New M3 looks so under stated
- Thread starter srhutch
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original guvnor said:
It,s no secret that most car buyers buy on a car,s external look,s
I wasn,t saying the Rs4 would be a better drive than the M3 , merely that the BMW looked ordinary whereas the Audi at least looked purposeful 8)
Guess it all depends on motoring requirements which for me mean getting from A to B , loaded up in comfort relatively quickly 8)
For 99% of the time I,m not to bothered about the back road capabilities other than a drive out on Sunday afternoon,s now & again at which times i would admit our A6 Avant would,nt thrill me
the way it covered 620miles from Manchester to Normandy on one tank & could still feel my legs did impress though 
biggiz_40 said:Sussex......if you get a spare half hour OP call into Cooper Tunbridge Wells this weekend and you'll see this beast in the flesh.
IMHO an absolute stunning piece of engineering.
Oh as you own an ///M you'll get preferential parking and you can sample their free hog roast
Hoping to call in on Sunday as their showing the Austrian GP as well
Chandlers is only 500 yards from me, much quicker :wink:
Isn't the idea of the new M3 and M4 to have subtle differences though? - the M3 saloon more sensible, slightly less shouty about its credentials and the M4 the sportier expression of the brand values?
M cars have been quite subtle for years - take the Z4M's - there isn't a lot to distinguish them from the other Z4's really. It's the same with the M5 - it doesn't look that different to an M-sport 5-er. Isn't that part of the appeal for a lot of people?
Mr Wilks - sorry if I was a bit spiky last night - I was in a foul mood because of the football!
I get why people like Audi's (especially the Avants) but I don't think the Rs4 can hold a candle to the C63 or M3 for driver enjoyment and that must be a major part of the equation if you are buying one of these. It also suffers from the same problem as the E92 M3. Fantastic engine but you can't get the most out of it on UK roads because you have to rev the nads off it to get to the interesting bit.
M cars have been quite subtle for years - take the Z4M's - there isn't a lot to distinguish them from the other Z4's really. It's the same with the M5 - it doesn't look that different to an M-sport 5-er. Isn't that part of the appeal for a lot of people?
Mr Wilks - sorry if I was a bit spiky last night - I was in a foul mood because of the football!
I get why people like Audi's (especially the Avants) but I don't think the Rs4 can hold a candle to the C63 or M3 for driver enjoyment and that must be a major part of the equation if you are buying one of these. It also suffers from the same problem as the E92 M3. Fantastic engine but you can't get the most out of it on UK roads because you have to rev the nads off it to get to the interesting bit.
From experience I couldn't agree moreoriginal guvnor said:
I also agree with the subtle changes the M3 has and they are meant to be fairly discreet cars and the E36 M3 is the finest example of this, if you mention that the M3 isn't much different to the rest of the range on M3cutters though they all start crying their eyes out as most think the M3 is the best car in the world bar none!! :lol:
I dropped in this morning to bowker Preston, the zed got a lot of good attention. However I went in to Google at the m3/4. I thought the 3 actually stands out from the range more than the 4 does. The M4 does look amazing, but not so different to a middle of the range 4 series whereas the arches on the M3 are much more obvious.
Fired the car up for me, really surprised at the sound. All totally manufactured obviously but it did sound good out of the back end, and really loud! Reminded me of an AMG at idle and actually sounded quite exotic at higher revs. Not so sure how all that noise from the back and not as much from the front will weigh up on the road - but certainly liked the m3! A lot of carbon fibre dressings in them which I also liked a lot.
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Fired the car up for me, really surprised at the sound. All totally manufactured obviously but it did sound good out of the back end, and really loud! Reminded me of an AMG at idle and actually sounded quite exotic at higher revs. Not so sure how all that noise from the back and not as much from the front will weigh up on the road - but certainly liked the m3! A lot of carbon fibre dressings in them which I also liked a lot.
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Funny, I though the exact opposite when I saw a black one recently, I thought it looked incredibly pumped up to the point where it was almost a little OTT. :| no M4 so sadly couldn't compare But from pics I prefer the 4.
I'd love an Austin yellow M4, would make a great do it all car. Unfortunately i'd need a minor lottery win first
I'd love an Austin yellow M4, would make a great do it all car. Unfortunately i'd need a minor lottery win first
Yes biggiz_40 , that's the thought I had before I went in. My brother thought exactly the same. The M4 was in white, the M3 in black so in theory the white should have shown the lines and flares more but the overall shape took over. Don't get me wrong, the M4 looked awesome but just the overall impression was it looked much more subtle.
The carbon fibre strut brace really is a thing of beauty!
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The carbon fibre strut brace really is a thing of beauty!
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I saw one today in the showroom at Stratstone Chesterfield - a black one with the orange leather (looks more amarone to these eyes). I then walked out to the customer car park and there was a black E92 M3 in the car park. Let me tell you, the new M3 looks way more purposeful than the E92 did.
All these blue calipers... I'm not a fan.
This doesn't look anything special.
My dad has an E46 M3, which has become a bit of a garage queen these days. It has a plate on it to hide it's age but with a mere 27,000 miles on a 03 plate it's still pretty decent.
However, when I saw it the other day I thought, hmm that does look old now compared to the new 3 series.
Saying that, at least it was a decent ///M car, big wheel arches, menacing front end etc. They seem to have toned all that down these days for softer more subtle cars. Perhaps that's what people want but surely if you're spending serious cash on an M3 then you'd want it to at least hint that it was something a bit special.
The M4 however, that might be a different story...
This doesn't look anything special.
My dad has an E46 M3, which has become a bit of a garage queen these days. It has a plate on it to hide it's age but with a mere 27,000 miles on a 03 plate it's still pretty decent.
However, when I saw it the other day I thought, hmm that does look old now compared to the new 3 series.
Saying that, at least it was a decent ///M car, big wheel arches, menacing front end etc. They seem to have toned all that down these days for softer more subtle cars. Perhaps that's what people want but surely if you're spending serious cash on an M3 then you'd want it to at least hint that it was something a bit special.
The M4 however, that might be a different story...
This one only had standard brakes on it and for anyone who has driven a M3 knows the standard brakes are tripe maybe the ceramics would have fared better, gutting to see one smashed up so early though-Tom- said:Shiiitttt :-( it does look a bit wider like this. Hope the passengers were OK
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I doubt very much that your average M3/M4 or RS4 buyer picks the car because of it's looks. It will factor in the decision but will be pretty far down the list. Joe Schmo who knows nothing about cars probably puts looks as a higher priority.
A friend and I went to the M3/M4 launch at the local dealership at the weekend. I have to admit, I walked straight past the M3 without realising that's what it was. It was in black with the silver wheels which look surprisingly like the standard M Sport wheels on 1 series and the like. It was being overshadowed by the M3 in Austin Yellow parked next to it. When you see the M3 either in the lighter colours with the evident carbon roof or parked next to a standard 3 series it becomes a lot more evident.
Anyway, we were lucky enough to get out for a drive in the M4. This is perhaps relevant as my friend had a new RS4 recently. His thoughts
"Feels like a nice normal BMW in comfort, put it in M mode and it comes alive. Interior is great, much nicer than the RS4. The torque makes it much quicker for road driving than the old M3 (he had one when they were first launched and didn't like it much), or the RS4. On a track they would be closer, but on a twisty road where you are accelerating out of corners a lot the M4 would be rapid. Sounds great, I didn't think of the sound as fake at all. The ceramic brakes are fantastic. Overall a great package. Not as good a drivers car as the Cayman, but it has 4 seats, a big boot and fold down back seats, is very everyday usable and looks amazing in the flesh. I'm sold."
He ordered one in blue. It's not laguna seca unfortunately and it's not like laguna seca. It's called Yas Marina blue and the most accurate description is that it's the same as the light blue in the M stripes. He went and looked at one at another dealership the next day to confirm his colour and has since changed to white, said the blue was horrible. The orange looks fantastic in the metal but it would be a brave choice.
A friend and I went to the M3/M4 launch at the local dealership at the weekend. I have to admit, I walked straight past the M3 without realising that's what it was. It was in black with the silver wheels which look surprisingly like the standard M Sport wheels on 1 series and the like. It was being overshadowed by the M3 in Austin Yellow parked next to it. When you see the M3 either in the lighter colours with the evident carbon roof or parked next to a standard 3 series it becomes a lot more evident.
Anyway, we were lucky enough to get out for a drive in the M4. This is perhaps relevant as my friend had a new RS4 recently. His thoughts
"Feels like a nice normal BMW in comfort, put it in M mode and it comes alive. Interior is great, much nicer than the RS4. The torque makes it much quicker for road driving than the old M3 (he had one when they were first launched and didn't like it much), or the RS4. On a track they would be closer, but on a twisty road where you are accelerating out of corners a lot the M4 would be rapid. Sounds great, I didn't think of the sound as fake at all. The ceramic brakes are fantastic. Overall a great package. Not as good a drivers car as the Cayman, but it has 4 seats, a big boot and fold down back seats, is very everyday usable and looks amazing in the flesh. I'm sold."
He ordered one in blue. It's not laguna seca unfortunately and it's not like laguna seca. It's called Yas Marina blue and the most accurate description is that it's the same as the light blue in the M stripes. He went and looked at one at another dealership the next day to confirm his colour and has since changed to white, said the blue was horrible. The orange looks fantastic in the metal but it would be a brave choice.