TomTom77

That roads is 3 lanes wide and brand new. And leads to the top of the mountain, where it stops for now. In my 3 outings there, I've seen about 15 other cars in total.

Downside is that heavy rain (yes, we do have that from time to time) causes rock slides which requires the roads to be redone. That has happened multiple times already. And the lack of normal traffic (most traffic is construction related) leaves the surface covered in pebbles, dust and sand in many places.

Overall: the upsides beats the downsides easily. It's epic. The road will lead to a hotel later on (to be constructed), which will increase traffic flow big time. And hence make it less attractive. So we enjoy it as much as we can as long as it's empty... but we've got plenty back-ups in the neighborhood!

neanicu

Nizer

These numbers sound pretty high. Link at the bottom to MotorAuthority article with pulls more inline with expectations.

http://blog.caranddriver.com/2015-bm...numbers-video/

If there’s one thing you need to know about automotive dynamometers, it’s that no two are likely to ever return the same number. No matter how closely calibrated, if you run the same car on two separate dynos, you’re going to get different output figures. Still, the variations aren’t typically huge—which is why European Auto Source’s dyno pull with a 2015 BMW M3 is so impressive.

EAS strapped an M3 to its dyno and recorded an absurd 424 horsepower and 426 lb-ft of torque—at the wheels. BMW claims that the M3 produces 425 horsepower and 406 lb-ft at the crank. Accounting for the typical 15 percent driveline losses from friction, etc., this means the 2015 M3 is really putting down something in the neighborhood of 480 horsepower and 480 lb-ft of torque at the crank. Assuming the M3 used for this dyno pull is real, that’s awesome news for future owners of the M3 and its two-door sibling, the M4.


MotorAuthority article w/their pulls: http://www.motorauthority.com/news/1...t-really-makes

nash

Last week I had the honor of joining some //M junkies in a trip to Munich and the Nurburgring for some serious car-guy indulgence. Through some contacts we were given use of four M4's to make our way around the country, and we participated in the BMW M Nordschleife Experience at the Ring from Jul 8-10. Therefore, we got a chance to experience the M4 in both city/autobahn driving and on track in both wet and dry conditions.

I'm a BMW admirer from afar, having never owned one, but driven or track instructed quite a few in the past. This new M4 is really the best //M product I have experienced, and I left thoroughly impressed. It's seriously torquey, and while many turbo motors claim to have "no turbo lag" this comes dangerously close to actually being true in this case. We drove DCT cars exclusively (I would have loved to sample a manual), and I could almost never detect any lag. The car is lively and fun, and I had zero complaints about the steering (electric was a non-issue). It may not be a high-RPM screamer like past //M models, and the power begins to taper off as you approach redline (basically the same story as most turbo cars), but it certainly has a LOT of shove and has pretty linear power delivery. I thought the powertrain was fantastic, and actually appreciated the DCT since I had never set foot at the Ring before and preferred to just flick some paddles rather than attempting to heel-and-toe a foreign car on a foreign track. The M4's ride is excellent, and the chassis feels very solid and planted (we bombed along the autobahn at 180mph at times with no fuss). I think this car can easily compete with others costing $30k more. Even the interior, which often gives away a car's price point, was very nice with quality leather and good technology features.

This car certainly makes for an excellent daily driver and part time track toy. A really impressive package all around.

A few pictures from the trip.

Start off at the BMW factory for a tour:



A little Munich history:



At the //M studio, home of //M (we saw some cool mules!), where we picked up our steeds as seen out front:



Setting off from Munich to Stuttgart for the Porsche museum, then on to the Ring:



The Driving Experience fleet awaiting our track time:



First day at the Ring is *rainy* but still amazing:



Much improved conditions the next day, sun was out by the afternoon:





Lastly, video of a lap in the M4. Following our instructor (and Ring Taxi driver) but he is not holding back much at all (once or twice we slow to regroup). Front straight is limited to 100kph. Other than that, we are working the cars hard! A really amazing experience, and I would recommend this to anyone. Our group was full of pretty seasoned track junkies and we all felt we got what we had hoped for and were not being held back as in a typical lead-follow situation.

kosmo

awesome!
the M3 is on my short list

-eztrader-

It's starting to really call my name, getting tough to resist.

GrantG

Yeah, Euro Delivery with 7% discount is a pretty enticing offer. Were these cars top speed delimited (180 mph?)

0Q991

Is the 7% discount still in effect? Any models excluded?

GrantG

New M3/M4 are included in the discount program (hover your cursor over the desired model for discount offer) - I believe you get 7% off options too:
http://www.bmwusa.com/Standard/Conte...erYourBMW.aspx

kosmo

i just checked the bmw site. looks like 7% off the m3/4
hmmm interesting.

0Q991

Thanks!

nash

The cars we used had a raised limiter of 280kph I believe, so 175mph rather than 180mph (my math was a little off last night ). We saw an indicated 287 kph, which would be pretty close to the real 280kph limiter.

Jimmy-D

Great info. - I am waiting to see the M2. I would prefer a smaller car to throw around if I decide to get another toy to enjoy next to my GT3

nash

A more scenic view of the M4 on the Ring (GoPro mounted on the lead car rear glass, pointed at me driving the second car). Definitely watch this in 1080p, weather was perfect!

kosmo

nash, whats it like vs the RS?