mrad01

Are the Golf and M3 super cars? No. Would you drive around with race suspension, slick tyres and roll cage in your daily driver. No. Not all race tech is "best" for the ultimate road drive.

The M3 is expected to be the ultimate drive. DCT kinda takes away that feeling (as you pointed out). It depends on your taste and where you are at in life.. ;-)

Top Gear review the 1 M Coupe... Quote: "Straight 6 in the front, manual gearbox in the middle, drive at the rear. That's page 1, chapter 1 of the Petrosexual handbook" Then...."If you bought an M3 with the Automatic transmission, then you are a f**ken poser" Love it!!! (Yes, he means that horrid DCT thingy)

Nice cars!! I think Lexus might get there one day - it will depend if they can innovate rather than just copy. They have proven with the LFA that they can innovate, but can't do it cheaply. Well, my M3 is running a brand new 2011 S65B40 as the previous 2008 one had a "noise". Solved in the facelift M3 (just look for the "new" iDrive). The nextgen engines to replace the N54 and N55 might be the go...we won't have a choice...and all other manufacturers will have to embrace turbos to get the efficiency anyway.

Funny how we see things eh? I owned a 335i coupe for 4 years without any major issues. Its certainly no dog performance-wise, but I think long term reliability may be in question for the N54 and N55 - esp around the fuel pump. Time will tell.

Yes. The M3 is FAR better to drive. The IS-F is a good car, but even after the $$ ouch has faded away, you are left with an IS-F and it's automatic gearbox, cheap ass looks, fake quad exhausts etc etc etc etc.... Again, it's not bad to drive - but if you need to compromise because of cost - get a 335i 4 door instead. At least you can order a manual.

Don't forget the gearbox and the unusable power curve. Oh, and the ride, and how it looks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Other than that, its a great machine...

Well, I have the e90 M3 and it is a brilliant 4 door that keeps the RS4 at bay quite handily. The M5 will be straight line faster, but as you know, the M3 is pretty hard for it to beat on the track. The e90 V8 is possible the last of the NA M cars - so it might be a good one to keep. Otherwise, the F30 M turbo models will be out in a couple of years... (They follow the standard 3 series by a year or two) I've driven a ton of Audis and Mercs (on track and off) and you will not be very happy going from one of the best M3s to any Audi - the understeer will drive you nuts!! Hard pressed to go past the current 4 dr M3 i think...

Hmmmmm, those wheels might look good on mine!!!

Oh christ, not the Holden & Ford thing again...

+1000 for the Sony SLT-A55. I've had many entry level Canon/Nikon owners check it out and blown away at the built in GPS(Yes, super cool if you have Aperture or iPhoto), 10fps rapid fire mode, HD video, size and shooting modes. Because the steady shot mechanism is in the body of the camera, you can use any Minolta lens - which opens up the lens range a bit. Its all about what YOU need as you say. GPS was super important as was the HD video and shooting modes. Yes, you can get more lenses for a Canon and Nikon - but I doubt they will have the same tech. Some people say this is the "next gen of camera tech" and Canon/Nikon will be heading down this path on their next models. Worth a read: http://www.pocket-lint.com/review/5131/son...-slt-a55-review

Ummm. Why? Seriously.

The turbo M powerplants are going to have to earn respect. So far so good. Interesting, I think I'm going to have to keep this M3 though - just read a review of the 1M Coupe vs M3 and the conclusion was: "But is it better? Lieberman and I agree: No. This big, heavy, and expensive M3, with its unflappable confidence and lascivious powertrain, is the car we want, the car we'll remember as the best of the naturally aspirated Ms. It's the one we'll tell young gearheads about in a few decades with the same fondness and reverence as given its E30 ancestor. The 1M doesn't measure up to the M3's standard. Few cars do." Have a read: http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/coupes...ison/index.html

...and turbo lag. Every modern Audi I have driven has *bad* turbo lag (Well, compared to a BMW 335i or 335d that is..)

They are pretty close...maybe they are related??

Awesome looking machine. While the standard F10 is a bit boring, the M5 kicks it open a bit. Looking forward to taking one for a spin! Some of the so-called "///M Purists" around the planet (esp in the 5 series forums) claim that this isn't an pure M car because of ***insert reason here***. But if we really want to get picky about it - consider the original M1 was mid-engined. The M cars which followed weren't. Therefore they weren't pure. The e30 M3 was a 4-cylinder, high revver. Every M3 after that had more cylinders. Not M pure in that case. The original M3 was a manual transmission - the e36 introduced this SMG thingy. No! Not M pure! The original M5 was a 6 cyl. Therefore only the e34 after that was M5 pure - the e39 M5 broke the M pure rules by going to a "slower throttle response" V8. The e60, don't get me started by using a V10!!!! Not M pure, not a true M car. Yeah right. Have you driven one? The e60 M5 is M through and through. Absolutely bonkers machine. M bonkers. Yes, I'm taking the piss a bit, but saying it isn't M-pure is quite laughable. People going from the e39 M5 into the e60 M5 did not ever go back to the e39. Simple. It was better. Faster. Better looking. Awesome sound. Those trading their e60 M5s for the F10 M5 will do the same. I'm looking forward to having a blat in the 1 M Coupe - that will give a fairly good indication of what the turbo M engines will be like - esp compared to the insane V8 in my M3. Will be very interesting. Apart from the SUV Ms - I'm looking forward to seeing how much of a smile these new Ms dish out!

Honestly, the e60 is the best looking of all the 5 series (Its funny, I HATED the e60 at launch. I admit I was wrong.) - even if it isn't quite the way you want it initially - it is good to know they dress up well. Go for it!

Sweet, bigger fine is better than demerits...

Thanks! Has been working fine for a number of years - so I dont need your luck. I am interested in how they are going to tie demerits points to a company owned car. I have a few theories, but we will have to wait and see I guess.

Just sell your car into a company, claim the gst, claim depreciation on income for 3 years....and....watch them try to clock up speed camera demerits points on the company.....win, win, win.

My point exactly. When talking about the e60 and the previous 1, you may (or may not) remember exactly the same kind of reaction and detailed description on why they were soooooo bad and why Bangle must die. Anyway, I don't think it is that bad. I think it will sell very very well. It'll be a case of judgement once I see it driving around. The buyers of the 1 series buy on colour and interior, trust me, I married one. It's the new 3 series look which is the most important, that model is BMWs bread and butter.

Well, just like the poor old e60 5 series, it was hated on launch, but then it became the biggest selling 5 series ever. And when you see a mint kitted e60 now, they look bloody awesome, the best looking 5 of all. Some people look at a e30 and snore, we see awesomeness. We have a group here at bimmersport who like old bimmers, so none of the new models impress. I love my e30 and my e90, and I bought my wife a 1series, which I can tell you can out handle pretty much any e30 on here - despite what people think of it's looks. I predict the bangle era BMW designs are going to stand the test of time. The outgoing 6 series has more balls than the new one. Maybe like a good album, you may not love it on first contact, but once you get used to it, you'll love it.

Was that you behind me in the e39??

Cover them in a stocking. Mint as....

3-litre to 4-litre - BMW 4.0-litre V8 (M3) Sweet, another win. That's 4 years in a row. And with the news that the F10 M3 might keep the S65 and just add turbos to make it greener, life is good.