doodlebug

Took an M3 Cabriolet out for a test drive today...nice car. I have been trying to get a ride in one of these for some time now. This one had the SMG shift kit in it. My impressions, well I had fun and the paddle shifter is quite cool...you even get some throttle "blip" on the downshift as it tries to match the RPM's. The car corners like it is on rails and the traction control really helps to keep the thing pointed in the proper direction. I was expecting a real rocket in terms of acceleration but perhaps my senses have been numbed somewhat by the S because I wasn't in awe of the pickup (don't get me wrong it was impressive). Maybe I was looking for torque?

I definitely feel closer to the road and more on the edge in our car....bottom line...it seems like the Honda is as much fun (if not more) to drive for a lot less money. Having said that I wouldn't mind having an M3 in my garage!

Woodson

Hmmm. M3 is about the only car (within reason) I thought I'd rather have than the S. Since I've never driven one, thanks for your impressions. Now I enjoy the S even more!

VTEXTC

There is no doubt that the M3 is king in legendary proportions when it comes to imported sport sedans and coupes. I would rather put my hard earned dollars into the hands of Mercedes and opt for the C32 AMG if I had that kind of money. Never been much of a die hard BMW fan myself.
Glad you got a drive Harvey
Asif

doodlebug

I hear you Asif, I really like the CLK AMG (classy and sporty looking at the same time) but they haven't got the transmission thing figured out yet....there is no way I am buying a car with an automatic . I don't understand why they don't shift gears (so to speak...I'll leave the puns to Dave...he is much better with them!).

FormerH22a4

The M3 Cab is a lot heavier than the coupe version so the performance is a bit watered down. The test drive sounds great, did you get one at the BMW dealer or was it from someone you know?

The AMG trannies are a

VTEXTC

Danny,

I've heard that about the trannies as well. Thinking about it now, I'm not even sure if the AMG tranny is any different to the regular C class version. Hmm..
A

FormerH22a4

The AMG auto trannies are very good auto trannies w/lock out torque converter and intelligence downshift gear selections but at the end of the day, it is still an auto tranny.

There is just a different mentality when it comes to ///M cars and AMG cars. The AMG owners are mostly status seeking cruisers who want some punch one in a while and have the extra 15K to spend on a Benz. The ///M owners are more enthusiats like ourselves after the synergy of man and machine.

doodlebug

The M3 was at Calgary BMW...they have a used one (with 5000 km) that someone bought for the summer and then traded in on an X5. One draw back to the ///M enthusiast thing is that whenever you get a used one you can be pretty sure that it has been run hard. The one I drove today is in excellent shape but I was told that it has been out to Race City with it's previous owner....

FormerH22a4

Harvey, do I see pretzels and beer in your future?

rage2

30% faster shifts and lock up torque converter in each gear. That's the difference between the AMG Speedshifts vs their non AMG autos.

I've tracked with the SLK 32 AMG tranny many times, and until you've tried it, there's no comparison to any auto tranny that's out there. It shifts as fast, if not faster than 95% of the manual tranny drivers out there. It's slower than the SMG tranny though, but the difference in negligible. The lockup torque converter makes the car feel like a manual in every gear. It works VERY well at the track.

With 7 sets of tires, 4 track days, and countless autox's this year under my belt, I think I can call myself an enthusiast and not a status seeker . As for pricing, the C32 is about 8K cheaper than the M3.