M3- the best car I have owned!

[grantuk36]

Hi guys, just to say that I have had my 08 coupe for a month now and can safely say it has exceeded all my expectations, I have had a string of other performance cars Inc: Carrera S, V8 Vantage, F430, R8 and up till last month a Nissan GTR! All these cars were great in many ways but the M3 has it all, yes I don't get the looks I got in the F430, and the Vantage sounded great! The GTR was fun and very fast but rode far too firmly and in the real world you couldn't really use all the power, and the gearbox is not as smooth as the M3's especially when cold, and the downchange on the M3 is more reponsive!

I think if I had of kept the GTR I would of ended up in prison for speeding ;-) and have driven all my cars on track and got bored of the way Nissan void your warranty every Trackday u do till u get it checked post Trackday at a cost to reinstate warranty, crazy!!!

Welcome and qustions on the cars I have owned.

[Donbona]

I totally agree and glad you like it but... I will stick my neck out and say that if I could afford it I would have a Ferrari Italia...lol
On another note I did not know that the GTR had all these warranty issues.
Good to know.
I saw one yesterday and thought it lookd nice but I was thinking im so glad I bought my M3

Originally Posted by grantuk36

Hi guys, just to say that I have had my 08 coupe for a month now and can safely say it has exceeded all my expectations, I have had a string of other performance cars Inc: Carrera S, V8 Vantage, F430, R8 and up till last month a Nissan GTR! All these cars were great in many ways but the M3 has it all, yes I don't get the looks I got in the F430, and the Vantage sounded great! The GTR was fun and very fast but rode far too firmly and in the real world you couldn't really use all the power, and the gearbox is not as smooth as the M3's especially when cold, and the downchange on the M3 is more reponsive!

I think if I had of kept the GTR I would of ended up in prison for speeding ;-) and have driven all my cars on track and got bored of the way Nissan void your warranty every Trackday u do till u get it checked post Trackday at a cost to reinstate warranty, crazy!!!

Welcome and qustions on the cars I have owned.

[Dartanium]

so you can actually reinstate the warranty? pretty cool.

I came from a line of turbocharged cars and M3 is quite a joy to drive around without the mindbogglingly loud exhaust or the blow off valve noises.

[Silverstone]

Interesting...thanks for the info .

[Hayzi]

I also tend to agree.
My last 3 cars have been Porsches but I think they lost the plot especially on my last one when replaced the exhaust with a Cargraphic and they advised that I could have the extended warranty due to the exhaust even though it was TUV approved so I ordered an E92 M3.

Had the car for 7 months and only covered 3000 miles in it but I think you get more car for your money and the more I have driven it the more I enjoy it. I like it's subtle looks and with the DCT you can just drive around like Aunt Sally if you wish and then on the otherside it can be a hooligan if you want it too.

Haven't put it on the track yet though!

[hugehead]

I am the odd one out here ....I am actually disappointed with my M3 !!

[Hayzi]

Why are you disappointed?

[hugehead]

Originally Posted by Hayzi

Why are you disappointed?

It alot noisier than my M5,as the ride quailty, less room as well , built quality is lower as well .....only thing better than the M5 is the DCT box and the individual sound system ( but its cost you £1K + for the previlage).

i mean my wife's 116! M-sport has better sound deafening quality than the M3(on a £60K+ car is not acceptable imho)
the leather interior is not as good as the M5(only just better than the ones on the 1 series !!)
the Passenger wing mirror started to crack after 10 days of ownership, the through loading system latch on the rear seat broke away on the first time of using !!!

Getting small stone chips on paintwork in the 1st 900 miles(very slow driving ..while running in the car )
i am really suprise by how thin the paintwork is on these new Bmws
german cars usually mean quality paintwork in the old days !!!

[hugehead]

Originally Posted by grantuk36

Welcome and qustions on the cars I have owned.

so do you actually like the M3 compare to the R8 ??

as i would of though the R8 is the better car of the two

[ryandoc]

hugehead, if you mean general cabin noise when cruising I find the M3 very quiet when compared with what the E46 M3 was like, however foot down you get plenty from the engine but then there is no sound deadening under the bonnet lid hence the noise.

Strange also as I find build qulity very high. Dont get me wrong not trying to be argumentative but I had 3 years in an E46 M3 and I find the E92 a step up in build quality.

Agree the paintwork could be better.

Touch wood I'm just comming up to 2K miles now and ive not had a single issue, I was expecting some niggly faults from new but everything is perfect.

Sorry to hear your woes mate

[hugehead]

Originally Posted by ryandoc

Strange also as I find build qulity very high. Dont get me wrong not trying to be argumentative but I had 3 years in an E46 M3 and I find the E92 a step up in build quality.

Agree the paintwork could be better.

Touch wood I'm just comming up to 2K miles now and ive not had a single issue, I was expecting some niggly faults from new but everything is perfect.

Sorry to hear your woes mate

Quality wise its better than alot of cars , but at £50k+ on the road price tag, one would expect it to better and quieter than the 1 series Bmws

When you compare its to the E60 M5 , the E90x M3 is just abit less refine , don't get me wrong the M3 will please 99% of its owners.
Like I've said i am the odd one out.
I had to part with £38K on top of my old E60 M5...for a inferior car !

that my only "major " problem with the car .............

[foosh]

I have to agree in one major respect. I've owned more powerful and more exciting cars as well, but they've all become hard to live with with after a relatively short honeymoon.

I'm not getting tired of the M3, I think, in large part, because it does everything very well. It's not the best at any single thing, but it doesn't have any glaring weaknesses in any area.

[grantuk36]

Originally Posted by foosh

I have to agree in one major respect. I've owned more powerful and more exciting cars as well, but they've all become hard to live with with after a relatively short honeymoon.

I'm not getting tired of the M3, I think, in large part, because it does everything very well. It's not the best at any single thing, but it doesn't have any glaring weaknesses in any area.

Totally agree, all the other cars I've owned are good at certain things but just not the total package the M3 has to offer! ie: the R8 looked and sounded great but wasn't actually that fast and had a crappy manual gatted gearbox which was so cluncky and slow! Must agree that the paintwork on my M3 is perhaps the most orange peeley I have ever seen, shame on you BMW Am going to zymol clay bar then carbon wax it when the weather improves, this may not help the orange peel but atleast it will give it a nice shine

[hugehead]

Originally Posted by grantuk36

the R8 looked and sounded great but wasn't actually that fast

lol are we talking about the same car here ....the R8 can beat the new 997 turbo in performance ...and yr saying its not that fast !!!!

[JOHNBMWM5]

Originally Posted by hugehead

Quality wise its better than alot of cars , but at £50k+ on the road price tag, one would expect it to better and quieter than the 1 series Bmws

When you compare its to the E60 M5 , the E90x M3 is just abit less refine , don't get me wrong the M3 will please 99% of its owners.
Like I've said i am the odd one out.
I had to part with £38K on top of my old E60 M5...for a inferior car !

that my only "major " problem with the car .............

But the M5 is 70K+ specced up when new, go figure.

[Hayzi]

Audi R8 faster than 997 Turbo? I disagree

The R8 V10 may give it a run for it's money but the 4.2 V8 won't

[hugehead]

lol noboby mention thr R8 was a V8 !!!...as I presume most will only buy the V10

[hugehead]

Originally Posted by johnbmw6

But the M5 is 70K+ specced up when new, go figure.

lol I know I had one

[JOHNBMWM5]

Originally Posted by hugehead

lol I know I had one

I just hope the new M5 is not more than 65K, dreaming I suppose but you never know.

[Flapps]

Having read all the posts on this thread I have to agree with the paint or rather the quality of it. I have noticed that "orange peel" appearance and even more so on the odd occasions the sun comes out!

This is my first M and prior to it had nothing but "sensible" cars so really not in a position to compare with R8's etc. Had mine now for nearly 6 months now so i guess the "honeymoon" period is over. That said, I have really enjoyed the car despite its little "niggles" which maybe too strong a word. But like Foosh says and I agree with him "It's not the best at any single thing, but it doesn't have any glaring weaknesses in any area"

Its the best car I've ever had and at the moment I wouldn't swap it for anything..........unless someone out there wants to do a straight swap for a Bugatti Veyron??????

Flapps

[KadeSdad]

I think this orange peel effect may only affect certain colors, I know two alpine whites including mine that has no sign of any peel effect and I live on the sea front open to all the elements. Maybe it has something to do with the darker shades absorbing the sunlight more then the white which is a none reflective?

Yes agree the M3 is the best all rounder......, but saying that I am currently looking at a C63 AMG with full performance pack....

[hugehead]

Originally Posted by KadeSdad

Yes agree the M3 is the best all rounder......, but saying that I am currently looking at a C63 AMG with full performance pack....

i had looked at the Amg before i purchased the M3...imho the M3 is a better car , Mercedes just look/feels like its made for the old brigade