What are your initial impressions? This is very high up on my list after years of kicking myself for not pulling the trigger on the 1M.
Apparently the M2 is a true successor to the 1M with regards to everything except steering feedback. In other words, a continuation of everything except the ONLY thing that matters.
But all joking aside I miss the old hydraulic systems. The E46 M3 made you feel like the car was connected to your brain, even moreso than a 987 era Cayman.
What are your initial impressions? This is very high up on my list after years of kicking myself for not pulling the trigger on the 1M.
Funny you should mention that Car. I finally drove an S a few years ago and was left underwhelmed. It felt faster as it had more power low, but had the same turn exit speed and worse straight away speed. Glad I went with the car with a very useable rear seat and huge trunk. Sure the Cayman had better transitions but at Willowsprings it didn't matter... autocross the I'm sure the Cayman S has a slight edge.
Still in the break-in period so haven't really thrashed it yet, but overall I'm happy so far. Literally just finished having a conversation with someone who was here about a watch regarding the electronic steering. I would much rather have a hydraulic rack and pinion system like my Z4M had, and yes I would rather have a naturally aspirated engine as well, but the realities of cars today (and fuel economy requirements) are limitations that are difficult to escape on many new cars.
The steering feel in this is far better than in my wife's 335, so I'm pleased with that certainly, but it's not the same as the old systems are. I would also prefer to blip the throttle myself on downshifts, have a dipstick to check the oil, etc., but again not the times we live in apparently. I'm not going to be racing this car, so although I'm sure some here would not like the car for many reasons, I like it very much so far. I still do miss the Z4M though...this is definitely not "Fred Flintstone's car" as the Hamster once described the Z4M (and yes that one still had a dipstick for the oil).
Cheers, Al
Funny you mention preferring a naturally aspirated engine, I'm strongly considering an E90 M3, but have only ever owned turbo charged cars, and am worried I might miss the kick in the pants. I hear what you're saying about the modernization, but as far as modern cars go, it still seems the M2 is one of the most "pure". I'm sure you'll enjoy it, and congrats!
top down driving experience trumps all practicalities and visceral driving dynamics as long as it's sunny out and at least 65 degrees
The v8 in the last-gen M3 is an uproarious pleasure. While the torque readings below ~3k are crushed by the modern BMW turbos the engine races so quickly past that mark it doesn't even matter. That being said, be ready to burn through petrol like a doof warrior.
The v8 in the last-gen M3 is an uproarious pleasure. While the torque readings below ~3k are crushed by the modern BMW turbos the engine races so quickly past that mark it doesn't even matter. That being said, be ready to burn through petrol like a doof warrior.
That being said @Archer made the best choice available in new BMWs. Hopefully they'll continually work on tweaking the EPS - the first gen F30 felt like a Logitech steering wheel.
Funny you mention preferring a naturally aspirated engine, I'm strongly considering an E90 M3, but have only ever owned turbo charged cars, and am worried I might miss the kick in the pants. I hear what you're saying about the modernization, but as far as modern cars go, it still seems the M2 is one of the most "pure". I'm sure you'll enjoy it, and congrats!
Funny you mention preferring a naturally aspirated engine, I'm strongly considering an E90 M3, but have only ever owned turbo charged cars, and am worried I might miss the kick in the pants. I hear what you're saying about the modernization, but as far as modern cars go, it still seems the M2 is one of the most "pure". I'm sure you'll enjoy it, and congrats!
How about something other than photos? My wife was taking the M2 today, so I thought I'd shoot a video of the start-up to get some sounds...
Sounds a little more raw and mean than my Z4M did...
