E92 M3 Competition Pack

[RS Grant]

After two and a half years with my Golf R ( https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...) which I absolutely loved, it surprised me on so many different levels, I've never really been a 'VAG fan boy' but I don't have a burning hatred for them like a lot of people on here seem to have!! ...if you haven't driven one properly, which I understand is difficult on a 10-15 minute test drive, then I urge you to try and get hold of one for longer and drive it on some interesting roads because they really do show their worth the harder you drive them; until that point they feel very VAG-like and plain IMO.

Anyway back on topic and apologies for the bits of copy/pasting from the last big post on my Golf R thread!

After realising that the sound of a car is one of the things which I really value in a car (looking back at my history of cars, there's a lot of character in the noises that the ones I have fondest memories of made) along with the fact that I like RWD because it adds an extra dimension to the driving experience that you can't get with FWD and most 4WD cars... it kind of meant that my days with the Golf had become numbered, which was a sad realisation!

B7 RS4, TTRS (I was very close to leaving a deposit on a Plus!) and C63 AMG were all ruled out as potential replacements for various reasons; to be honest I didn't feel like I really had many options left apart from an E9* M3 with a manual gearbox... and so the start of a semi serious/part time search for an LCI M3 with a nice specification and manual gearbox in either Coupe or Saloon flavour began.

Fast forward about few months, I drove a white E92 LCI which ticked most of my boxes but I was left a little cold by it after looking through the history and finding that it didn't add up to exactly how it had been advertised to me in the pre-visit communication and then not finding anything else that took my fancy for the next wee while... I was even seriously considering a TTRS Plus but eventually realised that jumping into that might be the wrong thing to do and continued on my search for an M3. So fast forward some more and I turned up a 2010 M3 Competition Pack in quite a rare colour combination with a decent spec, low miles/owners, full BMW service history and the all important manual gearbox.

E92 M3 Competition Pack by rsgrant, on Flickr

A test drive, some negotiation, a lot of hard thinking and a cup of tea later saw a deposit left on it... I'm really going to miss the Golf, it is a fantastic car and has surprised me on so many levels; and this might very well turn out to be the wrong decision but after a long year dealing with big issues then I subscribe to the 'life's too short' way and thinking more than ever and didn't want to hold off and procrastinate over 'what ifs' any longer so I've taken the plunge and will see what happens!

Here is the spec list that I was given for the car:

A52 - Space Grey
NDH2 - Fox Red Extended Leather
XE8 - Piano Black Inlay
223 - EDC
6FL - USB Audio Interface
612 - BMW Assist
616 - BMW Assist Online Portal
620 - Voice Control
633 - Enhanced Bluetooth Telephone Functionality
654 - DAB Digital Radio
676 - Loudspeaker System - BMW Advanced
7MA - Competition Package
761 - Sun Protection Glass

BMW Carbon M-Performance Rear Spoiler
BMW Carbon M-Performance Front Corner Splitters
Black Kidney Grills

The only photos (apart from the one I took outside with the trade plates next to the Golf) are from the advert, but they'll work well as a kick off:

bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-1 by rsgrant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-2 by rsgrant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-3 by rsgrant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-7 by rsgrant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-8 by rsgrant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-9 by rsgrant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234303141-16 by rsgrant, on Flickr
bmw-m3-m3-2dr-234632881-32 by rsgrant, on Flickr

Hopefully be collecting the car within the next week, just waiting for my numberplate to go onto retention/be transferred to the M3 and I'll be good to go.. will be try to keep the thread updated with my thoughts/pictures too.

Edited by RS Grant on Friday 13th October 14:02

[RS Grant]

Thanks for the replies, I'm definitely not planning to do any exterior modifications.. don't even think that I'd change the colour of the wheels if/when they need a refurb either, I am a big fan of the way a Comp Pack car looks as standard.

I would like to get a little more sound/occasion out of the V8, so considering exhaust options at the moment and have always had good results from Milltek which tend to make themselves known without ever being intrusive so that's probably the front runner at the moment. I have/am/kinda considering the cheaper 'exhaust mod' route, but I'm not sure I like the idea of chopping up a 30k mile backbox and might prefer to switch it out for a replacement part and keep hold of the OE part in its original form instead.

Gearshift didn't make itself overly known as horrendous on the test drive, however my E46 M3 gearshift was never that magical; so after I've driven the E92 for a while, if it turns out to be similar then I'll be going for a smaller/weighted F10 M5 gearknob and seeing how I feel after that. If I'm still not happy then I can ge a bit more involved with a short shift kit from AutoSolutions that should make a clear difference and give me a shorter, more precise shift and a slop-free gearstick.

I'm not planning to do any track days in this car, I bought an EP3 Civic Type R to do trackdays with a wee while back (need to update that thread too!) which covers all of those duties well; for much less outlay/worry about a trip to the gravel or getting too close to others. But for my planned trip to the Nurburgring next year then this will be the car I take rather than the Civic; there's no way I'd drive that all the way there and back when I'll have this sitting at home!!

[RS Grant]

Well I finally collected the car on Saturday and I've got to say, I'm extremely happy with it... that engine is amazing, just revs for days and along with the induction howl, I'm well impressed with it. The linear power delivery might not feel as urgent as my Golf with it's boosty Stage 1 mid range, but the M3 is relentless and looking down reminds you of how quickly it gets to the naughty side of the speedo; although I do still think that they'd probably be quite well matched to around about three figures.

I'll do a bigger/proper comparison to the Golf when I've got a wee bit more time, but the M3 has given me exactly what I wanted, it's far more of an occasion to bumble around in than the Golf and when driving hard (although I've not been out for my usual 'New Car Highland Hoon' in it yet!) it looks like it'll provide the noise/experience that I felt was missing in the Golf.

I've wanted to take a couple of pictures of my car beside the Forth Rail Bridge for a while but it's not that local to me and time has never been on my side whenever I've passed previously, but the planets aligned on Saturday so it made sense to stop with the M3 on our way home. I'll share those below, however the first one is the last picture I'll take of ST15HDG which is sad times!

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

[RS Grant]

AmosMoses said:

Cant help but think, the E92 M3 really is a gorgeous car compared the the new F82 M4.

Enjoy it OP!

Thanks mate, I'd agree with the looks.. the M4 looks mean from the front but I think you lose the aggression in the long smooth rear arches a wee bit. The F80 M3 looks far more menacing/muscular with the more pronounced rear arches, IMO.

The wheels that come with the Competition Pack just suit an E92 so well and the wee carbon additions might not be to everyones taste but I'd have added all three to a standard M3; so for me it was absolutely fantastic to find a car which already had them fitted.. I'm not sure about the black grills/silver sides, I think I would rather that they matched each other, but I'm still undecided whether to go all silver or all black just now.

[RS Grant]

davie3door said:

Car looks stunning in the pics, very nice.

Thanks Davie, yours looks great too... remember your 3dr Cossie from RS/Passionford days, was an absolute belter. Did it stay local/used properly or end up in a carcoon?

FTW said:

Lovely spec, I'm super tempted to by one. How do you find the manual 'box, how long do clutches last? I hear the change is a bit notchy and long, maybe something a short shifter can solve?

So far the manual gearbox isn't too bad, it IS a bit notchy and the throw IS a bit long.. it's not as good as the Golf was, but I think it is better than my E46 M3 was.. had planned to start with an F10 M5 gearknob and see what kind of difference it made, but have already been in touch with AS about a shifter kit, so might end up just getting it all done at once. The best/most enjoyable gearbox I've had was my S2000, so if I can get the M3 somewhere close to the positive shift and short action the Honda had then I'll be extremely happy!

Clutches don't seem to be common parts to wear out, but being a BMW with some added M-tax on top, I can't imagine it'll be cheap to replace if/when it does go though?!

PopsandBangs said:

Looking for one just like this currently and stumbled across this thread..... I must say you have very good taste.... I recognise that plate on the new car from the history of my old M3....

Carbon black 2003 e46 by any chance?

Wow, that's a car I was trying to track down about a year or so ago because I'd have bought it back in a heartbeat.. should never have sold it in the first place!! How come you got rid of the E46?

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

You clearly have good taste in cars too!!

Edited by RS Grant on Tuesday 24th October 12:54

[RS Grant]

PopsandBangs said:

There she is

Best car I've ever owned and wish i'd never sold it too. Was buying a house last year and needed the funds....

A close friend of mine had it after you I think (3rd owner) and drove it approximately 300 miles in a year and a half! I took it off his hands and put around 5k miles on in 6 months and that was only as a weekend car...

Unbelievably clean and unmolested car. Absolutely loved it and miss it dearly

Yeah unfortunately bricks and mortar has to take priority at some point, but that E46 was a real gem.. owned by new by an older guy local to me (only got rid because he'd just collected an E92 M3 Frozen Edition), it came with mountains of history, was immaculate, ideal specification etc... selling it was made a lot worse for me because I got rid of it for one of the worst cars I've owned (335i Touring) from one of the worst garages I've ever had the misfortune of dealing with!!

I'd really like another E46 M3 one day, but if things continue the way they have been then by the time I'm able to buy/store one properly, the price for a good one will have gone past a point that I'd be comfortable paying.

[RS Grant]

thatguy11 said:

I'd recognise this as Leven on Corstorphine Road any day, even without the clue of looking at the dealer plates on your photos Relatives of mine used to live literally just around the corner and I've been in the showroom a couple of times drooling, their selection is incredible. No wonder they produced an M3 like this, looks absolutely perfect! Top job

Haha yep the place is quite something, the showroom was a lot like my lottery win dream garage with a Ferrari 458, Porsche GTS, RS6 Avant.. in fact if my numbers were ever to come up then I think that's probably one of the first places I'd get in touch with now!

PopsandBangs said:

That is the quandary I find myself in Grant... I was originally looking for another E46 but it appears good ones like ST53 HGG are very few and far between now and the few that come up are ridiculously expensive. Big regret letting it go, especially hearing now of it's charmed life before it came into mine I feel highly envious when I see another one out and about now

Obviously it has been a few years since you owned it, but how do your memories of it compare to your first impressions of the E92 (one of which I'm yet to drive)? I'm concerned i'll find it too big and heavy! Also, how does the sound in stock exhaust form compare to the lovely rasp of the E46?

First impressions are similar, I went from a 123d (~280bhp and ~400lbft) to the E46 and from my Golf R (~370bhp and ~330lbft) to the E92. Both times I've been worried that the drop in torque would be an issue, but the relentless surge of power in an M3 is deceiving because you don't initially 'feel' like you're going that fast but the power just keeps building to the redline and the speedo shows just how quickly you're gathering speed.

The exhaust is quiet in the E92, although maybe the sound insulation dulls it a bit, I've not heard the car from outside. But inside the main noise I hear is induction howl which starts in the mid range and continues all the way beyond 8,000rpm... I'd like more exhaust noise, so that'll be addressed at some point. Not sure I'll be able to get anything like the rasp of the E46 though, apparently an Akrapovic exhaust gives a certain amount of rasp, but I'm not prepared to spend ~3k on an exhaust system. I got a good price for a cat-back Milltek exhaust locally, so think that will be the direction which I go when the time comes.

Handling-wise, I took my E46 on an Impreza Owners Club run in the Highlands and while I probably had to work harder than the other lads to keep up.. the M3 didn't disgrace itself despite not being designed to tackle for lumpy, bumpy mountain B-roads as well as the Impreza had been!! Any excuse for a photo:

IMG_6572 by RS Grant, on Flickr

...I've not taken the E92 up the same sort of roads yet, but will definitely report back once I have. But from the few roundabouts which I've tackled, it does seem like the front end is very direct and like it will hang on well under fast cornering.

stevesingo said:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

That car has been for sale for a wee while now, plus IMO it's a little strong on the price too. But it's good to track down another one of the 22 manuals!!

f1ten said:

Lovely car op. A v8 m3 which needs revved is a good place to be

Col 666 said:

Looking good Grant.

Thanks guys.

Edited by RS Grant on Wednesday 25th October 11:50

[RS Grant]

Had the time to finally take the M3 out for it's first blast to the Scottish Highlands and the Cairngorms yesterday, it's something I always do when I buy a new car, it's my favourite place and tests cars in every way they'll be tested with me... and I wasn't disappointed with the E92, WHAT. A. CAR.

I like listening to music when I drive and had a habit of having it up loud in the Golf when out for a blast and I started the same way yesterday in the M3. However after a short while of snaking through b-roads and enjoying all of the revs the V8 had to offer, I turned the music right down so it was still audible but so I could listen to that engine in the mid to high rev range, what a sound it makes!!

These roads are good in the main but extra compliance to help deal with lumps, bumps and the fact they're not snooker table smooth is definitely welcome; so I played around with the EDC settings and found that I actually preferred the softest setting rather than the middle setting on these roads.. I have the M-button set to middle setting for normal fast driving and the hardest setting has been avoided at all costs so far.

The car is fantastic, it's everything that was missing from the Golf and exactly what I was looking for; I am over the moon with my purchase. So far there are only a couple of small things which I've noticed I don't have anymore; one being adaptive headlights which I NEVER thought I'd notice but I do and the obvious one: fuel economy, or lack of!! But you've got to pay to play and I went in with my eyes open, so it is what it is. I'm roughly £10 extra to fill the tank and it gets me around 40-50 less miles of range, it's a difference but it's one which I can stomach because the pay off is massive and my annual mileage is pretty low at 4-5k maximum.

Anyway, I took a few pictures yesterday so I'll share them now.. they were only taken on my phone and it gets a little grainy if you zoom in on Flickr but here they are anyway:

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

...I really need to get myself into photography/do a course to learn about it in more depth because I love taking photos but my iPhone camera isn't really cutting it anymore. However from what I've seen it's a hobby that can get super expensive pretty quickly, so maybe I'll start by asking Santa for a camera.

[RS Grant]

GregK2 said:

Stunning pics, looks great from every angle.

Polynesian said:

Beautiful car. I know it's space grey but it looks almost like sparkling graphite in the recent pics. Lovely either way. Glad you are enjoying it on some good roads.

Thank you guys, I'm very quickly becoming a massive fan of the car. ...it was mid-late afternoon so the light was starting to fade a little and with the height of the mountains, the sun reaching the roads at the foot of the mountain was rare which made it hard to capture the colour properly, but it definitely has a touch of sparkling graphite about it in some of them!

[RS Grant]

I took the car away for a long weekend in the Highlands with my girlfriend last weekend and covered ~300 miles in the car.. it's a fantastic piece of kit, the more I drive it the more I get attached to it. Didn't take many car photos while I was away, but it is absolutely filthy so I'll be giving it a proper clean over this weekend to get the crap off it and if the weather/light holds then I will probably take some photos of it.

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Didn't realise that there would be so many leaves stuck under this vent, half a dozen or so and I only noticed after one of the stems made itself known?!

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

MPG and mileage per tank isn't bad, roughly 6-7mpg difference between this and the Golf by the looks of it. I don't think it's actually too bad for a car that is no lightweight and powered by a 400+bhp V8 petrol that enjoys revving so hard and so long.

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

[RS Grant]

Pretty lucky to have all the scenery on my doorstep relatively speaking, great to look at and great to wind your way through on a nice day.

Yeah I don't regret the decision at all Mike. In March this year I actually asked on a thread posted in the M Power section here if there were ANY manual Comp Pack cars made/sold because I'd been looking for quite some time and hadn't seen any.. don't think I've ever been so committed to finding the correct car before!

[RS Grant]

I just did a post comparing my old Golf R to the M3 for some people on the M3 Owners Club, some of you guys on here might find it useful/interesting, so thought that I'd add it to this thread as well.

Ok this is gonna be quite long; pictures, links and a lot of words... it's just an ordinary blokes comparison between MK7 Golf R and E92 M3 Competition Pack... I'll try not to do any w@nky car magazine person type chat because I'm not trying to keep a press office or Editor sweet; and since I don't have an Editor, I'm sure there'll be the odd grammar/spelling mistake mixed in for good measure too!!

Link: Click Here

That link above will give you an idea about where I've come from and what I've owned previously to these cars; I did a Car History thread on Pistonheads that I've just recently updated with working photos after the great Photobucket fisting. It's a longgg read also, so I won't blame you for skimming through and just looking at the pictures!!


Styling:

I'm not going to comment much on styling because it's entirely subjective and my thoughts might be different to someone elses, however both will be equally as relevant to each individual.

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Golf:

Understated, subtle, well proportioned, quite anonymous to most people. Which is why I can't really understand why they decided that slapping FOUR tailpipes on it was a good idea?! The Mk5 R32 and Mk6 R both had twin centre exit exhausts which looked great, but the quad exit exhaust was completely OTT for me and not in keeping with the rest of the design on the car; something which in nearly 3 years of ownership, that I never came to accept/like.

One of the biggest mistakes I made when ordering the Golf was not choosing the 19" wheel option, it makes a big difference to the look and is absolutely worth the extra outlay at purchase; I ended up spending about 2k on some 19" BBS' within the first few months of having the car! The only other aesthetic mod I did was lowering the car, a function/form change, but yet more cash that I didn't plan to spend on the car when I bought it.

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

M3:

Muscular, understated, wide, low, purposeful.. all words which I would use to describe the BMW. I think this is something which BMW M-people do really well, I'm obviously a 'car guy' but I think that even someone who isn't a car nerd like me will recognise most M-cars as something a bit special. I was driving through some small highland towns recently and got a few admiring looks from people and one guy in particular stopped with his wee boy and pointed at the car as we drove past; which, sad as it is, gives me a buzz!

If my car had been standard then I would have added the carbon parts which came with my car, but the wheels are absolutely fantastic and the slightly lower ride height of the Competition Pack makes a difference. Had I bought a standard M3 then I think I would have fitted these wheels and some springs to improve the look.


Engine & Performance:

The Golf was ok as standard, although there was no 'thump in the back' that you might expect from a 2.0 Turbo making ~300bhp. I fitted a couple of modifications (Intake, Turbo Inlet Pipe, Forge Recirc and JB1 Tuning Box) which took the car to ~370bhp and made it the car how it should have been from the factory, far more punchy to drive. It pulled to an indicated 164mph and felt like it'd continue the next few hundred rpm to the limiter in 6th gear (the manual cars are shorter geared than the DSG from what I've read).

1312D917-0655-4732-82DB-94CFDAE24884 by RS Grant, on Flickr

B-road overtakes in the Golf were easily dispatched with the low-lag wall of torque, absolutely zero traction issues and well judged gear ratios keeping the car on the boil.

As far as the actual engine goes, well, it's a conventional 2.0 4cyl with a turbo bolted to it so it's never going to set the world alight or be the last word in excitement. There isn't much/any character about the engine, they've added a 'Soundaktor' which introduces a very 5cyl-esque thrum into the car when you activate 'Race' mode; which gives slightly spikier throttle response/opens exhaust valves/activates the Soundaktor. The issue I had with the car for the time I owned it was the fact that I couldn't take the risk of upgrading exhaust to get more actual noise because every system that I'd heard introduced quite a rippy/zippy sound which I thought completely spoilt the whole subtle-but-powerful idea of the R. I did fit an intake on the car which did give a little extra induction whistle and with the Forge Recirc valve it also made some nice little chirps ( Link Here) as well as more of a wooosh lifting at higher revs/boost.

The engine is a completely different beast in the M3. The engine builds and builds the harder you push it, the real performance is tucked away at the top of the rev range. I'd say that <3500rpm is pretty average and you're surprised you are in a V8, but then ~3500rpm until ~4500rpm is getting better and as you sweep past 4500rpm you can feel it starting to get into its groove, then from 6000rpm onwards you're in the real sweet spot of noise, occasion and performance.. at this point speed builds really quickly and given the longggg ratios in the car, you can be doing some very expensive numbers in as low as 3rd gear.

In a very important way, the BMW destroys the VW... engine noise. The lack of it in the Golf is very noticeable and the abundance of glorious induction howl in the M3 is unavoidable, with some V8 burble unlocked with an exhaust upgrade in the new year, the M3 will be even better!

If we are talking about the real world, I'm not convinced that the BMW would be any faster at all on a twisty B-road and actually might find itself on the end of a shoeing depending on drivers/conditions. The accessible power of the Golf and the usability of the '4WD' set up means you can make some pretty devastating cross country progress.. whereas to compete in the M3 you'd have to be very involved in the process and have a decent level of driver skill. That said, with the long gear ratios and the top end power delivery, I think it'd be hard to keep the M3 on the boil enough to stick with my Golf R; if you find yourself in the wrong gear in the Golf then you will be rescued by the short ratios and the turbo power pulling you out of it, but find yourself in the wrong gear or wrong area of the rev range in the BMW and you'll need to wind it up again.


Handling & Driving Experience:

As standard the Golf was a little bit high (made worse by the 19" BBS' that I bought for the car and when pushing on down some of my local back roads the car had a bit too much body roll for me, so I invested in some aftermarket suspension with KW V1 Coilovers to start with and then finally some Koni Adjustable Shocks with H&R Springs which helped both looks and in particular the handling of the car. On the downside, the ride quality (which had been fantastic standard) did suffer a little bit but never to the point where I felt it was unacceptable or annoying.

The big downside with the Golf for me was the fact that the car was SO safe and you could seemingly mash your foot at almost any point of a corner and the car would just grip and take off without any fuss or movement at all. I'm not trying to 4 wheel drift round every roundabout or gather massive amounts of opposite lock out of a bend, but I'd like to feel a wee squirm/shimmy from the rear, which all adds to the experience for me. I fitted a set of semi-slick tyres to some 18" wheels on the Golf and when it was very cold/greasy the car moved around a little, however, apart from that it was business as usual?! Loved the look of it on the Turinis though:

0EC23ED2-84D6-4AE4-9AEE-1A58B5F07431 by RS Grant, on Flickr

My Golf was a manual and the gearchange from 1st to 2nd was a little notchy, specially when cold, however apart from that; the throw wasn't long, the feel was direct and as mentioned above the gear ratios were very well judged and helped make the car quicker than the numbers would probably suggest.
I went for a manual rather than a DSG car for exactly the same reason that I chose the M3 in manual rather than DCT, I really enjoy working through a gearbox when I'm out for a drive and although there's no denying that the new autoboxes are fantastic pieces of kit and definitely make you faster, they remove such a large piece of the interaction/experience that they're not for me... that said, they're getting more and more popular and manual options being less and less available so at some point in the future I'm sure I'll have to cave in and submit to the inevitable. Worth saying that these cars are occasional use for me, maybe 4-5k per year maximum, but if I used my car daily then there's no question that I'd have a DSG/DCT car; I sat in a couple of hours of stop-start traffic in the Golf during the summer and wanted to tear my hair out after that!

I went for a manual gearbox in the M3 because as I said above, it is an important piece of the jigsaw for me. The gearchange in the BMW is definitely not as good as the one from the Golf; the throw is longer, the feel is less positive and it can feel a little notchy when running through the gears (mainly when cold) too. I've done a fair bit of research now so I'm fairly settled on the fact that at some point I'll do the F10 M5 gearknob modification to the car and see how I feel after that, should I still not be totally happy then I'm gonna weigh in on a proper shift kit from AS since I've seen nothing but good reviews for that.

When I first started casually looking for an E92 in the dim and distant past, EDC wasn't something which I was overly fussed about having and wasn't on my 'must-have' list. Now that I've got a car which came with it, I would say that for me it is a fantastic piece of kit! Usually I have it in the softest setting when just bumbling around town and then mid-setting when I'm out for a blast in the car, however when I went on the run on the Highlands with their slightly less than perfect road surfaces then I found that the middle setting was a little harsh (along same lines as the Golf with aftermarket Konis) so I knocked it into the softest setting and the extra compliance made a HUGE difference to the way the car handled and swept its way down the road, it absorbed everything that was thrown at it and at no point did I get that 'screw your eyes up' feeling when you go over bumps and it sends a shivver through you, I was massively impressed by that!

On the subject of fun, I don't think I need to go into too much detail of that.. but turn off the traction/stability control in the M3 then it'll throw the back of the car out with ease and will stay there as long as you ask it to. I've not had any 'moments' on MDM yet though, not that I'm actively trying or looking for that to happen, it would just be nice to see where the limits lie on that setting too.


Day To Day/Running Costs:

The Golf is a Golf, so it's easy to drive with a light clutch/gearchange/decent level of technology and flys under the radar really well. The downsides with the Golf is a slightly poor turning circle (lock-to-lock feels very quick and probably helps with handling/drive of it) and because it's got rear diff to accomodate the boot space is actually pretty poor for a modern hatchback and if you wanted an R which was practical then I'd probably try to sway you towards a Golf R Estate which is a world apart in terms of load space.

Running cost-wise, the Golf doesn't sit in a high tax bracket, the insurance was reasonable (c230 for me last year) and servicing was also very reasonable too. I was averaging around 24-25mpg with up to 28-29mpg available on a boring run at motorway speeds... lowest I got it was c11mpg when on track, but that's hardly a common occurence.

On the flip side, the M3 sits in a high tax bracket, the insurance is looking like it'll be nearly double the Golf cost come renewal time and servicing will obviously be higher given the engine is literally twice the size and uses higher quality oil, bigger tyres etc. MPG-wise it's quite early to tell, but over the last tank of fuel it looks like I averaged 21.5mpg; which combined some average speed camera 60/70 zones, some Highland hoonery and low speed burbling around.

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Practicality is never going to be as good/easily accessed in the M3 since it's a coupe rather than a hatchback, the boot can still swallow a fair amount of stuff and rear interior space isn't bad for that type of car. Only noticeable difference is that the seating position is slightly higher than I'd like and it's more noticeable since sitting nice and low was something that the Golf did very well.


Verdict:

I loved my Golf, it was extremely difficult to let go of that car after having it for 13k miles and nearly 3 years. However now the dust has settled on the switch, there's very little I miss about it if I'm honest; the adaptive headlights (never thought I'd say that!), the seat going low enough for me, adaptive cruise control and being a Scotsman, I have always grudged paying tax to run around on what sometimes feels like ploughed tarmac and now I'm paying over double what I was before.

On the whole though the M3 is a better car for me; more noise, more occasion, more fun and more purposeful looks. It's given me exactly what I was looking for and what I felt the Golf was missing, none of which I could have easily/economically changed with the Golf either.

Hope the lads who wanted a comparison have found it useful and those who read it for the hell of it, well done for sticking with it.. I hope I didn't send you to sleep!!

[RS Grant]

philmots said:

Who cares if the Golf is nearly as quick, look at it!!!! It’s 100x the car imo....

Enjoy, I’m tempted to get into one myself next.

Haha yeah exactly, it's far more suitable for me currently and way more enjoyable... you only live once, so why not!

[RS Grant]

Mitch_TCF said:

Love your M3! Nice comparison between the Golf and the M3.

I was very lucky to drive a white e93 M3 for around 40mins in the Kippford area (south of Dumfries) area in the Summer. Amazing car, loved every minute of it! Hopefully one day I'll be able to get one :-)

Cheers Mitch, there are some brilliant roads down that way. Even though I live in NE Scotland, I remember having a great time when we ended up in that neck of the woods on an Impreza Owners Club run a long time ago... although not sure there's much chance to drop the roof of an E93 given the weather, haha.

[RS Grant]

renmure said:

That's a mean looking M3.
Very nice indeed.

Thanks Jim (hope you’re same Renmure that I think you are!), my folks have moved out to your neck of the woods so I’ll keep an eye out for you when I’m over that way.

[RS Grant]

After the trip up north the car was looking a bit worse for wear, picking up a lot of road crap as is the norm at this time of year.. I know detailing boys love a 50/50 shot so here’s one that will get you going:

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

After it was clean again, one of my friends asked if he could take a few photos of the car.. so here are the first photos of the car (apart from the sales advert) which have been taken with something a bit better than my iPhone!!

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr
Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

I’ve just recently got a Stage 3 Fiesta ST and while it’s superb fun and feels WAY more manic to drive, it was so nice to get into the M3 again and take it for a run..

[RS Grant]

SiT said:

A beautiful car and a great write up between the MK7 R and the E92, always been a big fan of both but the Golf doesn't 'excite' due to most of the reasons you have outlined. I owned a MK5 R32 which was a real occasion mostly down to the engine and exhaust note, I never tired of starting it up and heading out for a drive.

Currently in an X5 for family duties but later this year will be looking to fill the performance gap in my garage and thinking an E92 might just be the ticket.

Keep this thread updated with the beautiful pics you are taking and your highs and lows.

Si

Thanks Si, appreciate the comment and glad you found the write up useful too.

Since this is a journal of my ownership, there was always going to be highs and lows posted in here... so with that said, recently I was experiencing the very occasional error message that would clear itself after a varying amount of driving. This is what I've been getting:

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Then it's been clearing itself:

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

...however it's been on solidly for a couple of journeys now, the second of which was a good run in case it was a battery voltage issue but it's had no change so I've booked it into the local BMW dealership and will drop it off on Monday morning, armed with my warranty!!

From browsing the internet it looks like it could be anything from a weak battery, steering angle sensor, ABS sensor, ABS unit to the dreaded/common throttle actuator(s) issue.. ranging from a couple of hundred pounds to a couple of thousand pounds, so place your bets now...

[RS Grant]

sagarich said:

Fantastic car and updates OP!

Thanks mate.

MikeGoodwin said:

I haven't even got an m3 until Saturday but I'm buying a high kick spoiler....

What warranty do you have please? Maybe you saw in my thread ill be getting bmw warranty on mine.

Yeah the spoiler isn't huge, but it makes a big difference to it.. I absolutely love the exterior touches of my car, still unsure whether to go for matching black side grills, return front grills to chrome or get carbon front and sides to go with the splitters/spoiler/roof.

It's got a year of AutoTrust Formula X warranty on it, which appears to be comprehensive from the handbook ( Link Here) and after ringing them to double check today, they confirmed that I have zero excess too, which puts my mind at ease a little... although we'll find out how comprehensive and how easy the claim procedure is on Monday!!

MikeGoodwin said:

Aftershox said:

just from the pictures has nearly tempted me into buying one!

Yeah, RS Grant is basically responsible for my recent M3 purchase as well

Haha, guilty!

Looking forward to some photos of your MC after collection Mike, it's a stunning colour.. a guy on M3 Cutters has got one and done the small additions that I'd do to one as well; so, to me, it looks even better now.

[RS Grant]

nav p said:

Mike335i said:

It would lost likely be a wheel speed sensor giving dodgy readings. This causes the system to go into failsafe mode and switch off all assistance.

A scan for error codes will point you in the right direction. Even if the abs pump is gone, I think there are cheaper ways of fixing it now.

Wheels speed sensor...normally front passenger side!

Geat car btw

I love mine

Yeah it sounds logical that it's been a sensor which has was on it's last legs and now failed completely. I'm hoping that it's just a small thing like a sensor rather than anything more involved anyway, that way it'll be in and out as quickly as possible on Monday.

Regarding the scanning of fault codes, I was going to buy Carly for BMW, is that the one to go for? If so, are there any preferred/trusted sellers for it?

[RS Grant]

Well, dropped the car off at the BMW Dealer along with the warranty company details and left in a 118i M Sport courtesy car.

From this:

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

To this:

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

To be honest I thought it was a nice car, lots of spec (but no cruise control weirdly?!) and was nippy enough for a 1.5 3cyl petrol, plus it had 'Sport Displays' which were a constant reminder of the kind of numbers it was capable of pumping out:

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr

Anyway to the M3, I got a call from the dealer saying that it had been diagnosed as an ABS sensor (and possible wheel bearing) issue and that the warranty company wanted to send an assessor out to verify their findings. Now, I'm not totally comfortable that part of my warranty process is essentially having someones work checked over to make sure they've got it right/weren't trying to pull the wool over the warranty company's eyes... doesn't sit well with me, however, that all happened without a hitch and the sensor was approved and fitted.

In addition to the ABS sensor there was a historic error with the EDC Control Unit. I'm not sure how much it was fubar'd but the suspension definitely changed when I tried out the EDC button before, so it may have been an intermittent fault. Anyway, the issue here was that the fault pre-dated the warranty on the car being taken out by the dealer where I bought the car and understandably the warranty company wanted nothing to do with that particular repair. So I got the ECU codes and invoice details emailed over to me and bounced them on to the supplying dealer; who agreed that it was something they should have checked/sorted before it was delivered and paid the outstanding balance without question.. I really can't speak highly enough of that dealer, the buying/aftersales experience has been fantastic.

After all that was fitted, the car still had an error message showing, so a wheel bearing was required.. as per the ABS sensor, the warranty company wanted to send out an assessor to check the fault and once satisfied, they ordered an OEM bearing and had it delivered direct to the BMW dealer who fitted it and I'm glad to report everything is now tip top and error free.

I collected the car earlier today and took it on a little 20-30 mile run to free things off and charge things up after it'd sat around at the dealer. I've been driving an F80 M3 the past couple of weeks which I had been offered at trade value by my parents and if I'm honest, I genuinely prefer my E92... it feels so much more special and given the roads aren't bone dry just now it is less lairy/easier to make progress with the difference in mid range torque between the two.

Since I was passing, I stopped off for a quick picture at Carnoustie Golf Links; which was pretty quiet at the moment, but won't be long until things get more hectic for The Open starting in July.

Untitled by RS Grant, on Flickr