GRM Compares M3, E30 all the way to E92

[MA-BMW]

Hope it isn't a repost.

[BeirBrennerE30]

nice! got the rest of the article?

[JJe30]

Pretty cool.

[Ryan Stewart]

meh, subjectives are so cheesy. The M3 loses on fit and finish all over but then pulls a 9 in quality, seems stupid.

[Sean]

What I can't figure out is how the e46 is more fun to drive than the e36. I've never driven one...but, I figured a lighter car is more fun? Hmm

[Il Duce]

the last paragraph sums it up nicely though...

[Tavern Gnome]

Could you post the rest of the article? I've gone to 3 stores in the last 2 days looking for that mag, no luck. I just want to read that piece really.

[TDE30]

The interior quality score for the E36 made me lol.

[Jon325i]

The last paragraph of that scanned pages sums it up nicely - but I say that with a very biased opinion having owned 3 E30s now ;)

When reading these reviews and/or comparisons, it is always a good idea to keep a salt shaker handy since they're just one persons' opinion. What points made as weaknesses to the writer may not seem like a big deal to us. I would've given the E36 M3 a better score having driven a few. I know people have bagged on them a lot of all sorts of issues but my brother used to own a '98 M3 coupe which was a very good car mechanically & cosmetically. I would give one serious consideration if I wanted a different 3-series. You can't argue the aftermarket options for that particular car is vast and fairly reasonable in cost too.

Just my $.02

Jon

[MA-BMW]

Sorry guys I didn't scan it in, I got it off BF.c

[diegom6]

What I can't figure out is how the e46 is more fun to drive than the e36. I've never driven one...but, I figured a lighter car is more fun? Hmm

I have driven both, and for the E36 M3 I will comapre with the euro version against M3 E46 euro version (although, I drove euro and US specs e36's ) and I would say the E46 it's quite better or more fun to drive just because it has better throttle response or more torquey feel IMHO. Anyhow....those are slow comapred to my e30

[Mossman]

yeah they're bagging unnecessarily on the e36, 67% on interior styling come on, vaders pwn in style, not necessarily in function. Also overall quality, if I was going to own any of these cars with 200k on the clock I'd prefer an e36 by far with what I know about them. E30's are bulletproof I know, but S14's are expensive and rare, I've driven s52's with 150k on it that purred like new.

[Scotaku]

yeah they're bagging unnecessarily on the e36, 67% on interior styling come on, vaders pwn in style, not necessarily in function. Also overall quality, if I was going to own any of these cars with 200k on the clock I'd prefer an e36 by far with what I know about them. E30's are bulletproof I know, but S14's are expensive and rare, I've driven s52's with 150k on it that purred like new.

GRM has always been down on the E36 M3... and rightfully so. If it wasn't for always getting the lesser (federalized) version then it was for the legendary electrical system problems. In fairness, all BMW's of that vintage had electrical issues, but the GRM boys go so far as to auto-censor their forums replacing swear words like "shit" and "crap" with "E36 M3." The printed article was abundantly kind.

What is most disappointing about that article is, as a reader of both the magazine and the message boards, the publisher asked barely a month ago if that very comparison would make a good read. A fistful of posters said yes* but without the knowledge that a magazine takes quite a number of months to publish with any regular frequency. When Tim Suddard was asking, I was pretty sure he had already commited to printing the October ish as is.

Eh.


* I posted back that I'd rather see an all-one chassis shootout instead. GRM has done two E30 builds in the last two years and there are plenty of other E30 builds that would have made a much more interesting comparo. I'd love to have seen a mild turbo M20 car pitted against their project 318is (supercharged) and Scott Lear's SpecE30. Call out some other E30 tracktoys and solitcit some NASA TT, BMWCCA, and SCCA IT E30's and then you've got a great contest. An antique E30 up against an E92? Puhleeze.

[SamE30e]

E30 m3 > e36 m3

[TDE30]

GRM has always been down on the E36 M3... and rightfully so. If it wasn't for always getting the lesser (federalized) version then it was for the legendary electrical system problems. In fairness, all BMW's of that vintage had electrical issues, but the GRM boys go so far as to auto-censor their forums replacing swear words like "shit" and "crap" with "E36 M3." The printed article was abundantly kind.

What is most disappointing about that article is, as a reader of both the magazine and the message boards, the publisher asked barely a month ago if that very comparison would make a good read. A fistful of posters said yes* but without the knowledge that a magazine takes quite a number of months to publish with any regular frequency. When Tim Suddard was asking, I was pretty sure he had already commited to printing the October ish as is.

Eh.


* I posted back that I'd rather see an all-one chassis shootout instead. GRM has done two E30 builds in the last two years and there are plenty of other E30 builds that would have made a much more interesting comparo. I'd love to have seen a mild turbo M20 car pitted against their project 318is (supercharged) and Scott Lear's SpecE30. Call out some other E30 tracktoys and solitcit some NASA TT, BMWCCA, and SCCA IT E30's and then you've got a great contest. An antique E30 up against an E92? Puhleeze.

Agreed about the single chassis shootout idea. Comparing an (albeit incredibly fun) obsolete legend against Munich's latest and arguably most technological iteration of the M3 doesn't seem very fair to either car.