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M Car owners, question for you
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General.Massacre
///Member
Im probably out of the running now, but, when i had the M6, it was my daily. and what a grand daily it was.
I came from the E92 335i, and then the 640d, then on to the M6. all very different cars, but the M6 was glorious for the time i had it, it was obviously and naturally heavy on fuel, but thats the character of the car and you just suck it it up, and fill up the car when it sucks it up haha.
The drive of the M6 was comfortable, and ate up the miles effortlessly, even till the day i traded it in, it was a hard decision to make. As lovely and as basic as the TT is, id happily have an M6 again even though the bills were higher than normal cars (My specific situation aside obviously).
an M car as a daily is not an issue, if you're not worried about having the mileage rack up, and risking the daily commutes possible issues (Potholes, parking lots close calls etc etc), then its fine, if you want a glorified garage queen and dedicated sunshine driver, then thats fine. I know there are plenty here that drive their M Cars daily and enjoy it for what it is. which is how it should be.
If i could, and funds allowed, which, in fairness i could actually swing it, but id have a 640d Coupe as a daily, as that is GLORIOUS, and then the M6 to mix it up to switch between the occasional daily commute, but more so to enjoy for the weekends.
Currently the TT is now the basic daily from A - B, and the Ducati is my weekend sunshine warrior.
Benji
Well-known member
I am currently dailying the Z4M but only because all my other cars are broken 
It is a fairly acceptable daily to be fair, but my main reason for not dailying it are:
It is a fairly acceptable daily to be fair, but my main reason for not dailying it are:- it is quite low, so you struggle to see potholes
- it hates potholes
- it is quite low so you struggle to climb in and out of it
- it takes long to warm up and one doesnt want to beat on a cold S54, so for the vast majority of my short commutes, I dont get to enjoy the car for what it is
- Ride is perhaps on the hard side
- The boot cant fit more than 5 cases beer
momo1
Well-known member
Ive had 3, to be honest not one of them were bought to be a daily, but there were circumstances where i chose them to be a daily.
the S54 and manual in the Z4MC did not like traffic although there weren't any issues , it just felt like the car didnt like any stop go nonesense.
The M4 and M2 with the Dct were both much better, especially the M4, i moved to Durban for work temporarily and drove it daily for 3 months, actually looked forward to the drive everyday.
in comfort mode with valves closed and gearbox in auto, it was humdrum, normal but the simplicity of pressing a button on the steering wheel changed the entire personality to brutal.
Quick///M
Well-known member
My current daily is the G87 M2. I’m not on the road all that much, but it handles my everyday needs perfectly. As a 4 seater, it’s ideal for school drop offs, picking up the kids, and the occasional shopping run. When the whole family’s heading out, we switch over to the iX40.
The reason I daily the G87 is simple: I want to fully enjoy this car. Back in the day, I had a fully modified Ford Focus ST (ST225) 3 door, but I rarely drove it. I kept it under a cover and used a Ford Ikon for daily tasks. Looking back, I regret not using the Focus more. When I sold it, it had only around 9,900 km. It was a race toy, sure, but it could’ve easily doubled as a daily. I missed out on the full driving experience with that one and that’s why, ever since then every performance car I’ve owned has been my daily driver.
The reason I daily the G87 is simple: I want to fully enjoy this car. Back in the day, I had a fully modified Ford Focus ST (ST225) 3 door, but I rarely drove it. I kept it under a cover and used a Ford Ikon for daily tasks. Looking back, I regret not using the Focus more. When I sold it, it had only around 9,900 km. It was a race toy, sure, but it could’ve easily doubled as a daily. I missed out on the full driving experience with that one and that’s why, ever since then every performance car I’ve owned has been my daily driver.
Interesting thread and you will get wildly varying feedback, depending on what M car is being spoken about.. If its something a bit older, that has appreciated in value, chances are it will never be used as a daily. E9x and older, will likely be spared from the perils of daily use and kept away for metered, intended use. Newer M cars will do better but even then, I personally can't see the point of my 'special car' being unnecessarily exposed to daily risks, for no real benefit. Statistically your odds of something going wrong is higher the more you use it, so it needs to be fit for purpose in my case.
I have an E92 M3 and the thought of daily'ing that is unfathomable. Stop/start traffic, pothole/imperfection ridden roads and taxis/idiots in traffic are the reason mine sits in the garage. I try to take it out at least once every month or two, at least 100km or more to make sure its worth my while. Hell I don't even use my E46 330i as a daily anymore, for the same reasons above. You can't find them for sale anymore in a hurry and good ones, are few and far between. I have an E90 330d that I recently purchased for daily use and that fits the bill perfectly.
I have an E92 M3 and the thought of daily'ing that is unfathomable. Stop/start traffic, pothole/imperfection ridden roads and taxis/idiots in traffic are the reason mine sits in the garage. I try to take it out at least once every month or two, at least 100km or more to make sure its worth my while. Hell I don't even use my E46 330i as a daily anymore, for the same reasons above. You can't find them for sale anymore in a hurry and good ones, are few and far between. I have an E90 330d that I recently purchased for daily use and that fits the bill perfectly.
Quick///M
Well-known member
Precisely! when your M car is required to be a mule for repetitive commutes such as going to the office daily, which is two trips a day in bumper to bumper traffic on our fantastically tarred roads even I would go out and buy a daily. But that's just me I know a few guys who are using M cars 5 days a week to the office and back home and if you are at a point where you know that in 5 years after owning your M car you are not keeping it, then why not let it be your daily ? I guess everyone has different reasons 🤷
whiteunderarm
Well-known member
So my experience over the years:
My E92 was used initially as a daily but the constant trips to the petrol station changed that quite quickly…my daily commute was around 45km. I bought an Amarok as a daily instead. The E92 was not a bad daily, comfortable, fast enough at the time, but heavy on petrol.
My first F82 was bought as a replacement for the E92 and was used about half the time and the other half I still stuck with the Amarok. This car was slightly less comfortable as a daily, a bit too hard which is why I eventually sold it.
I then wrote off my Amarok & after 3 years of not having an M, I made the mistake of thinking the F82 would be ok again as a daily….this time I had the F82’s motor fully built and quickly realised this was way too hard, too loud, to much track car for a daily. I sold it soon after and got into an X3 20d. X3 was perfect, albeit a little slow and after a year I traded it in for the X3 M40i….honestly this was the perfect daily. I miss it to this day.
Then came the G80. This is by far the softest and most comfortable of the M cars I’ve had. It really is the perfect daily, in efficient mode it’s your regular 3 series, space for kids and bags and grocery runs. It also offers you fun at the touch of a button & loads of performance when you need it. Economy is average, not great but not terrible either. Is it a car that I want to keep forever?….no…..I find myself looking at SUV’s again recently….maybe as I get older I’m looking for something a little higher up, something I don’t have to worry about clipping pavements when I park, something that I don’t have to stress over too much….but something that still offers reasonable performance…..so possibly looking at a Cayenne GTS Coupe as the next step.
But if you’re only talking about sedans, then I think you’ll be hard pressed to find a better daily M car than the G80 or even the M5. SUV’s I’d be tempted by the LCI X3M….the pre LCI was a bone shattering experience.
My E92 was used initially as a daily but the constant trips to the petrol station changed that quite quickly…my daily commute was around 45km. I bought an Amarok as a daily instead. The E92 was not a bad daily, comfortable, fast enough at the time, but heavy on petrol.
My first F82 was bought as a replacement for the E92 and was used about half the time and the other half I still stuck with the Amarok. This car was slightly less comfortable as a daily, a bit too hard which is why I eventually sold it.
I then wrote off my Amarok & after 3 years of not having an M, I made the mistake of thinking the F82 would be ok again as a daily….this time I had the F82’s motor fully built and quickly realised this was way too hard, too loud, to much track car for a daily. I sold it soon after and got into an X3 20d. X3 was perfect, albeit a little slow and after a year I traded it in for the X3 M40i….honestly this was the perfect daily. I miss it to this day.
Then came the G80. This is by far the softest and most comfortable of the M cars I’ve had. It really is the perfect daily, in efficient mode it’s your regular 3 series, space for kids and bags and grocery runs. It also offers you fun at the touch of a button & loads of performance when you need it. Economy is average, not great but not terrible either. Is it a car that I want to keep forever?….no…..I find myself looking at SUV’s again recently….maybe as I get older I’m looking for something a little higher up, something I don’t have to worry about clipping pavements when I park, something that I don’t have to stress over too much….but something that still offers reasonable performance…..so possibly looking at a Cayenne GTS Coupe as the next step.
But if you’re only talking about sedans, then I think you’ll be hard pressed to find a better daily M car than the G80 or even the M5. SUV’s I’d be tempted by the LCI X3M….the pre LCI was a bone shattering experience.
E46 dailied it for about a year. I lived in the sticks, it was open road and traffic was waiting at the stop street for 3 cars ahead of you, roads were fairly decent. Did about 40 000km of daily driving with it as my daily, then the rods came knocking. Moved to Gauteng and it was parked in the garage and used on weekends. It moved doors when i was renovating, 6 cases or beer or what not, perfectly capable of doing what i asked of it, gravel roads etc etc. But the daily GP slog it was not exposed to. Even had reasonable economy from it when not driving like a ****.
Z4M nee fok. I have driven it to the office a few times but eh eh. It's ride is a bit much for the M1/M2, the roads are a bit to fucked in Cleveland, and i don't get road rage i simply start driving like a sterotypical BMW driver when people kill my Zen and because the Z gets more fun when i drive like that it's safer for me to limit my time driving it.
The current crop of automatic everything BMW's are as easy to live with as a Corolla on a daily basis.
Z4M nee fok. I have driven it to the office a few times but eh eh. It's ride is a bit much for the M1/M2, the roads are a bit to fucked in Cleveland, and i don't get road rage i simply start driving like a sterotypical BMW driver when people kill my Zen and because the Z gets more fun when i drive like that it's safer for me to limit my time driving it.
The current crop of automatic everything BMW's are as easy to live with as a Corolla on a daily basis.
I daily drove an M3 for many years covering more than 130k over 5yrs as a consultant.
I don't do it any longer simply because my daily commute involves sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic, dealing with pothole ridden roads, higher fuel consumption, costly M tax-imposed vehicle maintenance amongst my very large list of "Excuses"
I also feel why dilute the user experience of a full fat M car by performing 99% of the time, mundane activities that will be much better suited to a more economical and practical daily driver.
Also ask yourself these questions
1) How much mileage is your commute (M tax maintenance is expensive, if you are a pedantic owner like most of us on the forum, be prepared to spend lots $$$)
2) Can you afford an elevated risk profile with your insurance profile by claiming for a windscreen, fender bender, parking lot dings. The more time you spend in your car, the higher the risk of an insurance event.
3) Can you offset the actual costs above and divert the money you save in maintenance/fuel/insurance into a daily driver which would also need to be maintained & insured etc etc
I don't do it any longer simply because my daily commute involves sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic, dealing with pothole ridden roads, higher fuel consumption, costly M tax-imposed vehicle maintenance amongst my very large list of "Excuses"
I also feel why dilute the user experience of a full fat M car by performing 99% of the time, mundane activities that will be much better suited to a more economical and practical daily driver.
Also ask yourself these questions
1) How much mileage is your commute (M tax maintenance is expensive, if you are a pedantic owner like most of us on the forum, be prepared to spend lots $$$)
2) Can you afford an elevated risk profile with your insurance profile by claiming for a windscreen, fender bender, parking lot dings. The more time you spend in your car, the higher the risk of an insurance event.
3) Can you offset the actual costs above and divert the money you save in maintenance/fuel/insurance into a daily driver which would also need to be maintained & insured etc etc
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TurboLlew
Honorary ///Member
I bought my F10 M5 as a family car and dailied it - It was not initially the intention but it is just so good for what it is. 100000km put on by myself across the country on holidays and to and from work (probably 70km round trip). I ignored everyone telling me about 'hurting the value' and just carried on having fun.
I reluctantly sold it after being hounded and went on the search for a Ferrari... and at some point bought my Alfa 4C... then drove a bunch of very nice expensive V12 things only to 'settle' on my beloved F90 M5. Absolute bargain if you are in the market as a family person who likes fast things. I say this relative to mercedes and the 'upgrade' which is a W12TT Bentley. I probably drive the 4C and M5 fairly equally including for the school run. I tend to use the Cayenne for the messier jobs and where I expect to be on rough terrain - not that the M5 couldn't handle it... or even the 4C with some care. I have had my dogs in all three of these for instance. I am pedantic about cleaning cars and keeping them looking good but not averse to using them.
That being said I very seldom had bumper to bumper issues and even the longer commutes were against traffic. I have never had an issue psychologically or financially dealing with the potential for dings/dents/windscreens/maintenance/tyres etc. I don't have anything against people who still want to enjoy the car and preserve it for special moments... and it is a valid point - but I believe the fun and experience of driving it every day given my particular circumstances outweighed some of these negatives.
I mentioned before that I tried the 'cheap daily' thing a few times in my life and every time ended up with cars that had dead batteries and weeds growing under them. It will heavily depend on your use case but there is nothing that makes an M bad to daily (or consequently give an M lite a reason to exist in my garage).
I reluctantly sold it after being hounded and went on the search for a Ferrari... and at some point bought my Alfa 4C... then drove a bunch of very nice expensive V12 things only to 'settle' on my beloved F90 M5. Absolute bargain if you are in the market as a family person who likes fast things. I say this relative to mercedes and the 'upgrade' which is a W12TT Bentley. I probably drive the 4C and M5 fairly equally including for the school run. I tend to use the Cayenne for the messier jobs and where I expect to be on rough terrain - not that the M5 couldn't handle it... or even the 4C with some care. I have had my dogs in all three of these for instance. I am pedantic about cleaning cars and keeping them looking good but not averse to using them.
That being said I very seldom had bumper to bumper issues and even the longer commutes were against traffic. I have never had an issue psychologically or financially dealing with the potential for dings/dents/windscreens/maintenance/tyres etc. I don't have anything against people who still want to enjoy the car and preserve it for special moments... and it is a valid point - but I believe the fun and experience of driving it every day given my particular circumstances outweighed some of these negatives.
I mentioned before that I tried the 'cheap daily' thing a few times in my life and every time ended up with cars that had dead batteries and weeds growing under them. It will heavily depend on your use case but there is nothing that makes an M bad to daily (or consequently give an M lite a reason to exist in my garage).
MR_Y
Well-known member
I don't have an M, but I have a 2013 911.
I daily it and have the scars under the front bumper and little door dings to attest to its use
Different strokes for different folks.
What makes you happy will always reign supreme over other's views here.
For proper family use, I have an X3 G01, but that's not my daily (ironically, that is the main weekend car).
If I had an old M car, I don't think I would daily it. For me, an old M is a bruiser and needs to roam freely and not be subjected to grinding traffic. However, seeing the comments above on modern M cars may mean that they may now be more suitable for daily driving
I don't have an M, but I have a 2013 911.
I daily it and have the scars under the front bumper and little door dings to attest to its use
Different strokes for different folks.
What makes you happy will always reign supreme over other's views here.
For proper family use, I have an X3 G01, but that's not my daily (ironically, that is the main weekend car).
If I had an old M car, I don't think I would daily it. For me, an old M is a bruiser and needs to roam freely and not be subjected to grinding traffic. However, seeing the comments above on modern M cars may mean that they may now be more suitable for daily driving
GT3 moving to PDK unleashed a whole slew of customer complaints to Porsche mostly relating to things that was never a issue. After some slight digging they figured it out, 991 GT3s were doing far more millage than the 997/996 and the complaints were about squeeking brakes, and noisy suspensions. Things that only became apparent because they got driven daily. Slap a auto into most things and they become far more pleasant to live with.
Nishcat_M140i
///Member
For the past 2 years, my mother has daily driven a 2021 X3M Comp (last few of the pre lci's). The distance from home to work is about 5km's or so and so far it was very doable to daily drive it.
When I had the RS3, her and I use to frequently swap cars, meaning I would drive the X3M on a daily basis which had a longer daily commute (30kms to work). Knowing more about cars, I could feel the stiff suspension of that car but still very doable as a daily although I feel the M40i would have been a better everyday car. I still use it every now and then when I feel like it,
Obviously I feel this will vary according to each M car and person. The more modern F series M cars would be the M cars you find as popular daily's in comparison to the E Series M cars, as a lot of these are very difficult to find in good condition on the market.
I have an M140i and it was my daily for a few months, but for the exact same reasons @KPM3_30 doesn't daily drive his 330i, I prefer not to daily it as it is also a very scare car to find, especially in my spec, opting for me buying an F30 as a daily which has been absolutely amazing so far.
When I had the RS3, her and I use to frequently swap cars, meaning I would drive the X3M on a daily basis which had a longer daily commute (30kms to work). Knowing more about cars, I could feel the stiff suspension of that car but still very doable as a daily although I feel the M40i would have been a better everyday car. I still use it every now and then when I feel like it,
Obviously I feel this will vary according to each M car and person. The more modern F series M cars would be the M cars you find as popular daily's in comparison to the E Series M cars, as a lot of these are very difficult to find in good condition on the market.
I have an M140i and it was my daily for a few months, but for the exact same reasons @KPM3_30 doesn't daily drive his 330i, I prefer not to daily it as it is also a very scare car to find, especially in my spec, opting for me buying an F30 as a daily which has been absolutely amazing so far.
TBP88
Well-known member
I dailied my ex Z4M for around 3 or so years. Did the job great as I had a clear run against traffic (lived in town, worked out of town ~10-15km drive each day). On days when some idiot binned it in the rain it was a terror driving alongside trucks and the like but for general use it was perfectly fine. I didn't even find the ride *THAT* harsh! The low slung-ness more than the harsh ride is what made it unpleasant as a daily. Fuel consumption was obviously atrocious but manageable.
msm
Well-known member
Got my M4 during Covid and initially enjoyed it when the roads were quiet to work - 1 or 2 days at the office. But once things started getting back to normal, hated driving the car in heavy traffic - nothing wrong with it in terms of comfort but just frustrating having all that power and crawling along in first/second gear for long periods which the DCT box did not quite like too.
If my commute was a nicer and more free flowing location at both ends, it would have been the perfect daily. But between Midrand and Fourways, with New Road and William Nicol as the closest interchanges I had to use, this was not the ideal daily driver. Also had too many close calls in traffic, with idiots almost hitting me.
So I guess it also depends on your route and how much traffic there is too.
If my commute was a nicer and more free flowing location at both ends, it would have been the perfect daily. But between Midrand and Fourways, with New Road and William Nicol as the closest interchanges I had to use, this was not the ideal daily driver. Also had too many close calls in traffic, with idiots almost hitting me.
So I guess it also depends on your route and how much traffic there is too.
AudiDriver
Active member
Mine is a garage queen. I only take it out some weekends, when I have a longer trip or outside peak traffic times on a Sat or Sun around Jhb. Sometimes on a Friday, or if I have to drive to Pretoria or Centurion outside the rush hour.
My daily can jump potholes and push through obstructions, and is happy enough to sit and idle in traffic occasionally.
I suffer mostly from the same objections as Benji and the comments about using these cars being frustrating to drive in heavy traffic (having to trot a race horse) are spot on for me. It absolutely depends on your daily run and route, I think, and if it allows Mr Hyde to manifest.
The M is only properly warmed up - 80 deg C oil temp - when I’m almost at the office. With the regular lights out and poor road surface around the West Rand it just isn’t practical to drive the car daily, and regular short drives and start/stop traffic are not healthy for a car, less so for a higher performance variant.
Besides that the tyres also need to be at about 28 deg C or higher to bite, which means in winter you need even longer before you can play.
Then I agree with other lists of things that put me off using this car as a daily: parking lot dings; speeds bumps (it rides lower than stock by some 20mm on its coilover suspension and has a front spoiler lip); pot holes (low profile rubber); road debris (stone chips).
I find when I don’t drive it every day, it remains something of an occasion when I do.
Edit: I do swop my daily for my wife’s RS3 from time to time - that keeps her kilometres acceptable and I find the RS3 feels like a less highly strung car to drive on the daily runabout than the M anyway.
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My daily can jump potholes and push through obstructions, and is happy enough to sit and idle in traffic occasionally.
I suffer mostly from the same objections as Benji and the comments about using these cars being frustrating to drive in heavy traffic (having to trot a race horse) are spot on for me. It absolutely depends on your daily run and route, I think, and if it allows Mr Hyde to manifest.
The M is only properly warmed up - 80 deg C oil temp - when I’m almost at the office. With the regular lights out and poor road surface around the West Rand it just isn’t practical to drive the car daily, and regular short drives and start/stop traffic are not healthy for a car, less so for a higher performance variant.
Besides that the tyres also need to be at about 28 deg C or higher to bite, which means in winter you need even longer before you can play.
Then I agree with other lists of things that put me off using this car as a daily: parking lot dings; speeds bumps (it rides lower than stock by some 20mm on its coilover suspension and has a front spoiler lip); pot holes (low profile rubber); road debris (stone chips).
I find when I don’t drive it every day, it remains something of an occasion when I do.
Edit: I do swop my daily for my wife’s RS3 from time to time - that keeps her kilometres acceptable and I find the RS3 feels like a less highly strung car to drive on the daily runabout than the M anyway.
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F82 is my daily but only put 500km pm on it..they meant to be driven though..the motor plan is set up that way.. drive 15-20km per year whilst in plan and sell..thats the business model. I'm on 42k mileage..2019..still has the new car smell. Can't sell it..the new Ms are just not worth the price tag..1.7m for a decent mileage G82 is just absurd. Might aswell take that money and expose it to a high yield world mkt index fund..thats the true opportunity cost at stake here.
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I have a 2021 f90 m5, gets used 3-4 times a week mostly just to go to gym in the evenings, occasional trip from Swaziland to Midrand. Do about 10,000km a year in it.
My daily is a 2008 defender 130. Also have a few bikes so split my mileage between them.
Don’t daily it as too low and not practical for my line of work. Pitching up to see a client in an m car also isn’t best of ideas where I am.
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My daily is a 2008 defender 130. Also have a few bikes so split my mileage between them.
Don’t daily it as too low and not practical for my line of work. Pitching up to see a client in an m car also isn’t best of ideas where I am.
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