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Not a terribly surprising result, I'd still easily get the M3 though, but I'd rather wait for the next one, hopefully with a 6 and a couple of turbos, less weight = more fun.
As BMW owner, I'd rather have the mustang. The BMW has a bit more refinement, but not $27k more refinement. The interior, liek all new 3 series, is a bit hard, cold, and not all that pleasing a place to be in, and not guranteed to be more durable. With the added elctronic nannery in the controls, the BMWs have even lost a lot of the magic suspension design/tuning that made them have the perfect blend of handling, ride, road feel, and responsiveness that really did make them better to drive than their contemporaries though the years. With no real performance advantage (which would go away if they were running on the same tires), no comfort or feel advantage, no real reliability advantage (if there ever was one), then the significant price disadvantage really comes into play. Moreso as the car moves out of warranty.
Sorry to say, but BMW has lost anything other than badge snobbery.
Oh, and now that BMW has done away with dipsticks and instead relies on "superior german sensors" then I'll ahve to say I'll not own a newer BMW for any reason. Should't have to go to the dealer to do an oil change or even simply check your true oil level (since sensors are prone to failure, and a number of late model BMW owners have been finding that to be true).
As BMW owner, I'd rather have the mustang. The BMW has a bit more refinement, but not $27k more refinement. The interior, liek all new 3 series, is a bit hard, cold, and not all that pleasing a place to be in, and not guranteed to be more durable. With the added elctronic nannery in the controls, the BMWs have even lost a lot of the magic suspension design/tuning that made them have the perfect blend of handling, ride, road feel, and responsiveness that really did make them better to drive than their contemporaries though the years. With no real performance advantage (which would go away if they were running on the same tires), no comfort or feel advantage, no real reliability advantage (if there ever was one), then the significant price disadvantage really comes into play. Moreso as the car moves out of warranty.
Sorry to say, but BMW has lost anything other than badge snobbery.
Oh, and now that BMW has done away with dipsticks and instead relies on "superior german sensors" then I'll ahve to say I'll not own a newer BMW for any reason. Should't have to go to the dealer to do an oil change or even simply check your true oil level (since sensors are prone to failure, and a number of late model BMW owners have been finding that to be true).
Are the 2011 5.0's really going to be 32k or so? The M3 is around 60k from what I saw on-line.
Very very impressive job by Mustang.
I agree, the american cars like the mustang have upped their game so much that it's hard to rationalize the price tags of a lot of the foreign cars in terms of paying 50-100% more for a car because of it's "nicer interior". I think the same holds true for a lot of non-sports cars too.
Had this same argument on the forum with the Z06's being pew-pewed for having a relativily low quality interior vs. a 120,000 porsche.
The M3 interior is not worth $27K more. $27K would buy another car.
Ofcourse not, but I'd say it's more to it than that. I'd pay an $7-9k premium for it though, over the 'stang (which isn't the worst, but they could tone down the retro a bit.)
The interior is where you spend you time though, not the outside, to me, it can warrant a pretty big price difference.
I'm not talking about the exterior, though you can "use" that every time you park it in your driveway or look at it as you walk up/walk away.
Trust me, spending time in both, there is NO $27k price difference in the interior. It's just not that nice in reality. And the slight bit nicer it might be (say, less casting flash in remote areas) doesn't make up for the deficiencies in things like the missing dipstick in the M3.
At this point they are very comparable performance cars that one has a nearly $30k badge tax added. Sorry.
But then again, I'm not a princess that can feel a pea under 10 mattresses...
The interior is where you spend you time though, not the outside, to me, it can warrant a pretty big price difference.
Splitting hairs... come on, nearly $30k difference! And thats still ASSUMING the M3 interior is that much nicer. No performance test for that. I suppose you could get out a digital caliper and do a comprehensive analysis of body panel spacing, doubt you will find much to complain about.
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