The US Finally Gets a Car Better Than What Europe Gets!

[GTaudiophile]

...with a proper 6-speed manual tranny.

 

[Fenixgoon]

i'd take a REAL manual any day... SMG/DSG might be quicker shifts, but there's no replacing shifting yourself 🙂

 

[EngenZerO]

wonder if they will do that for the m3 next year...

hmmm... manual or smg... a decision i will have to make next year...

 

[AgaBoogaBoo]

I drove an 02 M5 a few years ago and have to say that it had one of the best clutches that I had ever used. I loved it and had no issue at all getting used to it within a shift or two, I was focusing on how hard I could push the car without getting pulled over 😛

The one experience that shocked me with it, that I tell everyone, occurred when we took it on the highway. The sales lady told me that we were cruising at 60 and so I should drop it in second gear I believe it was and floor it. I did that... only a moment later a beeping sound came on, with a confused look I asked her what that was - she simply told me that we were already doing 100 :shocked:

I realize that 100mph might not be that big of a deal, but it seemed like a second or two at most while it was accelerating. I'd consider the M5 to be a more practical version of the Porsche 911.

 

[Alex]

nice dude!

now i can finally get mine! 😉

driving stick is a pain in the ass in the city when you're smoking, talking on the phone and changing songs all at the same time, but really its so much better than auto overall....

 

[Kelnoen]

... and it's an import 😉

 

[0roo0roo]

maybe they should shadap about global warming and kyoto while they keep shipping over that kinda stuff

 

[Aharami]

now, only if i could afford one

 

[chcarnage]

First the PS3 and now this! I move over... Wait, I can't afford any of these three things at the moment 🙁

 

[OVerLoRDI]

Originally posted by: Fenixgoon
i'd take a REAL manual any day... SMG/DSG might be quicker shifts, but there's no replacing shifting yourself 🙂

Agreed. Stick shifts FTW. Personally I believe owning a BMW that isn't a stick shift if a crime.

 

[michaels]

Are BMW's really that great of a choice? Every Consumer Reports I have seen constantly names BMW as one of the most unreliable. For that kind of money, it is unacceptable.

 

[tweakmm]

Originally posted by: michaels
Are BMW's really that great of a choice? Every Consumer Reports I have seen constantly names BMW as one of the most unreliable. For that kind of money, it is unacceptable.

When you have the money for an M5 you the money to fix it.

 

[michaels]

True, but I myself wouldn't buy a car that is unreliable.

 

[tweakmm]

Originally posted by: michaels
True, but I myself wouldn't buy a car that is unreliable.

If I had the cash I sure as hell would.
Do you want to be driving Japanese your whole life?

 

[OS]

Originally posted by: michaels
True, but I myself wouldn't buy a car that is unreliable.

dunno, as much as i prefer honda/toyo quality, if you can afford a nearly 100K car, this isn't really an issue.

one of my coworkers, when his BMW needs service, the dealership flatbeds a loaner to our work, drops off the loaner, and pickups the car that needs to be serviced.

 

[michaels]

Nice

 

[LegendKiller]

Originally posted by: tweakmm

Originally posted by: michaels
True, but I myself wouldn't buy a car that is unreliable.

If I had the cash I sure as hell would.
Do you want to be driving Japanese your whole life?

What good is a nice car if it spends a high % of its life in the garage?

I knew a woman who had an S4 and it spent 3 out of 6 months in the garage as they replaced part after part in a never ending quest to find what was wrong. She finally got a brand new one.

If I am going to drop cash on a car I want it to run correctly and be reliable. Otherwise it's just a good sounding brick.

 

[ballmode]

I like, but in this case I'd almost want the SMG. 7 speeds... yum

 

[Muadib]

Originally posted by: ballmode
I like, but in this case I'd almost want the SMG. 7 speeds... yum

I'll be first to say give me the SMG. My stick days are long gone.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

Curiously the stick-equipped M5 came in last in a comparo in this month's C&D, with the S6 and E63. They clocked it as half a second slower than the SMG car. Apparently you can't disable traction control on the manual car (which frankly wouldn't matter much to us mortals, but definitely matters on a track).