So last night I was driving home from work and a
bmw is riding my a$$ for a solid mile and a half. Turned left onto another residential street and this dude did a ricer flyby through 3rd. I eventually caught up to him and his girl was in the car so I guess he was trying to impress. Anyway, he downshifted to 2nd and took off again, probably hitting 100. This isn't the first time an e46 driver did some asinine **** before on the street. Another time a guy kept flying past me on the interstate...wouldn't be surprised if he hit 140. What's with bmw drivers? Do they sign contracts promising to be utter d-bags for the entirety of their ownership? Anyone ever own one? Out of curiosity, how do they compare to a HR?

 

csb

 

thanks that's why I shared

 

As a former two-time BMW owner who spent a lot of time with BMW people, they're actually a great bunch. I'm still good friends with a lot people I met at BMW-related events and I still bring my Z out to them. Maybe I got lucky and the community here is better than other places.

With that being said, these guys are the "real" BMW enthusiasts - the ones who buy them because they actually like driving the cars, not using them for a status symbol or to impress people. There are plenty of those jackasses, like the ones you've run into, who ruin the name for the rest of us.

 

It's because their entire life they're brainwashed by commercials and celebrities into thinking that BMWs and Mercedes are the coolest fkcing vehicles on gods green earth. So they pick up enough bartending shifts until they're finally able to lease a new model or purchase an old one and suddenly their ego inflates to the point that it is only outsized by the inevitable repair bill when they need source a bunch of german parts.

That being said, this is directed towards your typical non-car guy douche who buys a BMW because "it's a bmw bro!"

I met a bunch of BMW guys at a BMW autocross event and the real enthusiasts are just fine. Unfortunately their platform attracts d-bags.

 

I own both an E46 M3 and 350Z Nismo. Both GREAT cars. I too know quite a few BMW owners, and no d-bags there. But I'm sure there are. Just as in every type of car, not just BMW, there are always some stupid people. Sad to say, but I've actually run across more douches driving 350Zs than M3s. I'm thinking is possibly because the earlier 350Zs aren't expensive at all now a days so many stupid kids can get there hands on them
From my personal experience, as far as how they (HR Z and E46 M3) match up in a straight line, they're neck and neck STOCK. But the M3 responds better to mods so there is more potential there.

 

Road & Track did a test before, it featured an '03 Corvette Z06, '03 Nissan 350z(I believe Track trim), '02 Porsche 911, and an '02 BMW M3.
The lap times are as follows: Z06-01:36:50, 350z-01:40.06 , BMW M3-01:40.09and the 911-01:40.79.

 

There's no denying that they're well engineered cars. My friend's 335i is a beautiful car inside and out, not to mention that e92 platform is awesome for power. I do really like the e46 m3's also and considered getting one before I bought my Z.

It just seems to me that, from my own personal and biased experience, bmw owners will go the furthest to show off their car.

 

I never driven an E46 but I own an E92 and it will destroy an HR both around a track and straight line with a somewhat decent driver behind the wheel. Obviously because of the power advantage.

And yes, probably about 95% of the other BMW owners I ever met around here are all d-bags. But then again most people around here are all d-bags too except if they are in their late 30s and older.

+1 on Phenom's comment about the non car guys and girls who get these cars. Almost every single one I ever met knows little to nothing about the cars besides that they are expensive so it must be cool.

 

100 mph in 2nd huh? 06 Z is 62 mph @ red line in 2nd. Should be an easy kill if hes geared out that far.

 

I wish I had that special edition M3 because mine can't go 100mph in second

 

E92 can go up to 75 in second not sure about the ones with the DCT but those are rubbish. That E46 must be running on the souls of dead baby owls and blessed with the fart from a unicorn sacrificed by the Jabawackiz in Narnia to go 100 in second gear.

 

I said he took off in 2nd, never said he stayed in 2nd lol

 

Round here, I only get that d-bag effect from guys in full sized trucks and SUVs. Seems like the mentality is V8 with flowmasters stomps those little z cars. Also get overzealous Prius drivers doing the same thing. Whatever.

I had an e36 M3 for 9 years (97). The e36 was better at putting power to the ground. Engine was all stock, but had H&R springs and Koni yellows. Also Ground Control RTAB shims. My rev-up 06 z was about the same as far as acceleration. felt no different. My 07 HRz definitely pulled harder stock. With mods there's no contest.


The e36 Handled amazingly well on skinny factory wheels/PS2 tires.

Can't wait to do my suspension on the z. Still all factory suspension.

I used to despise BMW drivers and BMWs in general until I drove my friend's M3 and eventually bought one.

Sure, there's the name, but it's not just about the name. To me anyway.

 

Whenever people do that, I just tell myself that I don't need to prove anything to these dbags. I even had a Gallardo rev at me. wtf? I think it hurts their egos even more if you ignore their monkey stunts.

 

Go with kw variant 3 when you do your suspension. That is what I got and couldn't be happier. Also I would recommend doing your lower control arm bushings because the oem rubber ones will wear faster with upgraded suspension. I would do swaybars only if you plan on doing the endlinks at the same time because the oem's are swiss cheese with a stiffer sway bars.

 

You'll get racers in every car. Back in the day when I was 18 and driving around in a sub 100hp kia. People in old v6 stangs would try to race me.
Next time hit the caltrops button followed by smokescreen.

 

Just be re-assured that his BMW won't be on the road in 5 years. Those cars are only the "Ultimate driving machine" for about 5 years from purchase. After that, be prepared for Epic electrical and mechanical failures. I absolutely despise BMWs and Mercedes because of how crappy the quality is. Not only are they designed to be the most PITA to work on, but the craftsmanship is just garbage. You need a computer to reset everything on these cars, hell even the brake sensors have to be manually reset once you replace them. It's total nonsense. The latest BMWs don't even have a dipstick for the engine oil anymore, you have to rely entirely on an electrical sensor, which is sure to fail in a German car.

My co-worker has a 2001 Audi S4 and that POS is falling apart at the seems. Every other week another thing breaks.

Honestly for the price tag on these German cars, it's just not worth it! Parts are insanely expensive and the cars just don't hold value. If you want a modern/newer german car, lease the POS. Don't own!

Don't get me wrong, I don't hate all German cars. The older ones from the 80s and some early 90s models were built solid and last! These newer ones are 90% plastic and I swear are designed to fail once the Warranty is out.

 

And no matter how bad it gets, the fact of the matter is you have a market full of housewives and bankers who will always see them for that same fancy status symbol that they always have and they'll continue to buy them. It's like BMW/Mercedes can do no wrong when the quality of certain parts is crap but it either goes unrecognized or it's given a pass because it's a fancy chit luxury car.

 

the bmw crowd in my area is the epitomy of rice.

huge cans, plastidip, bagged. it doesn't matter br0, becuz beamer!