BMW
X7 and XM
forum
BMW Garage BMW Meets Register Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read
BIMMERPOST Universal Forums General BMW News and Cars Discussion Are "M" cars even special anymore?

Post Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
      02-14-2019, 10:35 AM   #45
Happy Motoring
Lieutenant
Happy Motoring's Avatar
United_States
474
Rep
449
Posts

Drives: OG M2
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: Dallas, TX

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
2017 BMW M2  [10.00]
M is for marketing
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 10:46 AM   #46
SakhirM4
Major General
SakhirM4's Avatar
United_States
10783
Rep
8,852
Posts

Drives: '15 SO M4/'20 Z4 M40i
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Austin, TX

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
2020 BMW Z4 M40i  [10.00]
2015 BMW M4  [8.76]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Happy Motoring View Post
M is for marketing
Is that why you drive an M2?
__________________
Tejas Chapter, BMW CCA, mem #23915, President 27 years, www.tejaschapter.org
Appreciate 1
      02-14-2019, 10:51 AM   #47
NickyC
Lieutenant General
NickyC's Avatar
17351
Rep
10,598
Posts

Drives: M4 CS. Former G82, x2 F82, F80
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Jacked out of my mind

iTrader: (23)

Quote:
Originally Posted by M4BimmerChris View Post
I have the only M4 in my town, I love the attention hahaha, everyone drives mustangs and challengers here. I get so many heads and people screaming population of county is 77k, 33k in city.
Hah, pretty much my situation as well. I live in a suburb of St. Louis, and I've seen one other M4 in the past year. It was black too, which is very understated for the car and fits right in with everything else on the road. Not like my YMB M4!

People around here absolutely love the car, comments galore and it's rare that I won't get some acknowledgment for the car at least once when I go out and run errands. I even get people with their iPhones taking video/pictures from time to time as we're rolling.

I think a ton depends on your area of course. If you're in SoCal or some other big time money area, the M4 is going to blend in like a Prius. It's all relative!
Appreciate 1
      02-14-2019, 11:27 AM   #48
irishbimmer
Banned
1139
Rep
1,561
Posts

Drives: Silverstone M6 CP, Bulldozer,
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Orange County, CA

iTrader: (0)

Wish I had the time and money to own and drive all the variants of the M-they are still special to me even here in SoCal where one can see every high performance brand -just walking my dogs in the morning is like a veritable car show as the drivers exit the gates and accelerate down the Parkway.

The M's cannot be beat as a daily driver, in my opinion and I've experienced many of the others out there such as Porsche, Ferrari, AMG. The M offers reliable high performance and for those that bemoan the dilution of the brand, its understandable but along with the dilution has come greatly enhanced performance with excellent warranties and service for the most part.The M has also encouraged an entire subset of imitators which drives BMW to continue to refine the brand.

Maybe the OP should investigate ordering an individual color and you probably would never run into the same species anywhere.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 11:31 AM   #49
Germanauto
Major General
Germanauto's Avatar
United_States
9666
Rep
6,075
Posts

Drives: Alfa Romeo Giulia, Rosso
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

It's all relative. The ///M division isn't what it used to be but still beats the competition.

That's clearly still not good enough for us long-time BMW guys though. Feelsbadman.jpg
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 11:32 AM   #50
Germanauto
Major General
Germanauto's Avatar
United_States
9666
Rep
6,075
Posts

Drives: Alfa Romeo Giulia, Rosso
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by DanG View Post
I have owned BMWs since 1971. While my current M car isn’t my first, it is by far the best BMW I have ever owned. Is it special. It is in the eye of the beholder.

Most people don’t recognize my car and I don’t really get any attention in it. I bought it to impress me, not anyone else.
You must not have one of the louder colors because the ///M2 is plenty flashy in my opinion. It really stands out in LBB.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 11:51 AM   #51
termigni
Lieutenant Colonel
termigni's Avatar
United_States
1080
Rep
1,761
Posts

Drives: S2000, MacanS, M4CS
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: NJ

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
2018 BMW M2  [0.00]
I have had both non-M and M cars for a while. M cars are definitely special, even my Civic M2.
__________________
2020 ///M4 CS, Alpine White, DCT

2018 ///M2 LCI, Metallic Orange, 6MT, Exec Pkg, Apple.. Sold

Instagram: Tommys911
Appreciate 1
      02-14-2019, 12:32 PM   #52
Tommysalami
Lieutenant
Tommysalami's Avatar
564
Rep
465
Posts

Drives: E92 M3
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: Socal

iTrader: (1)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Germanauto View Post
... The ///M division isn't what it used to be ...
Why not?
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 12:39 PM   #53
G35POPPEDMYCHERRY
Banned
G35POPPEDMYCHERRY's Avatar
No_Country
4992
Rep
4,139
Posts

Drives: F80
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Philadelphia

iTrader: (1)

I saw we build a regional committee to debadge all posers!!!!

Whose with me
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 12:52 PM   #54
Ximian
.
Ximian's Avatar
United_States
1885
Rep
1,854
Posts

Drives: E92 M3
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: MN

iTrader: (1)

Garage List
2011 BMW M3  [0.00]
2021 BMW M3  [0.00]
If the base M3/4 is the heart and soul of a ZCP, CS, GTS, then a 320 is the heart and soul of an M3. By the transitive property of equality, everyone is really overpaying for a 320.

The base Ms are still great cars, but ///Marketing figured out there are some people who don't think a CS or GTS isn't a great value for money so they'll buy one.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 01:04 PM   #55
Happy Motoring
Lieutenant
Happy Motoring's Avatar
United_States
474
Rep
449
Posts

Drives: OG M2
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: Dallas, TX

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
2017 BMW M2  [10.00]
Quote:
Originally Posted by SakhirM4 View Post
Is that why you drive an M2?
Yes, they did a great job marketing their cars during M track days when I went in 2017. I sold my Accord Hybrid months later and got my M2.

But they are going crazy with the M badges sticking it on everything and everywhere these days. There was a strict distinction of what M was when I had my e36 m3 and m coupe. Those days they reserved the M badge for top of the line models.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 01:37 PM   #56
WestRace
Major
730
Rep
1,087
Posts

Drives: E46 M3, E90 M3
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Los Angels, Ca.

iTrader: (0)

I think there should be a distinction from "special and unique" vs. "better and faster". Those who argue that the older M's are more special and there are those who argue the new M's are better "in every way". Both are correct.

I remember when the E46 M CSL and Z4M came out, there were nothing like them at the time which means they are unique, but when you drive them, there is something special about them. It's just not the rarity, it's in the way they drive as well. Even today, you can't find anything that feels like the E46 M3 (that is unless you have a 911). I've had a E90 M3 for about a year and although it's better any every way vs. the E46 M3, for some reasons it didn't feel special for me so I ended up selling it. I haven't driven the new F80 M3/4 but from what I've heard, they are even more isolated vs. the E90X M3. So I asked myself why? What is "special"? Why is one sport car more special vs. another car?

Someone once said that "I can't define what's "profanity" is, but I know it when I hear it". Maybe it's the same for how we feel when a car feels "special". You know it when you drive it. Maybe it's the connection between the driver and the car mechanical underpinnings. Of course it's more than that since I have driven the Nissan Z350 and Infinity G35 and those cars actually have some good feels but they are fairly crude and unsophisticated and I wouldn't call them "special". So in order for a car to be special, you need some sophistication as well.

For me, from an engineering and manufacturing point of view, it's a lot harder and more expensive to make a car "special". It's a lot easier to make a car feel "isolated" to hide the weakness of its mechanical make up. That's why cars like 911, E46 M, and so are are expensive to make because you need to have very tight manufacturing process to pull it off. If you don't you may end up with cars with good mechanical connections but they'd be crude like the Z350 or the Mustang or Camaro of old.

I have no doubt that the new F80 M is a good car but maybe I am just being prejudiced but something about them that is a bit derivative. Well maybe it's just me. And it doesn't help that there are a lot more alternatives nowaday. If you don't like the M3/M4, I think there are other cars that are just equally good. Interestingly, if you want the feel of the old M cars, you can buy a new Mustang, or Camaro, or Cadillac ATS-V or CTS-V, or Corvette, although I still don't thing American cars have as sophisticated as the German cars. New BMW M cars are fast but I think they lack a bit of personalities. Maybe that's what people are complaining.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 02:54 PM   #57
Germanauto
Major General
Germanauto's Avatar
United_States
9666
Rep
6,075
Posts

Drives: Alfa Romeo Giulia, Rosso
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tommysalami View Post
Why not?
Like BMW as a whole, they've gotten less raw since the F-chassis cars arrived. Most recently I was disappointed after driving the M4 as the E92 M3 was such a different experience. Regardless, it's all just a reflection of modern day consumers I suppose. And the cars are putting up better numbers than ever, superior to the competition as well.

I supposed the M2 Comp is the only ///M for me.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 03:10 PM   #58
WestRace
Major
730
Rep
1,087
Posts

Drives: E46 M3, E90 M3
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Los Angels, Ca.

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Germanauto View Post
Most recently I was disappointed after driving the M4 as the E92 M3 was such a different experience.
And there are people who think the E92 M3 is not as raw or special as the E46 M3, and the argument is that as cars are getting faster, they will inevitably become more isolated and refined and less raw.

But then when you look at American sport cars such as the Mustang, Camaro, ATS-V, CTS-V and Corvette, they are getting faster and faster with the driving characteristics of the old M cars. So the argument that faster cars need to be more isolated probably does not make sense either.

I think you can have both, but it is more expensive to make cars like that so for a given price point, you either have one or the other but not both.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 03:23 PM   #59
Maynard
Colonel
United_States
3805
Rep
2,860
Posts

Drives: 228iX & M2C
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Upstate NY

iTrader: (1)

I think you are wrong to assume //M cars are supposed to be either 'the best' or the top tier; to me they were initially marketed as racing homologation specials, and the //M was signifying that track/racing focus. Over time, this became conflated with 'the best' and has become a marketing gimmick - not just for BMW, it seems to have affected the entire universe (check out a mid-80's "z-28" that is a sub-200 hp stripe-job, or Porsche putting whale tails on anything that rolled). Kind of ironic that they now have to de-bulk them for track duty.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 03:26 PM   #60
pz619
Brigadier General
3276
Rep
3,254
Posts

Drives: F87 M2C 6MT, Tesla 3
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: San Diego

iTrader: (1)

I really don't care what they call it or how many people have it. They can change the brand name to "M" for all I care. The important thing is if you like/love the car that you drive. I love my car but it being a called a M2, Super M2 Competition CSL GTS, or just "2 series" doesn't diminish how I feel about the car. Nor would it diminish the experience if every man, woman, and child on earth had a m2.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 03:27 PM   #61
Fritzer
No one sleep in Tokyo
Fritzer's Avatar
No_Country
943
Rep
1,507
Posts

Drives: 2011 E90 328i//1995 E34 530i
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: San Diego, California -> Austin, Texas

iTrader: (3)

Well they certainly dilute it with all the "M-Sport" and Mx35i/Mx40i models. They really like to throw around that badge, so it doesn't mean nearly as much as it used to.
__________________
2011 E90 328i, 1995 E34 530i, 1992 E32 740i, 1991 E34 525i
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 03:59 PM   #62
SakhirM4
Major General
SakhirM4's Avatar
United_States
10783
Rep
8,852
Posts

Drives: '15 SO M4/'20 Z4 M40i
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Austin, TX

iTrader: (0)

Garage List
2020 BMW Z4 M40i  [10.00]
2015 BMW M4  [8.76]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Happy Motoring View Post
Yes, they did a great job marketing their cars during M track days when I went in 2017. I sold my Accord Hybrid months later and got my M2.

But they are going crazy with the M badges sticking it on everything and everywhere these days. There was a strict distinction of what M was when I had my e36 m3 and m coupe. Those days they reserved the M badge for top of the line models.
Well, I disagree to an extent. I have owned BMWs since 1977 and have had 18 of them. Many of those had M badges on the steering wheel, the gear shift knob, the wheels, etc. and they were not M models. They weren't even M-sport models. BMW has long put M badges on parts that were developed by the M division. They may be a little more prolific today, but it is definitely not a recent happening.
__________________
Tejas Chapter, BMW CCA, mem #23915, President 27 years, www.tejaschapter.org
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 04:07 PM   #63
BM dnobagaV
Banned
BM dnobagaV's Avatar
United_States
428
Rep
459
Posts

Drives: 2010 BMW 528i
Join Date: Apr 2018
Location: Dreamville

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by SakhirM4 View Post
Well, I disagree to an extent. I have owned BMWs since 1977 and have had 18 of them. Many of those had M badges on the steering wheel, the gear shift knob, the wheels, etc. and they were not M models. They weren't even M-sport models. BMW has long put M badges on parts that were developed by the M division. They may be a little more prolific today, but it is definitely not a recent happening.
This brings up a good point regarding Mercedes. They put AMG on 80% of their rims, even if the wheels are super basic. It's infuriating & nonsensical.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 04:29 PM   #64
The HACK
Midlife Crises Racing Silent but Deadly Class
The HACK's Avatar
1817
Rep
5,337
Posts

Drives: 2006 MZ4C, 2021 Tesla Model 3
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Welcome to Jamaica have a nice day

iTrader: (1)

Quote:
Originally Posted by irishbimmer View Post

Maybe the OP should investigate ordering an individual color and you probably would never run into the same species anywhere.
Lol. In 13 years owning my ///M, I’ve only seen the same color M as mine 2 times (outside of car shows, BMW gatherings, or track events). And I used to commute 3 hours a day, up to 70+ miles. And I live in So Cal, the car capital of the world.

I drive one of the last moderately rare and special ///Ms. Hence my perspective.

https://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1580783
__________________
Sitting on a beat-up office chair in front of a 5 year old computer in a basement floor, sipping on stale coffee watching a bunch of meaningless numbers scrolling aimlessly on a dimly lit 19” monitor.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 04:42 PM   #65
DanG
Major General
DanG's Avatar
United_States
10447
Rep
6,878
Posts

Drives: 2018 M2 AW DCT
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Seattle, WA

iTrader: (1)

Garage List
2018 BMW M2  [7.68]
Quote:
Originally Posted by SakhirM4 View Post
Well, I disagree to an extent. I have owned BMWs since 1977 and have had 18 of them. Many of those had M badges on the steering wheel, the gear shift knob, the wheels, etc. and they were not M models. They weren't even M-sport models. BMW has long put M badges on parts that were developed by the M division. They may be a little more prolific today, but it is definitely not a recent happening.
I agree. My old 318ti was an M Sport and had M badges on both fenders.
Appreciate 0
      02-14-2019, 04:44 PM   #66
irishbimmer
Banned
1139
Rep
1,561
Posts

Drives: Silverstone M6 CP, Bulldozer,
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Orange County, CA

iTrader: (0)

You are right! A very rare car indeed.
Appreciate 0
Post Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:23 PM.




xbimmers
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
1Addicts.com, BIMMERPOST.com, E90Post.com, F30Post.com, M3Post.com, ZPost.com, 5Post.com, 6Post.com, 7Post.com, XBimmers.com logo and trademark are properties of BIMMERPOST