dont love my kids as much as I once thought but a 458 Italia, now that's love at first sight.

If only I wasnt scared of the wife.......;-)

PS. Just a comment but cars are silly as status symbols. I commute in the Mini yet I own an M3. It's still me, am I any less succesful when I'm driving the Mini? People might think so eh. Am I, the man in the Mini Works with an M3 both of which are paid for less succesful sat in his Mini at 8am than the guy in the Aston Martin thats on finance and is due to be handed back in 3 months? Never judge the guy sat in the shitbox Ford Mondeo on the commute. He might have a classic supercar at home that only comes out when it's sunny.

Agreed. Very well put mate.

[SenorFunkyPants]

I don't think you can use the word "supercar" to refer to the M3.
However with the M3 what you are getting is Champagne performance for beer money.

[48Laws]

Originally Posted by dexx

M3 doesn't have enough power to be a super car. If it had enough power, it wouldn't have enough.

Well, in all fairness, the M3 has as much HP as the Countach. It's just that the bar for performance has increased exponentially and the definition of "Supercar" has been adjusted. It's all relative to our times. The HP war is no help either. As you said, the M3 doesn't look like a Supercar. Supercar performance as we know it today is insane, but you can also get an econo car with 200+ HP. It's pretty crazy where the automotive focus has taken us.

[James T. Kirk]

Is The M3 "The Poor Man's Super Car"?... Is a good philosophical question, so let's not get entangled in the definition of rich or poor.

Another way to look at it is this... Given unlimited funds, would the M3 still be our favorite car of choice? Or is the M3 a compromise for something else you or I would prefer to be driving? I must venture to say YES, the M3 is the Poor Man's Super Car.

I purchased an E90 because I have a practical need for 4-doors to accommodate an occasional family outing. I also wanted an all-in-one daily driver with performance power and handling to spice up my commute.

All the money in the world? The Aston Martin Rapide would have been ideal... starting at $199,950. Too rich for my blood... for now.

I suppose a typical E92 driver would prefer to be in a GT3RS... starting at $135,500. Only double the price of an M3.

Certainly, who is poor or rich for these numbers is relative.
.

[King Tut]

Originally Posted by redduck1

I've driven a ZR1 and many C6 Z06's and even heavily modded Z06's. For me, a super car has to have the speed and most importantly the ability to control that speed. Corvettes are fast but don't handle like Porsches. Corvettes lack the feel of the drive, they're all about brute speed and that's about it.

You crack me up with statements like this. Just because you can't control a Corvette Z06 doesn't mean that better drivers can't. I see more C5 Z06 and C6 Z06s on the track then any other car. Sure they are more difficult to drive as they take good skill in application of throttle whereas some other cars with less power allow you to just romp the throttle coming out of every corner. I truly believe a $62k brand new Z06 and especially the older C5 Z06 the poor man's super car, but poor is always a relative term. I don't consider anyone buying a new GT-R or ZR1 to be anywhere near a poor man.

[Schwaben]

I dunno, they run some pretty supercarish prices over here.

http://www.autoscout24.de/NewMarketD...jdd4bj&asrc=fa

Ja that is undoubtedly the high end but that not that high. It is ridiculous what they pay for cars over here.

[redduck1]

Originally Posted by James T. Kirk

Is The M3 "The Poor Man's Super Car"?... Is a good philosophical question, so let's not get entangled in the definition of rich or poor.

Another way to look at it is this... Given unlimited funds, would the M3 still be our favorite car of choice? Or is the M3 a compromise for something else you or I would prefer to be driving? I must venture to say YES, the M3 is the Poor Man's Super Car.

I purchased an E90 because I have a practical need for 4-doors to accommodate an occasional family outing. I also wanted an all-in-one daily driver with performance power and handling to spice up my commute.

All the money in the world? The Aston Martin Rapide would have been ideal... starting at $199,950. Too rich for my blood... for now.

I suppose a typical E92 driver would prefer to be in a GT3RS... starting at $135,500. Only double the price of an M3.

Certainly, who is poor or rich for these numbers is relative.
.

Very well said. If dropping $150K on a car wasn't an issue, I most likely would not be driving and M3, but would deffinitely be driving a 911 Turbo.

[mr_yogi]

Originally Posted by James T. Kirk

Is The M3 "The Poor Man's Super Car"?... Is a good philosophical question, so let's not get entangled in the definition of rich or poor.

Another way to look at it is this... Given unlimited funds, would the M3 still be our favorite car of choice? Or is the M3 a compromise for something else you or I would prefer to be driving? I must venture to say YES, the M3 is the Poor Man's Super Car.

I purchased an E90 because I have a practical need for 4-doors to accommodate an occasional family outing. I also wanted an all-in-one daily driver with performance power and handling to spice up my commute.

All the money in the world? The Aston Martin Rapide would have been ideal... starting at $199,950. Too rich for my blood... for now.

I suppose a typical E92 driver would prefer to be in a GT3RS... starting at $135,500. Only double the price of an M3.

Certainly, who is poor or rich for these numbers is relative.
.

I think your question in bold is a totally different question than what the OP is asking. I also think the OP's question can't be answered directly as it's a broad question that needs further refinement.

Kirk - your question sets the "unlimited funds" precendence. When money is not a concern, then all limitations with respect to cost/price are thrown out the window. If I had a trillion dollars (safe to say I'd have unlimited funds right), I doubt the M3 would be my car of choice. That doesn't mean I wouldn't have one (or many) in my garage. Maybe a Bugatti Veyron would my car of choice. Maybe a Koenigsegg Agera. Who knows? Therefore, when money is not a concern, there is no question of a "poor man".

OP - Your question can't be answered without specifying what you consider to be a "poor man" and what you consider to be a "supercar". If I could afford a Veyron, chances are that almost all of the people that look to the 911s (TTS, GT3, etc) as they're dream car are probably "poor" in my books. At the same time, there are people out there that dream of the day that they will own a car like an Acura, Inifiniti, etc. True life example - When my dad bought my mom a 2001 Accord EX, my mom teared up and said the following: "It's always been a dream of mine to have a car that has a moonroof". We were by no means poor, but that's just where her expectations were set. Fast forward 10yrs and she's since had a 5 series and currently an S-class. How the world turns.

That being said, sure you can ask your question, but what kind of answer are you looking for? On the broad level (the level with the most generaliztion), I would answer your question as such: The M3 is not the poor man's supercar. There are other cars out there that give you more horsepower per dollar spent (A regular Corvette to name one). I'm sure people will argue that horsepower alone doesn't define a supercar. I agree 100%. Just keep in mind it's a broad answer to a broad question.

[Georgeair]

Originally Posted by GhostRideTheWhip

The M3 and the C63 have supercar numbers.

Only when compared to my 1986 editions of Road and Track.

It is a great driver and a tremendous bargain for the performance, but does not rise to nearly the level of modern supercars, IMHO.

[drburton]

I don't think the M3 is a poor man's super car, and isn't intended to be. The M3 is a PRACTICAL alternative to a super car. I'm guessing many of the buyers have the need for the space, extra seats, clearance etc.... The buyer of the M3 is more motivated by practicality than price - in my opinion.

A ferrari would be largely useless for me, with two little kids and Minnesota roads. I could drive it like 3 months out of the year.