[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by spool twice

I was just curious if anyone had information on how long the life cycle will be on the F80 M3?

No one knows for sure. but I think we can make a very reliable guess. I notice some mention of the M4 in the responses which is slightly confusing the issue. Let's carefully lay this all out.

In the E90, it was from 2008-2011; the end production cycle similar to the regular E90 3-series (which was a 6 year cycle).

Right. You're on the right track here. Specifically, the M model has always ended production when the series model on which it is based ends production.

History tells me that the F30 body will survive through 2017, if that was the case, does anyone know if the F80 will end in 2017? Or does the new body designation (F80 versus F30) represent a new era where the current M3 body will be built along side of the new "G" body designations 3series so the F80 will run though until the F82 M4 life cycle ends?

Well, I don't have any inside information on this, but I don't think there is any compelling evidence to suggest that the F8x designation represents a change from the established pattern for the end of the M product life cycle.

It doesn't make sense to build the M3 only through 2017 right?

It does make sense to end the F80 production when F30 production ends. They share the same tooling so once the factory is retooled and assembly of the next generation 3 begins, that's it for the predecessor.

But is 2017 really when we should expect that to happen? I would say that is extremely unlikely. Instead, it should go until the end of 2018 and, quite possibly until early 2019. See my posts in this thread for why I think so:

http://f80.bimmerpost.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=864358

Also:

http://www.f30post.com/forums/showpo...3&postcount=47

I would love to know, because it's definitely one of my deciding factors when making a purchase between an M3 or M4 in a couple years.

I completely understand. Knowing that the sedan will only be with us for four and a half years is why I decided to take the plunge now. In the past when I bought convertibles (E46 and E93), there was a longer lifespan and later end date so this time around I had a new factor to consider and it absolutely influenced my decision to get in early.

Originally Posted by Jockey

Yes, you are correct the M3 sedan ended in 2011 but the F30 only replaced the non-M versions.

While this is true, the point to be made here is that the introduction of the next generation series car can make even the predecessor's M model look dated.

Another key: typically, major changes in the direction of the styling occur every two generations. Notice the similarities between the E21 and E30, the E36 and E46, the E9x and F3x/F8x. So we are on schedule for another significant reimagining of the car.

Originally Posted by Jockey

They continued to make the E92 M3 for 2 years after the non-M E92 ceased.

Untrue.