Should I move her on...

[Shinobi675]

Hi Guys,

So had the coolant pipes and engine oil leaks sorted. Fitted the uprated arbs. Put on Michelin PSS and the car feels a lot better and now as well as genuinely quick (still standard) and now being pretty good in the corners (for a 2 tonne car) I'm just thinking more and more about moving to something else. I just think I'm bored and want a change!

So... Would it be a stupid move to grab a lairy orange m3! Maybe a bright green one! Something stupid before I have to eventually turn 40 in a couple of years. I was thinking a 4.0 e90... V8, looks cool. But.... Ross you'll never talk to me again!

Anyone got any experience of both the rs6 and the m3? I'm nervous that really the rs6 is easy! Throw £3 or 4K and get a decent Mrc stage 2 or live with it as it is with a few bits here and there. Where as the m3 could be all manor of bizarrely stupid things! Dodgy air things from grubb that cost £800 and basically look cool but do f all! But look cool!

I'm confused! Writing this makes me realise what it must be like for gay children to tell their parents! "Mum, Dad. I like BMWs!"

[don0301]

Hi there

I had an e46 m3 for 12 years, standard for a long time then the last few years gradually modding (CSL brakes, replica CSL carbon air intake, suspension)

I had a deposit down for a e90 m3 3 years before they came out, the test drive underwhelmed me and i kept the e46.

The only thing I liked was the V8 noise at the time, everything else, for me, was similar or worse than the e46.

Later after getting the CSL air intake mod, I wouldn't even agree with that bit.

I also tested the latest m3 before getting my RS6. felt quick but really didn't like the interior.

Now, I have modded the brakes, MRC stage 2 engine and gearbox and ARB's full custom exhaust downpipes and decatted I really can't see where I will go next for a car at the moment.

The car is hilarious in a straight line, and in my view can be hussled along at speeds that far defy it's weight. It's also luxurious when you feel like just wafting along.

I will never track so fast road use only.

After the pain of the coolant pipes and oil leak, I would say at least get it stage 2 I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

In my view the e46 was the last good looking bmw, tbh i miss it and if i had the storage would probably have kept it.

Have you tried a ride in a stage2 one (RS6)?

[R33]

Yeah as many have said on here before S2 with a gearbox remap and secondary decat is night and day of a standard car, laugh out loud quick (well it was for me anyway). Last night I gave it a boot with ESP fully off and surprised myself yet again as to how quick it is.

I'm stuck in the where do you go next camp now, so I'm keeping it for a while at least. I just feel that any car I go to now must have at least 700bhp which makes choices very tough and expensive!

[stevo55]

Hi Guys,

So had the coolant pipes and engine oil leaks sorted. Fitted the uprated arbs. Put on Michelin PSS and the car feels a lot better and now as well as genuinely quick (still standard) and now being pretty good in the corners (for a 2 tonne car) I'm just thinking more and more about moving to something else. I just think I'm bored and want a change!

So... Would it be a stupid move to grab a lairy orange m3! Maybe a bright green one! Something stupid before I have to eventually turn 40 in a couple of years. I was thinking a 4.0 e90... V8, looks cool. But.... Ross you'll never talk to me again!

Anyone got any experience of both the rs6 and the m3? I'm nervous that really the rs6 is easy! Throw £3 or 4K and get a decent Mrc stage 2 or live with it as it is with a few bits here and there. Where as the m3 could be all manor of bizarrely stupid things! Dodgy air things from grubb that cost £800 and basically look cool but do f all! But look cool!

I'm confused! Writing this makes me realise what it must be like for gay children to tell their parents! "Mum, Dad. I like BMWs!"

Well seeing as I just came from 18 years of BMW ownership and now drive an RS6 I guess I'd best cancel my Blue Oyster Club subscription! Best not discuss the driving antics of the average Audi TDI (among others) driver as well eh

BMWs offer a lot more tactility and precision driving than most. I've owned 7 BMWs including M cars and Alpinas and loved them all. BMW do make some clangers same as any manufacturer.
I test drove an E90 M3 limited edition some months back and it was a great car, however it didn't feel like a big enough step ahead of my then ride which was a tuned and modded M135i (running 370 bhp & 420 lb ft torque). The brakes on M cars until recently simply weren't good enough-single piston calipers on those cars was a crime. I had the uprated M Performance brakes which were fantastic plus an Eisenmann exhaust (which sounded harsher than my current Milltek one I have to admit) among other extras (the torque was a bit too much as it made the car want to go sideways on WOT).
Personally the minus sides on the E90 M3 that I think you'd really notice are a)lack of torque-you'd have to rev the nuts off it to get the performance and b) brakes. Plus of course it'll be a slower car with less power BUT far more nimble than the C6 especially in the bends.
If you don't need the space in the car why not consider an RS3/A45/M135i? Fun cars and the economy you get vs the power delivery is epic. I could get 40 mpg + from my old one easily....not exactly something we see in our RS6s!! I absolutely love mine though and it's everything and more I was hoping for. The question 'what next?' isn't even remotely on the horizon for me yet but will be a very very hard question to answer.

[don0301]

I've had 213 on the clock and still going

Yet, have also taken an old washing machine to the tip, etc etc

What comes near for the money?

Make the most of cheap petrol It won't last forever

YOLO

[travs]

The other thing is the summary of OP:
1) Lairy-coloured M3. What would you think of yourself? (ie what would you think of people with that car? Mid-life crisis? Show-off?)
2) An £800 intake that does nothing, compared to very straightforward bang-for-buck which, incidentally, would probably make an M3 disappear in your rear-view mirror almost as quick as it would disappear if you were standing at the side of the road.

Now, would you really be satisfied with the change?

[bam_bam]

Hi Guys,

So had the coolant pipes and engine oil leaks sorted. Fitted the uprated arbs. Put on Michelin PSS and the car feels a lot better and now as well as genuinely quick (still standard) and now being pretty good in the corners (for a 2 tonne car) I'm just thinking more and more about moving to something else. I just think I'm bored and want a change!

So... Would it be a stupid move to grab a lairy orange m3! Maybe a bright green one! Something stupid before I have to eventually turn 40 in a couple of years. I was thinking a 4.0 e90... V8, looks cool. But.... Ross you'll never talk to me again!

Anyone got any experience of both the rs6 and the m3? I'm nervous that really the rs6 is easy! Throw £3 or 4K and get a decent Mrc stage 2 or live with it as it is with a few bits here and there. Where as the m3 could be all manor of bizarrely stupid things! Dodgy air things from grubb that cost £800 and basically look cool but do f all! But look cool!

I'm confused! Writing this makes me realise what it must be like for gay children to tell their parents! "Mum, Dad. I like BMWs!"

You've still the Pork, right?
Then stage 2 the '6. Job done. You're welcome...

[TomRS]

Honestly...

I'd stage 2 the RS6, ive had one that was standard that broke and nearly put me off them for good, but i bought another one it got stage 2 treatment, some new brakes and soon to be some ARB's.
As everyone says nothing comes close for the money, nothing much comes close for more money either...

Granted the M3 would be a bit more fun, but lets be honest 80% of the time you drive normally and waft along, and the odd occasions you want to give it some stick normally only ever occur on a straight road or possibly a roundabout, anything in a straight line will go back wards and if in dynamic/sport then the roundabout wont exactly slow you down.

The best mods i've done barring the stage 2 stuff was the 410mm brakes, the ARB's are coming next and that's me done... i was sticking fast to a race spec Civic Type R, (280bhp fully stripped and on R888 race tyres) at Oulton park a few weeks back and the RS kept pace with him for a good 5/6 laps until i decided it was time to come in, granted i couldnt get past in the corners and i didnt want to spoil his fun so i didnt overtake on the straights, i could brake as late as him and throw the car in just as he was with no issues.

For a two tonne barge on a twisty circuit i really found my love for the thing, its a bloody epic car and i think you'd regret not going stage 2 to be honest!

[Ceveman73]

If you only have one car then the RS6 is definitely the best all rounder available on the market today. It does everything very well, and with the various mods that have been discussed, it does become a very compelling proposition without peers IMHO.

If however you already have a practical car, and the RS6 is your toy, then I can think of far more involving driver's cars that I'd spend my cash on, especially if you only need two seats.

It really depends on what you need from a car and it's core purpose for you. I love the e92 M3 and I find it the pinnacle of all the M3s, although I know I'm in the minority. The chassis balance, the pin sharp and feel some steering, the racecar like high revving V8 and the noise, as well as the looks make it a modern classic in my eyes. So much so that I sold my GTR recently, with the aim to get a low mileage, last of the line M3 as a keeper. It's that good. People who complain about the lack of torque are totally missing the point, the engine is a masterpiece and loves to be revved until it screams. With the DCT gearbox, you're only a millisecond away from the engine sweet spot at the higher end of the rev range. A masterpiece.

[stevo55]

My comment on the torque stems from previous M car ownership-I had an E34 M5 and a Z4M as well as an Alpina Roadster. Awesome cars through and through but it gets a bit tiring having to rev the balls off the engine to make decent progress! The Z4M absolutely refused to be driven slowly, it started juddering under low revs so I spent years driving around like my hair was on fire...exciting bit of kit that . I can remember having a dalliance with a first gen RS4 Avant and I couldn't catch him...just pulled away with ease. Hence the torque comment!
The M135i was really the best of both worlds with decent power and also decent torque finally. Plus of course the brakes were streets ahead of M cars of old. I needed a bigger car that also ticked all the right mad boxes-enter stage left the RS6.

[RS6chris!]

You'll miss the 6.

I did.

Tried a fat arsed Pork.

Soon came back to the fold with a C7. (I need a bread wagon for my lifestyle)

You'll regret a M3..IMO of course.

[Shinobi675]

I love this place! You're all so right! I still have a 996 C4S that basically gets taken out, goes to the ring then gets put away again about 3 times a year.

The rs6 IS the practical car and I need to stop pussying around!

Take the 996 out more for when I want to be precise and just enjoy the rs6! It is handling so much better with arbs and tyres... It needs a service so a stage 2 is needed really isn't it at the same time!

Thanks guys. I do really appreciate your feedback! I think one of the problems is I had a purple m3 called Betty (daughter of the guy I bought it off said it was called Betsy, it stuck!) eibachs, great ride set up brilliant but wife made me sell it and I guess I've always regretted it!

The m123i is a lovely car... That was also on the thought list...

[Shinobi675]

http://www.rpmtechnik.co.uk/sales/vehic ... rbo-x50-4/

[Shinobi675]

This is nice too!

[TomRS]

This is nice too!

That is lovely!!! however small money in comparison for a stage 2 map and you'll blow away anything you come accross! unless its something utterly mental.
You have the porka for your fun precise driving time, get the 6 mapped and enjoy it... i promise you once its done you'll genuinely ask yourself "why the hell did i wait so long"