i_love_cars wroteWell....
G80 manual is my daily and in winter if it gets really bad and for some reason I absolutely must drive in bad snow, I'll take the X5. My E92 mostly sits as a weekend car and even then I drive it like once a month these days - Porsche is the better choice for a weekend car. I sold my 718 GT4 last year because I came to realize they are not very fun on public roads, and am now thinking a 911 T makes more sense for me and is likely what I will buy when I sell my E92, but that's a different discussion.
The G80 is way better than people are giving it credit for. I personally think people are just eager to hate on new stuff because we as humans are naturally creatures of habit and many people are not immediately comfortable with change - it takes time. Setting aside the subjective polarizing aspect of the front-end of the car for the moment - the G80 is really the best iteration ever of what the M3 is supposed to be - a car with daily driver sensibility combined with an edge for performance that is at least competent on the track.
Everyone complains about lack of soul as if it's a unique problem to BMW. Modern cars all have this problem because they are all being controlled by computers which is literally the opposite of soul and character. It's clinical. The PASM+ in my GT4 and electric steering, computers controlling ABS systems for stability and rotation in corners, and a host of other aids are all present and rob the car of things like soul. A good engine induction and exhaust note doesn't mean a car automatically has this deep, amazing character to it. If you are driving a modern car, you are compromising in terms of character because you cannot escape the computers and aids and software controlling so many aspects of the car. Stop fooling yourself if you are that person.
Both the G8x and E9x platforms are amazing in their own right and both are compromised in some ways. I absolutely adore the S65, chassis neutrality, the tall but not too tall gearing in the 6MT in my E92, the immediate steering feedback- 100% it's more of a driver's car than the new G8x but again this is not a problem unique to BMW. You have to either get over your loathing of new tech or else just prepare for 20-30 years of driving your E9x into the ground and dealing with NLA parts and everything that goes along with owning a decades-old BMW M platform. As someone who previously had an E39 M5 and an S50-powered E30, I know some things about this life lol.
Bimmerfun82 wroteDefinitely agree.I agree - I had the comp X drive which added 200+ lbs over the base manual. An incredibly capable car for daily driving and when driven back to back with a base 992 way more capable and fast and luxurious IMO.
However, I would argue the M3 is completely over the top performance from what the M3 used to be. It isn’t even the same size as the 3 series. What you get for the $ is insane. It really caught me off guard just how powerful the G80 is - after I got through the break-in period - and the penalty is of course the weight and size.
Came back from a conference in San Diego (Tues-Thurs). Was able to get there on one tank of gas and still have over a ¼ tank left, which great highway gas mileage in the G80. Hit a bit of traffic, hit two buttons and the car is driving itself on the highway. The performance is a bit crazy... nothing wrong with that as long as you're paying attention. Even in efficient/comfort mode, when merging I have to check my speed fairly often, the car just gets to very illegal speeds so quickly. iDrive8 is seamless with CarPlay and two huge screens + the massive HUD, and the carbon bucket seats did not give me any problems whatsoever for 2:30-3 hours straight each way. It was 97F outside temp. and I couldn't have been more comfortable. The G80 is also extremely capable in the canyons, but you do feel the weight a bit, especially after jumping out of the e92.
Would I have wanted to do the long(ish) distance drive in the e92? Honestly, no. It would have been fine in comfort mode, but lack of low end torque can get frustrating, and the car just makes you (well at least me) want to drive it in the middle of the rev range. I'd probably have to stop for gas at least once each way...
The cars are really built for different purposes, and I can honestly say that I have a smile on my face when I start both of them up.
I am thinking of that CS/transmission tune for the G80, though! Really the only thing I miss from my F8xs (which still doesn't compare to the e92 downshifts)
