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E92 M3...disappointed.

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KentState said:
I agree with that statement 100%. I will also through in that also compared the S4 and the V which I eventually purchased. The biggest deciding factor for me was, do I get the S4 and have decent fuel economy or go with the V and pay the fuel mileage price. The M3, S5 and C63 fell somewhere in the middle offering both worse mileage than the S4 and less performance than the V. If Audi could figure out how to make another 100HP factory out of the S4 engine, put it in the S5 and not charge $100k, I would be owning that right now instead.
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That might just be what you get with the next M3. A 400+HP I6 in coupe form.
 
PricklyPete said:
To be honest, I'm was lumping all A5 and S5's together...but honestly looks wise their is very little separating them as a lot of the A5's around here have the S5 wheels...so really you only have the Grill making a difference looks wise...and that is not much. My point was just that the A5/S5 shape is far from uncommon here in S. Florida. If you like the car...I just don't understand why it matters that there are a lot of them on the road...but if that is your criteria which pushes you to get a SRT8...go for it.

As for your $400 gas bill...not sure if that makes sense either. You care about your monthly car payment...but gas bill be damned? If the actual monthly payment matters that much, then the gas bill should have a related importance.
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So I get a miserly car and have a $275 or $300 gas bill...this is a lot different than a $600 vs $1200 payment per month and the insurance that goes up with it.

I am really not sure what I want to do. I had been paying off debts at $2500 per month, I could easily just flip that into a car payment...I just don't see the value. I am trying to target about $1000-1200 for two cars and that makes choosing also more difficult.

To other's above, some of you have two cars. If I wanted to take on two cars it would make this a lot easier.
 
KentState said:
I'm talking about you go back and forth on which car you want. This wasn't an attack on you at all. Sometimes you snap on people a little to quickly when they do not have any ill intent towards you.
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No, your comment was intended to be an attack...esp when you have the other M3 fanboi coming back with:

True. I've never seen such a crazy-quilt of potential choices - they're all over the map.
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alkemyst said:
So I get a miserly car and have a $275 or $300 gas bill...this is a lot different than a $600 vs $1200 payment per month and the insurance that goes up with it.

I am really not sure what I want to do. I had been paying off debts at $2500 per month, I could easily just flip that into a car payment...I just don't see the value. I am trying to target about $1000-1200 for two cars and that makes choosing also more difficult.

To other's above, some of you have two cars. If I wanted to take on two cars it would make this a lot easier.
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I'm not saying go spend all your money on an expensive car...far from it. I am just saying that if the payments you are making on the car make a difference, than the gas mileage should factor in as well. If you're targeting lets say ~800 total car expenses (not including insurance), then your payment could be a bit more if the gas mileage is decent, but if you know the gas mileage is going to be abysmal, you probably should shoot for a lower payment). To say in one sentence that the car payment matters to you, and then follow that with saying that your gas bill makes no difference doesn't compute in my mind. Especially with gas likely getting more and more expensive.
 
Another thought. If you want beefy torque but in a german-luxury type car, try out the 335D with 425lb/ft stock. These can be easily chipped as well.
 
PricklyPete said:
I'm not saying go spend all your money on an expensive car...far from it. I am just saying that if the payments you are making on the car make a difference, than the gas mileage should factor in as well. If you're targeting lets say ~800 total car expenses (not including insurance), then your payment could be a bit more if the gas mileage is decent, but if you know the gas mileage is going to be abysmal, you probably should shoot for a lower payment). To say in one sentence that the car payment matters to you, and then follow that with saying that your gas bill makes no difference doesn't compute in my mind. Especially with gas likely getting more and more expensive.
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Well the way I classify my car expenses probably makes the difference.

The gas costs are going to be the same for me in a range...Some months I may not leave my home, others I may be making my 62 mile round trip commute everyday. Gas is going to land in the $275 to 400 range for pretty much anything I'd drive.

Same with insurance. Between my wife and I, I look to keep it about $250 a month for full coverage 100/300/100 or better. Some cars I have looked at just didn't make sense from an insurance aspect.

Oddly with the insurance the Dodge SRT8 will cost me almost $75 more every six months than the S5. The S5 is about $219 more every 6 months than my current 1998 240SX. Much better than I anticipated.

That just leaves car costs. I am buying my wife a 2012 GTI 4 door, at about $27k when all is said and done it makes it harder to justify cars approaching double that 🙂

In general I had been targeting about $25-35k, but many of the cars I wanted pushed that up to perhaps $45k now. I do not wish to compromise on more than 10-15k miles on the car...about 20k for the right price and condition.

I had been debating just buying new, but a $60-65k payment starts looking like my mortgage 🙂
 
KIAman said:
Another thought. If you want beefy torque but in a german-luxury type car, try out the 335D with 425lb/ft stock. These can be easily chipped as well.
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Seconded, I seriously considered a CPO for the awesome mileage and tuning potential, talk about torque.

But I couldn't find one within 500 miles of me.
 
ayabe said:
Seconded, I seriously considered a CPO for the awesome mileage and tuning potential, talk about torque.

But I couldn't find one within 500 miles of me.
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Have you driven one yet? Don't get me wrong, there is a mountain of torque and you get great gas mileage...but I drove one around a track immediately followed by a 135i (both automatic)...there is no way I'd go with the 335D over the 335i unless i really had a long commute to deal with.

Plus the 335D only came in automatic the last time I checked (which has admittedly been a while) 😉
 
PricklyPete said:
Have you driven one yet? Don't get me wrong, there is a mountain of torque and you get great gas mileage...but I drove one around a track immediately followed by a 135i (both automatic)...there is no way I'd go with the 335D over the 335i unless i really had a long commute to deal with.

Plus the 335D only came in automatic the last time I checked (which has admittedly been a while) 😉
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No I haven't driven one but from the few reviews I've read you don't sacrifice too much in terms of driving dynamics.

Just checked and you're right auto only, I thought the mantran was an option. Damn. Surely not enough car to make up for the auto-only at least for me, my AMG was barely above that threshhold.
 
alkemyst said:
Lolz, still out past July for that.

I will post pics of my wifes gti then.

Would you cry if I just bought a new M3 out of spite? Maybe a U JELLY plate on it.

Lolz
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Not really as I've had one for five years, but just because you're bullshitting about buying one you start crapping on posters. Buy something or stop posting.
 
ayabe said:
No I haven't driven one but from the few reviews I've read you don't sacrifice too much in terms of driving dynamics.

Just checked and you're right auto only, I thought the mantran was an option. Damn. Surely not enough car to make up for the auto-only at least for me, my AMG was barely above that threshhold.
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Handling was just fine...and don't get me wrong, the diesel in that car is FANTASTIC. But it is still a diesel and no where near as exhilarating as the N54. For a commuter, it would be a great car, but if I'm driving reasonable miles...give me the N54.
 
Damn it I walked past a pristine grey E46 M3 coupe in a parking lot today. Must make room for more cars and stop spending money on the cars I have.

I don't know what it is. I never liked the normal 3 series and thought they always looked pompous as hell, but the M3 is just gorgeous. And I'm not talking about because I know it's a M3, I mean all the little subtle trim changes REALLY make a car.

Same thing with the 03/04 Cobra, I never liked the New Edge 99-04 style at *all* but the 03 Cobra is just gorgeous and menacing and doesn't look like a plastic 4x4 like the others.
 
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exdeath said:
Damn it I walked past a pristine grey E46 M3 coupe in a parking lot today. Must make room for more cars and stop spending money on the cars I have.

I don't know what it is. I never liked the normal 3 series and thought they always looked pompous as hell, but the M3 is just gorgeous. And I'm not talking about because I know it's a M3, I mean all the little subtle trim changes REALLY make a car.

Same thing with the 03/04 Cobra, I never liked the New Edge 99-04 style at *all* but the 03 Cobra is just gorgeous and menacing and doesn't look like a plastic 4x4 like the others.
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If I wasn't on a student's budget and/or had a better job, I probably would have bought a 3 pedal e46 instead of the ms3. I think it's fantastic looking unless it's in that baby diarrhea yellow.
 
BouZouki said:
The new S4 is beautiful inside and out.

The B8 platform is plenty roomy in the back seats, and the engine is behind the front axle for once I believe (should check on this but i'm pretty certain) and one of the best AWD systems in the industry.

It's power is definetly underated and a chip brings similar results to chipping a 335i.

Great fuel miliage too.

How about it OP?

The S5 I believe still uses the 4.2l V8 which is a huge guzzler, 11-12mpg in the city for the B6 S4 I drove. They said they were going to put the S4's 3.0l supercharged engine in it but I am not sure if they have done so.

If so, I would go that route + a tune for a solid 400whp.
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I have a 2010 a4 and the one thing that still isn't that great about Audi is it understeers a lot more than a BMW or most rwd cars. Now I love my A4 for a motor reasons but its not as fun to drive as say the first Gen g35 I had years ago. I don't need tons of power but I've heard the s4 is pretty similar to drive, but better if you get the sport diff. But top gear agreed on the undeterred / fun issue in their rs5 vs m3 episode... beautiful cars though. Definitely prettier.

Sent from my NookColor using Tapatalk
 
In terms of looks alone, I don't think it's hard to argue that the E46 M3 CSL is the best so far.

2003_BMW_M3_CSL_E46_2.jpg


2003_BMW_M3_CSL_E46_0.jpg
 
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