Golfer Posted June 22, 2014 Report Share Posted June 22, 2014 Hi All, drove the new M3 today, bright sunny conditions. Car came in Black metallic with Red Leather. Not my cup of tea, but the M4 in the showroom was just great in it’s colour. Which was Silverstone Grey Metallic. First impressions : It feels more like a “Boy racer” come “Go Cart” to me. Most suited to tight “B” road blasting, it handled the corners on “A/B” roads very well. I went hard at it, but the car is forgiving and largely kept it’s line through the corners with little over/under steer. Interior very 3 series and nothing special at all, this lets the whole car down IMO, just too cheap looking. Seats: Sports Seats look great, but were not very comfortable for me, especially over a long distance they would give me a neck ache. Upgraded “M multi-function seats” (if available) would be my choice. Rear seats had good knee room, but again a bit upright for us on a longish journey could prove a problem for some. Boot looked small. Rear seats folded. The car is and felt very light and at a steady 80 MPH shows 2200 RPM in7th. Exhaust sound was ok over 5K RPM but droned a bit at lower RPM and whilst cruising, this again may upset some so a long test drive is what I would recommend to all. Was It as quick as my LCI........................NO sorry it was not. The M5 is just bonkers fast in comparison in our opinion. I us my wife as a gauge for tyre mashing , and she agreed the M5 is KING. Straight line speed the M3 was out gunned, but give it a twisty road and it would win. Do I want one?. NO my M6 GC CP will be more to my liking, with a classy interior to match. Just my view guys, go test and report yourselves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewNiceMrMe Posted June 22, 2014 Report Share Posted June 22, 2014 You've ordered an M6 and currently own an M5. Forgive me, but I could have written your conclusion without reading any of the above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golfer Posted June 22, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2014 You've ordered an M6 and currently own an M5. Forgive me, but I could have written your conclusion without reading any of the above. I have but nothing stopping me buying the M3 is there?. No doubt many will like it's feel and compactness, just my thoughts on it , test one and give your views. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golfer Posted June 22, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2014 You've ordered an M6 and currently own an M5. Forgive me, but I could have written your conclusion without reading any of the above. REPLY: I have but nothing stopping me buying the M3 is there?. No doubt many will like it's feel and compactness, just my thoughts on it , test one and give your views. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie_n Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 Hi All, I drove the M4 Coupe yesterday. Yas Marina Blue with Silverstone interior, HUD and not much else optional. A few years ago I was desperate to get a 1M but after driving it felt that it was a lot of money for a 1 series that was no different inside and with an engine character that was no different to my 335i coupe (I know there are some easy power gains to be made with the 1M and financially it would have been a great choice, but if it doesn't float your boat then what's the point). I approached the M4 with apprehension that it would be the same; I know the knew engine is very much different from the N54/N55 units in the 1M and 335i but I feared it would be the same. Great low down torque but not that excitement at 6000rpm+ that you got with the V8 M3 or RS4. Well, it appears that I was wrong. I have not driven the new M5 or M6 (so not that well placed to disagree with Golfers comments) but I felt that the power delivery was relentless. The DCT box was a little jerky at points especially when in its highest severity change mode but put your foot down in 2nd and you are nailed to the seat all the way to 7000+rpm. A flick into third drops you right back into the peak torque range so there is no let up to the building of speed which quickly has you approaching license losing speeds. I was also concerned that the exhaust note would be dull due to the 2 turbos taking precious sound energy from the exhaust, however it was reminiscent in some ways of the 3.2 straight six I had in my Z4M in terms of tone and whilst being a little bit boomy at low revs it was very enjoyable at mid to high level revs. Handling wise, the drive was a bit limited but as Golfer mentioned this car is definitely a fast A/B road king; turn in was precise, good feedback even with the electro-mechanical steering. The huge amounts of torque also mean that getting the back end out is a very easy task to accomplish and it is also so well balanced that it is easy to do this without fearing that bad things are about to happen. I also think BMW have made a huge effort to improve the ride of their cars especially given the state of our roads. It was firm but at no point was there that crashing over bumps that I always hated on the previous generation 3 series. So, now just need to see if it fits up the drive (ground clearance issues at new house) and may well be placing an order... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarMad Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 Excellent mini review. It does seem to be surprising a few people, its certainly a different car to the old one but times change and do our needs in the end I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garcon magnifique Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 Nice review. I've been idly tossing up the options on BMW's online configurator lately and a new M3 is rapidly climbing my wanted list - if I can be patient enough save up and/or wait for used examples to hit the forecourts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy_Bangle Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 I got quite excited about ordering an M4 in Sweden till I got the quote, £82k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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