Hat tip to a great car

1Sleeper · 10-25-2010, 07:52 PM

Went to Skip Barber spent the day driving an M3 (mostly) along with a few IS-Fs a Lotus or two, a 911 and a few Caymans. As a former E46 M3 owner, a current E92 335 and 997tt owner, I came away loving the M3. Such a well sorted car. I was surprised and a little disappointed at first they were all DCT but that quickly passed. Great feedback, and predictable handling. A LOT of fun. BTW the 997 (Non-S, reg. Carrera) was a pig, not even close. Drove them back to back and it was no contest. Anyway, great car, I envy you guys. And yes, started looking at my local dealers inventory as soon as I got home...

Sleeper519 · 10-25-2010, 08:08 PM

..jump on in, the water feels great!

Nice to hear those words that we all know are so true. It IS a great car to drive both on the track and to work everyday.

RayC · 10-25-2010, 08:57 PM

Love this car!

Had a track day on Saturday...didn't get any sleep the night before so I was exhausted by the end of the day. Let my girlfriend drive the 3 hours back while I took a nap.

The only thing that this car doesn't do well is gas mileage, but I really don't care too much about that.

jacobbmw · 10-25-2010, 11:45 PM

How did it compare to the Cayman in your opinion? IMO, the Cayman S is the most well sorted car I have driven. If only it were more practical for daily use.....

spyderco10 · 10-26-2010, 12:12 AM

M3 is a great car, but you got a 997TT!!!

donovan · 10-26-2010, 02:15 AM

Thank goodness, more DCT love as it deserves it

On a side note: I test drove the e92 for 15 minutes and I knew I wanted a DCT and an e92..

1Sleeper · 10-26-2010, 05:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jacobbmw

How did it compare to the Cayman in your opinion? IMO, the Cayman S is the most well sorted car I have driven. If only it were more practical for daily use.....

I cant say I was terribly surprised but yes, the Cayman was a really nice track car. On the autocross or the big track, really knew what the car was telling you. And for the record I thought it was more fun to drive than the 911 they had.

Quote:

Originally Posted by spyderco10

M3 is a great car, but you got a 997TT!!!

Ok, thats a little unfair. The TT has 550+hp and 4 driven wheels

. Look, Subaru STi or 997tt, fun is fun, and that M3 was a blast to drive and after driving it back to back with a lot of very competent cars I see why it wins all those car comparisons in magazines.

Doctor J · 10-26-2010, 02:50 PM

the days of high-revving NA V8s are coming to an end

get one while they last

Hawk Lax · 10-26-2010, 03:18 PM

Too be fair to the 911. The one they have at Skip Barber at Limerock is on its last legs.

Projectile · 10-26-2010, 05:12 PM

997 was a pig?

In what sense, acceleration?

Was this one of your first track sessions?

Projectile · 10-26-2010, 05:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jacobbmw

How did it compare to the Cayman in your opinion? IMO, the Cayman S is the most well sorted car I have driven. If only it were more practical for daily use.....

The Boxster is just as nice to drive, cheaper, and you can even put the top down!

1Sleeper · 10-26-2010, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Projectile

997 was a pig?

In what sense, acceleration?

Was this one of your first track sessions?

As another poster mentioned, the Porsches are the only cars that arent "supplied" by the manufacturer so they arent exactly fresh examples (the Lexus IS-Fs that were there had less than 2k on the ODO, BMWs a touch more). By pig I mean understeered, pushed. Not my first track day and I have a 997 so I do have some familiarity with the car

. Mine has a very different feel though, probably something to do with 4 driven wheels an LSD and more oomph. It was damp that day as well so grip was precious.

slowman · 10-26-2010, 08:54 PM

How did the IS-F compare? I never got a chance to test drive one.

Projectile · 11-01-2010, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1Sleeper

As another poster mentioned, the Porsches are the only cars that arent "supplied" by the manufacturer so they arent exactly fresh examples (the Lexus IS-Fs that were there had less than 2k on the ODO, BMWs a touch more). By pig I mean understeered, pushed. Not my first track day and I have a 997 so I do have some familiarity with the car

. Mine has a very different feel though, probably something to do with 4 driven wheels an LSD and more oomph. It was damp that day as well so grip was precious.

I think that 911s can feel this way by design.

The weight of the engine hanging over and behind the rear axle gives incredible grip to the rear wheels and relatively less to the front wheels.

Under acceleration, even more weight is transferred to the rear wheels and the front end gets relatively even lighter, hence, more capacity for the front wheels to lose grip resulting in understeer.

It's definitely not as easy to drive a 911 well and to avoid this understeer. It takes more work, and it takes enough practice to overcome intuitions, as well as an eager right foot.

More balanced cars, like the M3, are far more forgiving. Personally, I enjoy driving Boxster/Cayman more than 911 for this reason.

Having said that, the design of the 911 lends itself to several significant advantages that reward the patient and practiced driver.

10-25-2010, 07:52 PM	#1
1Sleeper First Lieutenant 6 Rep 384 Posts Drives: F31 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Where I need to be iTrader: (1)	Hat tip to a great car Went to Skip Barber spent the day driving an M3 (mostly) along with a few IS-Fs a Lotus or two, a 911 and a few Caymans. As a former E46 M3 owner, a current E92 335 and 997tt owner, I came away loving the M3. Such a well sorted car. I was surprised and a little disappointed at first they were all DCT but that quickly passed. Great feedback, and predictable handling. A LOT of fun. BTW the 997 (Non-S, reg. Carrera) was a pig, not even close. Drove them back to back and it was no contest. Anyway, great car, I envy you guys. And yes, started looking at my local dealers inventory as soon as I got home...
	Appreciate 0 Tweet Quote

10-25-2010, 08:08 PM	#2
Sleeper519 Captain 68 Rep 869 Posts Drives: 08 E92 M3 DCT Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Atlanta, GA iTrader: (0)	..jump on in, the water feels great! Nice to hear those words that we all know are so true. It IS a great car to drive both on the track and to work everyday. __________________ 2008 M3 Coupe / DCT // StopTech BBK 380/355 / Pagid RS29 / Motul / Apex Arc-8 / BFG R1S / Ground Control / MS filter / Performance spoiler / BPM tune // Road Atlanta 1:39.70 / VIR Full 2:10.87 / Barber 1:42.20
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-25-2010, 08:57 PM	#3
RayC Lieutenant 13 Rep 544 Posts Drives: E90 M3 Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Centreville, VA iTrader: (4)	Love this car! Had a track day on Saturday...didn't get any sleep the night before so I was exhausted by the end of the day. Let my girlfriend drive the 3 hours back while I took a nap. The only thing that this car doesn't do well is gas mileage, but I really don't care too much about that.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-25-2010, 11:45 PM	#4
jacobbmw Bimmerfan 6 Rep 89 Posts Drives: 2016 X5 M Sport. 3.0 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: New York iTrader: (0)	How did it compare to the Cayman in your opinion? IMO, the Cayman S is the most well sorted car I have driven. If only it were more practical for daily use.....
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-26-2010, 12:12 AM	#5
spyderco10 Colonel 63 Rep 2,427 Posts Drives: AW E92 M3 6MT Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Honolulu, HI iTrader: (0)	M3 is a great car, but you got a 997TT!!! __________________ “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” - John 3:16
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-26-2010, 02:15 AM	#6
donovan Brigadier General 371 Rep 4,167 Posts Drives: R8 - Ford Raptor Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: National iTrader: (17)	Thank goodness, more DCT love as it deserves it On a side note: I test drove the e92 for 15 minutes and I knew I wanted a DCT and an e92.. __________________ Audi R8 v10 Ford Raptor m3e46freak@yahoo.comfor all euro parts!! ebay/craigslist verified/ m3post/e46fanantics/m3forum/zpost/bimmerforum
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-26-2010, 02:50 PM	#8
Doctor J Captain 33 Rep 741 Posts Drives: 2010 E93 M3 DCT Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Vancouver BC iTrader: (0)	the days of high-revving NA V8s are coming to an end get one while they last __________________ 2010 BMW M3 vert with DCT & Akra (sold) 2012 Porsche 911 Turbo S
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-26-2010, 03:18 PM	#9
Hawk Lax Second Lieutenant 13 Rep 259 Posts Drives: 2008 M3 AW Coupe Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: L.I., N.Y. iTrader: (0)	Too be fair to the 911. The one they have at Skip Barber at Limerock is on its last legs.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-26-2010, 05:12 PM	#10
Projectile Second Lieutenant 28 Rep 251 Posts Drives: 2017 M3 Join Date: May 2009 Location: Calgary iTrader: (0)	997 was a pig? In what sense, acceleration? Was this one of your first track sessions? __________________ Gone but not forgotten: 996Targa6MT, 997C2S6MT, e92DCT, e926MT, F826MT
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-26-2010, 08:54 PM	#13
slowman Enlisted Member 0 Rep 35 Posts Drives: 2011 e90 M3 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: West Coast iTrader: (0)	How did the IS-F compare? I never got a chance to test drive one.
	Appreciate 0 Quote