I will be driving M3 in October

[gmund1948]

I will be in Frankfurt for Pressdays, and I was invited to drive the new M3 by a contact in Early to mid October, at a track with some very accomplished German drivers. In the Mean time I am flying to the states to PU my 08 Corvette 6Mn Z51 Etc,

I will be able to report on the drivng experience in more depth at that time.

It will be interesting, as I took my wifes 335 Vert out last night and drove it hard, I said It will be hard to beat this car (the 335) as it is simply amazing.

I will take the Vette with me if it arrives in country to the test. It will be a good measuring tool.

I still believe BMW will have a base at $55K USD but plenty of options will be available to push it into the 60s

I will order a pretty basic car with Silverstone or Lemans blue if It dosent
cost me an arm and a leg. I will likely get a sunroof 6Mn and any "REAL"
performance options, I would like heated seats and a fold through back seat
I will not order nav I-drive Bluetooth or other creature comforts except for possibly the ridiculously expensive Ipod adaptor.

I will be scarce here because of travel but will check in

From Germany

[Epacy]

Very cool.

[Hans Delbruck]

Congrats! Looking forward to your impressions, esp vs the Vette!

[ChitownM3]

Don't even try and compare the m3 to the 08 vette, you will be disappointed in BMW. The 07 Z51 was the 3rd fastest on that Virginia road course when Car and Driver tested all the cars, only behind the z06 and the GT3. The 08 Z51 has even more power and supposedly better steering, the m3 will be blown away.

[vladinecko]

you lucky bastard! one of my buddies at work also reviews cars for our car tech so he always tells me about all the invites he gets as a part of press to get a taste of all those cool cars on a track. i'm always so jealous.

[vladinecko]

Originally Posted by ChitownM3

Don't even try and compare the m3 to the 08 vette, you will be disappointed in BMW. The 07 Z51 was the 3rd fastest on that Virginia road course when Car and Driver tested all the cars, only behind the z06 and the GT3. The 08 Z51 has even more power and supposedly better steering, the m3 will be blown away.

i have to agree. i keep hearing lots of good things about the Z51. i'm pretty sure it's going to kick a lot of cars' asses, not just M3's.

[Carnage]

Originally Posted by ChitownM3

Don't even try and compare the m3 to the 08 vette, you will be disappointed in BMW. The 07 Z51 was the 3rd fastest on that Virginia road course when Car and Driver tested all the cars, only behind the z06 and the GT3. The 08 Z51 has even more power and supposedly better steering, the m3 will be blown away.

Actually the C6 Z51 was the 5th fastest around the track but take a good look at 1-4. They are all cars that cost at least $25K more then the C6. You are right about the improvements on the '08, if a '07 ran a 3:03, I wouldn't be surprised if the '08 was now running in the GT3/Viper range of 3:01.

1 - Chevrolet Corvette Z06 - 2:58.2
2 - Ford GT: 3:00.7
3 - Dodge Viper: 3:01.6
4 - Porsche 911 GT3 -3:01.8
5 - Chevrolet Corvette C6 - 3:03.6
6 - Lotus Exige S - 3:04.5
7 - Audi R8 - 3:04.6
8 - Porsche 911 Turbo - 3:05.8
9 - Shelby GT500- 3:05.9
10 - Lotus Elise: 3:09.2
11 - Porsche Cayman S: 3:09.5
12 - BMW M6: 3:10.0
13 - BMW 335i - 3:10.5
14 - Audi RS4- 3:11.2
15 - BMW Z4M - 3:11.7
16 - Nissan 350Z: 3:12.5
17 - Mitsubishi Evo MR: 3:13.5
18 - Pontiac Solstice GXP - 3:15.7
19 - Mazda Speed 3 - 3:16.0
20 - Dodge Charger SRT8: 3:18.2
21 - Mazda RX-8: 3:19.0
22 - Chevy Cobalt SS: 3:20.6
23 - Ford Mustang GT: 3:20.9
24 - Mini Cooper S - 3:22.9
25/26 - VW GTI and Honda Civic Si: 3:24.6
27 - Mazda MX-5: 3:29.3

[gmund1948]

Originally Posted by Carnage

Actually the C6 Z51 was the 5th fastest around the track but take a good look at 1-4. They are all cars that cost at least $25K more then the C6. You are right about the improvements on the '08, if a '07 ran a 3:03, I wouldn't be surprised if the '08 was now running in the GT3/Viper range of 3:01.

1 - Chevrolet Corvette Z06 - 2:58.2
2 - Ford GT: 3:00.7
3 - Dodge Viper: 3:01.6
4 - Porsche 911 GT3 -3:01.8
5 - Chevrolet Corvette C6 - 3:03.6
6 - Lotus Exige S - 3:04.5
7 - Audi R8 - 3:04.6
8 - Porsche 911 Turbo - 3:05.8
9 - Shelby GT500- 3:05.9
10 - Lotus Elise: 3:09.2
11 - Porsche Cayman S: 3:09.5
12 - BMW M6: 3:10.0
13 - BMW 335i - 3:10.5
14 - Audi RS4- 3:11.2
15 - BMW Z4M - 3:11.7
16 - Nissan 350Z: 3:12.5
17 - Mitsubishi Evo MR: 3:13.5
18 - Pontiac Solstice GXP - 3:15.7
19 - Mazda Speed 3 - 3:16.0
20 - Dodge Charger SRT8: 3:18.2
21 - Mazda RX-8: 3:19.0
22 - Chevy Cobalt SS: 3:20.6
23 - Ford Mustang GT: 3:20.9
24 - Mini Cooper S - 3:22.9
25/26 - VW GTI and Honda Civic Si: 3:24.6
27 - Mazda MX-5: 3:29.3

The vette will be new to me and It will take some getting used to. THe M3
I expect will be an easier car to drive, and thats what I am looking for.
My 05 Mustang GT Vert goes away Tomorrow, and it has the same HP as my wifes 335 vert, and the 335 is so much more fun to drive, no comparison at least here in Germany.

We will See

[Carnage]

Originally Posted by gmund1948

The vette will be new to me and It will take some getting used to. THe M3
I expect will be an easier car to drive, and thats what I am looking for.
My 05 Mustang GT Vert goes away Tomorrow, and it has the same HP as my wifes 335 vert, and the 335 is so much more fun to drive, no comparison at least here in Germany.

We will See

Believe it or not, the Vette is a surprising easy car to drive and it's manner in the city and the highway is much better then the outgoing E46 M3. On a track, once you get used to the chassis, it will do just about anything you tell it. That "rough" manner is one of reasons I traded my M3 for the C6 and I hope BMW really improved this area in the new M3.

[Hans Delbruck]

Originally Posted by gmund1948

The vette will be new to me and It will take some getting used to. THe M3
I expect will be an easier car to drive, and thats what I am looking for.
My 05 Mustang GT Vert goes away Tomorrow, and it has the same HP as my wifes 335 vert, and the 335 is so much more fun to drive, no comparison at least here in Germany.

We will See

You will most likely find the M3 feels more dialed in than the Vette. The Vette has torque and brute power but Chevy just keeps adding more horsepower to the car every year, instead of working on the chassis. Makes for great lap times but IMO a Honda S2000 is far more fun to drive on the track! I tracked a C5 Z06 (7:56 on the 'ring BTW ) and I now track an S2K. The only thing that's tough is getting blown by on the long straights .....

There, I just did your review for ya! Can I come too?

[nusevad]

congrats man, def keep us posted in the months to come.