[jpics80]

I just moved to the area from VA and took a job at Tulley BMW in Nashua. I am currently driving a VW GLI but will be purchasing a BMW soon. I love the 4 Series GC and the 3 series. But with payments on a loaded 3 or 4 being so close to an M3 payment I am leaning towards that but I am concerned about winter traction on a RWD car.

Any advice?

[BMW in NE]

I'm sure you COULD drive an M3 on most days in the winter if you had a good set of snow tires and took it easy.. but you are paying an awful lot for a car that you can't really "use" all year round. I had the same dilemma you did and landed on a 335i with x-drive. Throw a good set of snows on it in the winter and you have vehicle that you can enjoy in all 4 seasons.

[435MSport6Speed]

What do you do at Tulley?

[jpics80]

Originally Posted by paulff3

What do you do at Tulley?

Sales

[mattpete13]

Welcome!

[Fronzdan]

If you posted this on the main threads you'd spark a big debate on RWD vs xDrive in the snow. Having lived here my whole life you WILL run into days where an RWD with snows won't cut it especially if you drive through hills etc.

[jpics80]

Originally Posted by Fronzdan

If you posted this on the main threads you'd spark a big debate on RWD vs xDrive in the snow. Having lived here my whole life you WILL run into days where an RWD with snows won't cut it especially if you drive through hills etc.

Yeah that's what I am worried about.

[tc328]

I had serious issues with a rwd m235i with great snowtires, an M3 would be worst with all that power/torque.....still got me from A to B but if the M3 is a DD then I wouldnt do it.

[PappyVR4]

I ran my RWD 328i with snows all winter. I've run my old E36 M3 with snows all winter. Both were perfectly fine. The M3 was actually better and more controllable thanks to the LSD. That said, there will be some hills which you won't be able to get started on. You'd have to keep momentum. And my old AWD Galant VR-4 was immensely more controllable and more fun in the snow.

You definitely don't need AWD up here. And you RWD won't be a hamper the majority of the year. But BMW's AWD system feels fairly RWD-like up to 8/10ths on the road so you won't miss much if you do go AWD.

[jinnrice]

From my understanding. If your an employee long enough at a dealer you get employee incentives... Where 750-800 lease for a m3 can be had for roughly 550 or so.

Anyways my buddy that has a 2015 m3 has no issue of driving around Boston with snow tires.
IMO RWD is better with snow tires than all wheel drive with all season tires.

[jpics80]

I guess M3 it is lol

[beardybaer]

This might help. It's a M4 but it gives an idea about snow driving

[435MSport6Speed]

If we have a winter like 2015 there is no way an M3 will get you to and from work without headache.

I work downtown and did see a black M4 all winter. Even on snow days. But, there weren't that many this year.

I have 435 M Sport and don't drive it in the winter.

[Billfitz]

Originally Posted by jinnrice

IMO RWD is better with snow tires than all wheel drive with all season tires.

IME XDrive with A/S is considerably better than 2WD with snows, so much so that I've felt no need to go with snows with XDrive. Hilly terrain that used to demand keeping my speed up I can now handle at a literal crawl, which is invaluable when the roads are clogged with stuck cars and I can't keep my speed up while maneuvering around them. Before XDrive I couldn't even get up my driveway if there was 2 inches of snow if I didn't get a running head start, and even then I'd be fishtailing halfway up. With the XDrive and even four inches of snow I need no head start, can creep up the driveway, and it never fishtails. Best of all in regular driving I can't tell that the XDrive is there.

[Fronzdan]

Exactly my experience. I need to get through multiple hills between home and work, and I live ON a hill. No RWD makes it up, no matter how good the snow tires. There is a turn/stop ON the hill with a sharp increase in incline as well. Being residential streets, they also get plowed after the busier streets. I tried two seasons with RWD and the best snow tires. Several times I could not get up the hill and had to let the car roll, slide down backwards and park somewhere below, trudging up the hill on foot until the plows came. Then I'd find my car buried later on. No way was I going to deal with even the chance of that anymore. xDrive on A/S gets me up those hills with no problem whatsoever.

A friend at work has an M3 and he puts snows on. But on stormy days I never see the M3. He drives an Audi with Quattro on those days.

[64-bit]

If I was leasing my M3

Hell yeah I would buy a good set of winter tires and user the car all year long

Since I don't, I just got a 2014 mini Countryman ALL4 to do that job.