E92 M3 vs RS4 Avant vs Z4M R

[Jaw]

I came soooo close to the92 when I bought the m.. i cant wxplain why I didnt, there was just something about the m that grabbed me. but then I suppose theyre different types of car so.hard to compare really. mpg doesnt mqtter to me as fuel is cheap here and its a weekend toy. performance wise, the Z will have an M3 beat when I'm done fettling it, so it's all about the feel really.

I think I had my heart set on something raw and with two seats. I tried an M6 and just found it too lardy but the v10 was sublime. the 92, m6 and m5 all sit at about 100k thqt said with the z being a touch under 70 so that helped too. I love the m3 though in terms of styling and engine, my last car was a 5.4 boss engined ford so Id gotten used to the grunt and brutality.of a v8 (not that the m3 wasnt much more refined, but some of the 8 cylinder charm remained) I did test drive.it back to back with a cayman that said. a tiptronic one. it was aweful imo. box slow, handling sharp that said. but felt empty after the drive. performance was hot hatch with 60 coming in 6 seconds, and in gear torque nothing to write.home about.

 

[original guvnor]

Z4MC road test data from Autocar


E92M3 Autocar road test figures

You can see that the M3 is definitely quite a bit quicker in a straight line but the reverse is true in the gears - the Z4MC performs as well if not better than the M3.

 

[Wondermike]

Wow really surprised at the in-gear performance. Never drive one but I think the DCT on the E92 has shorter gearing on the first few (4?) ratios so I think a DCT E92 would be the reverse.

Interesting though - the Z4M is so fast for the £££s.

 

[Z4M_CSL]

Did something today that I thought would be of Interest to a few people.

I went and test drove an E92 M3 Monte Carlo Edition today, it was manual and had all the toys etc. the car was mint in every way and looked fantastic the Monte Carlo Blue on the black wheels was fantastic IMO.

I got in the car and it immediately was more refined than the Z4M. Softer and easier to drive in every sense. I got on to a bypass and gave it the beans all the way to 8000rpm in second and third, considering the rain was lashing down there was some sideways action which was beautifully controlled by the traction control. The noise was ok but not as intense or loud as I thought it was going to be. The car was lovely to drive at normal speeds.

BUT!!! I got back in my Z4M R and immediately the car felt alive and more special somehow, the noise was great and very welcome, it was more of an event. I went up the same piece of by pass and accelerated all the way through the revs again and the Z4M felt just as quick and it put a smile on my face which the M3 didn't do!

Now admittedly the M3 in everyday life would be a more useable car but as a toy the Z4M in my opinion was just more special and more of an occasion, and considering that I use it every day I think that is a testament to it.

Another comparison! I had an Audi RS4 Avant on Christmas Day and Boxing Day (one of my fathers many cars).

It is a lovely place to be from the second you slide in to the bucket seats and push the push button start. The exhaust noise is wonderful and with the additional sport buttons pressed it is even more basey! The flat bottomed steering wheel feels great. As we all know the weather was hateful over the Christmas period and my 160 mile round trip on every road imaginable in every condition was a joy in the Audi. It felt every bit as quick as the M and I have no doubt at all that the Audi would be faster than almost anything from A to B. The noise also is spectacular from low revs all the way through! In the wet the four wheel was superb and felt exceedingly stable at all speeds in all road conditions.

My conclusion was that the Audi RS4 was superb at everything that was thrown at it and felt very special even at low speeds. It is a real wolf in sheeps clothing!

Sorry for waffling on just thought I would share my opinion as I thought it would be helpful to anyone like myself looking at pastures new. I am going to try an borrow an M3 for a weekend to really get a proper drive because 30 mins just is not enough as i want to live with it for a couple of days. My search for my next car continues going to drive a 997 Carrera S next so we will see what happens. I have driven a 997 turbo many times but that is a different animal altogether and IMO is not a fair comparison.

Interesting post as I was at this place a while back, lol. As you probable know I've (Well I mean CA-Technologies, etc) have done alot of work on my Z4MR improving the performance and handling. I must admit leaving with both cars (Z4MR and M3 e92 coupe)for over a year the Z feels much more alive. Yes with my Z4 handling changes there is no way the M3 change keep up down a twisty bit of road. However where you feel every stone on the road with the Z the M3 just seems to glide over those bumps and against a standard Z4M be faster and make easy work of some bumpy roads. Its probable just me but I did sharpen up the M3 handling just a little as I felt it needed tweaking. With those changes and in M mode the M3 does come close on the fun factor but is great to switch back to normal mode.

I thought the the sound of the exhaust on the M3 e92 was abit subdued that's why I went for an aftermarket one. With that and the Carbon fibre bits the V8 souns just amazing...

At the time other cars on my shopping list was the 997 CS, Aston Martin V8, Maserati GT, M6 (that fab V10...) and for out and out performance a GTR but I settled on a lovely red M3 e92 as it was the best all rounder, but also I didn't want to lose my Z4, lol. If you get the chance have a read of the article in the Feb edition of Performance BMW (out on the 3 Jan). As it talks about my transition to the M3.... LOL

However have to admit would love this G-Power M6 V10 aswell, LOL

 

[aerobod]

Did something today that I thought would be of Interest to a few people.

I went and test drove an E92 M3 Monte Carlo Edition today, it was manual and had all the toys etc. the car was mint in every way and looked fantastic the Monte Carlo Blue on the black wheels was fantastic IMO.

I got in the car and it immediately was more refined than the Z4M. Softer and easier to drive in every sense. I got on to a bypass and gave it the beans all the way to 8000rpm in second and third, considering the rain was lashing down there was some sideways action which was beautifully controlled by the traction control. The noise was ok but not as intense or loud as I thought it was going to be. The car was lovely to drive at normal speeds.

BUT!!! I got back in my Z4M R and immediately the car felt alive and more special somehow, the noise was great and very welcome, it was more of an event. I went up the same piece of by pass and accelerated all the way through the revs again and the Z4M felt just as quick and it put a smile on my face which the M3 didn't do!

Now admittedly the M3 in everyday life would be a more useable car but as a toy the Z4M in my opinion was just more special and more of an occasion, and considering that I use it every day I think that is a testament to it.

Another comparison! I had an Audi RS4 Avant on Christmas Day and Boxing Day (one of my fathers many cars).

It is a lovely place to be from the second you slide in to the bucket seats and push the push button start. The exhaust noise is wonderful and with the additional sport buttons pressed it is even more basey! The flat bottomed steering wheel feels great. As we all know the weather was hateful over the Christmas period and my 160 mile round trip on every road imaginable in every condition was a joy in the Audi. It felt every bit as quick as the M and I have no doubt at all that the Audi would be faster than almost anything from A to B. The noise also is spectacular from low revs all the way through! In the wet the four wheel was superb and felt exceedingly stable at all speeds in all road conditions.

My conclusion was that the Audi RS4 was superb at everything that was thrown at it and felt very special even at low speeds. It is a real wolf in sheeps clothing!

Sorry for waffling on just thought I would share my opinion as I thought it would be helpful to anyone like myself looking at pastures new. I am going to try an borrow an M3 for a weekend to really get a proper drive because 30 mins just is not enough as i want to live with it for a couple of days. My search for my next car continues going to drive a 997 Carrera S next so we will see what happens. I have driven a 997 turbo many times but that is a different animal altogether and IMO is not a fair comparison.

Interesting post as I was at this place a while back, lol. As you probable know I've (Well I mean CA-Technologies, etc) have done alot of work on my Z4MR improving the performance and handling. I must admit leaving with both cars (Z4MR and M3 e92 coupe)for over a year the Z feels much more alive. Yes with my Z4 handling changes there is no way the M3 change keep up down a twisty bit of road. However where you feel every stone on the road with the Z the M3 just seems to glide over those bumps and against a standard Z4M be faster and make easy work of some bumpy roads. Its probable just me but I did sharpen up the M3 handling just a little as I felt it needed tweaking. With those changes and in M mode the M3 does come close on the fun factor but is great to switch back to normal mode.

I thought the the sound of the exhaust on the M3 e92 was abit subdued that's why I went for an aftermarket one. With that and the Carbon fibre bits the V8 souns just amazing...

At the time other cars on my shopping list was the 997 CS, Aston Martin V8, Maserati GT, M6 (that fab V10...) and for out and out performance a GTR but I settled on a lovely red M3 e92 as it was the best all rounder, but also I didn't want to lose my Z4, lol. If you get the chance have a read of the article in the Feb edition of Performance BMW (out on the 3 Jan). As it talks about my transition to the M3.... LOL

However have to admit would love this G-Power M6 V10 aswell, LOL

When I first looked at that photo, I thought it said "BOLDRICE" at the bottom. Must have been a sub-conscious reaction to some of the body adornments

 

[Franzino]

E92 M3 vs RS4 Avant vs Z4M R..... Sounds like a great garage... RS4 Avant as a daily car, Z4M R when it's sunny, e92 M3 with AP and KW Clubsport for track...

 

[LeeZ4MR]

Interesting that I got involved in this thread & now I've made the transition from Z4MR to E92 M3 (manual) it will be nice to comment on the differences in a few weeks time, the V8 is immense in the M3 but I love the raw driving experience in the Zed & the straight six is a very special engine indeed

 

[D6GMB]

It's late but I'm bored....

There's an M3 in this colour scheme I see regularly, I really like it, has a nice menace to it :evil:

The M3's mpg figures don't seem bad for a V8, I was getting maybe 1-2 mg more out of my old 4.4 V8, but that was only 280bhp and through an old auto, lovely lazy power though. I could get around 27mpg on a long motorway run without really going for economy but there were a few 50mph average camera areas. A similar run in my M sees around 28mpg but driving styles between the two are always going to be a little different.

I think I'd enjoy the M3, but miss the rawness or sense of occasion from the Z4M as others have said. A lottery win would have me buying and M3 GTS though 8)

Hey thats a picture of my wee pride and joy, turn her back to Interlagos blue :wink: :wink: :wink: