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In Reply to: Re: What an ignorant comment... posted by Barry Robinson on December 05, 2001 at 16:42:34:
I think you've got it twisted. The US E36 M3 is tame by comparison to the E30 M3, that's why enthusiasts often refer to the E30 as the Real M3 and the E36 as a stroked 325iS. The E30 M3 was a drastic change from the standard 3 series. The US E36 M3 on the other hand is a 325iS with M tech body kit, steering wheel, seats, wing mirrors and a motorsport stroker version of the M50 engine. The idea that the M1 is the ONLY true M car is ridiculous.
The E36 M3 is not exactly tame..... sure it FEELS that way because the car is more polished and refined than the E30 M3. The car makes the driver feel more in control because it is easier to drive.....and if he looses it, much easier to recover....
The E36 M3 is quicker, handles better and has a higher top speed (albet electronically limited) than the E30 M3. Look at even the current BMW club race results... E36's almost always dominate. There must be a reason. Better chassis design??? Remember the the E30 chassis first came out in 1982....
Having a six cylinder in the car may make it an decendant of the E30 325is but... BMW M decided to switch to six bangers and drop the four and put a M badge on it, so it makes it a M3, not a M325is (like it really matters?).
The original E30 M3 is more a track racer and it sure feels like it. It almost has the feel of the original M1 (m5 or M6 etc), as in brute power with less refinement. Definately a "drivers" car.
As for the pun about REAL M cars.... sure it's a bold statment but it's kind of true. The M1 is still the most original, purest performance car BMW M has built to date. All the other M cars are based upon standard BMW production chassis and hence are mainly a marketing upgrade to sell cars.... Mercedes did this with the AMG marque as well. Nothing new here... BMW is out to make $$, what better way to do so then selling souped up production cars with a letter slapped on the back?
Enough of this though..... discussing the tivial notions of "rare" and "real" is a moot point. As usual "beauty is in the eye of the beholder". so it is true with these concepts. To me, there are very few "rare" and desirable BMW's, namely the M1, 327/328 cabs,507, CSL coupes, E36 M3 lightweight,the evo series E30 M3's, V8 Glas'es and several Alpina/Hartge spinoffs..
Everything else based upon a standard BMW production chassis that was produced in the thousands and carries the M badge, is not by default "rare" but it can be labeled as "desireable" and quite a bit of fun to boot.
If only I could own one of everything.... then I wouldn't have to pick and choose so damn much on what to buy next!
WH
currently 17 cars and holding....
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