E92 M3 calling all 135 / 335

[AlpinaB3]

Hi guys, there have been numerous debates concerning the relative merits of the 135/335 vs the E92 M3. Often drag race outcomes get brought up in an effort to support a particular person's point of view.

Well straight line performance is only part of a car's overall capability. Other aspects include comfort and HANDLING. BMW owners like to put forward their car's handling capability when comparing their cars to other brands like Mercedes Benz, yet handling seems to be largely ignored when we compare different BMW models.

I am an E92 M3 owner and I place great emphasis on my car's handling. Many (not all) 135/335 owners will still say that the E92 M3 is not good value for money ... the 135/335 handles very well and their engines can easily be modded to outgun the M3.

As good as the 135/335 handles, I just prefer more and the M3 delivers. The E92 M3 has been beaten many times by the turbo BMWs in straight line dices. I would however like to invite the 135/335 guys to compete against the E92 M3 on a racetrack. That is where the M3 can show off some of its other talents.

So I am calling on all 135/335 owners to bring their cars to Zwartkops for the BMW Car Club trackday and see firsthand that the M3 does have some fine talents that are usually overlooked or ignored as just theoretical in the forum debates.

I'll be driving my M3 and hope to show the turbo guys this view of my car

Hopefully other BMW Fanatics M3 owners will also enter their cars and score some points for the M3 camp.

I acknowledge that the 135 and 335 are not only mod-able in the engine department and it is obviously possible to put a package together that will beat an E92 M3 in any discipline.

 

[muqs]

:thumbsup:

 

[TheMo]

:thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[335i Lci]

Well said, an M car is a different can of worms, agreed!

 

[Sankekur]

This will make for some interesting viewing.

 

[ASH M]

opcorn: Let the games begin, should be interesting.

 

[Coisman]

imp:
So if my mother in law puts a "M" badge on her broom, can she come?? :mmm:

 

[MikeR]

:thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[Cole]

@coisman
At least your mum in law must have style then lol.

 

[ZED1]

Sounds about right... Let's see

 

[444YYY]

Wow, AlpinaB3, your M3 looks dangerous
Post some more pics please...

 

[Twinz]

This is a damn fine thread from the OP and the way you have articulated the challenge makes me proud to be a BMW club member. Well done. Sweet and to the point and no bullshit. :thumbsup::thumbsup:

My car is not an average 335 or 135 because of all the modifications to it including a major M3 suspension transplant and the bilstein B16 kit makes it superior in the handling stakes to most of the 335/135s out there. Yes, i had to go and poach from the ///M to make the 335 better...:thumbsup:

But a track challenge is far more than just the car. The skills of the driver is almost paramount. So my first excuse is... ...my track skills are not on par with the abilities of my car at present but i am sure if it is put in the hands of Zakie or Zaid from zeemax you would have a competition on your hands. For a straight line sprint, all i need is DS.

Your car looks scary from behind....would not like to have that view...:mmm:

Hope some of the X35 boyz will pitch....:thumbsup:

 

[AlpinaB3]

Wow, AlpinaB3, your M3 looks dangerous
Post some more pics please...

Thanks, the car is quite dirty at the moment and I just cleaned the back for a quick pic.

This is a damn fine thread from the OP and the way you have articulated the challenge makes me proud to be a BMW club member. Well done. Sweet and to the point and no bullshit. :thumbsup::thumbsup:

My car is not an average 335 or 135 because of all the modifications to it including a major M3 suspension transplant and the bilstein B16 kit makes it superior in the handling stakes to most of the 335/135s out there. Yes, i had to go and poach from the ///M to make the 335 better...:thumbsup:

But a track challenge is far more than just the car. The skills of the driver is almost paramount. So my first excuse is... ...my track skills are not on par with the abilities of my car at present but i am sure if it is put in the hands of Zakie or Zaid from zeemax you would have a competition on your hands. For a straight line sprint, all i need is DS.

Your car looks scary from behind....would not like to have that view...:mmm:

Hope some of the X35 boyz will pitch....:thumbsup:

Thanks Twinz and others. I had originally planned a challenge of some sort but then changed my mind. As you pointed out, too much depends on the driver and any outcome would hardly qualify as scientific proof as to how much more capable one car is than another.

I still think non M drivers may come to discover some weaknesses in their car's handling when trying to push hard, weaknesses that have been addressed in the M3 quite nicely although not to racecar specs. Such mods cost money and contribute to the higher price of the M3. Many arguments revolve around the M3 not being as good in the value for money department as a 335. Seeing how well a M3 can do around the track compared to non-M BMWs will hopefully change the negative sentiment regarding the price. Ideally a few more people will see the M3 for what it is and don't try to drag it down unfairly.

The M3 is not for everybody and I am not trying to persuade 135/335 owners to change.

Also, I will not rub it in anyone's face if they don't manage a good laptime. If they do not gain at least some small appreciation of what the M3 is about from their own experience, I will not try to convince anyone.

If on the other hand one of the 135/335 guys does beat me, I will certainly congratulate him/her. As far as I know, Mark Jones will be coming to the trackday with a 135i that has all the BMW Performance extras installed. He is an experienced regular like myself and it should prove a fair comparison of the car's capabilities relative to the E92 M3.

I have also set myself a challenge to beat the 1:12.92 laptime that I achieved with my E46 M3 CSL a while back. Here is a onboard video of that lap.

 

[Twinz]

Damn that CSL sounds amazing:thumbsup:

The spirit of your challenge is what matters which is what we often lack on this forum and i hope some X3 guys will join you. If they dont want to risk their cars you can always take them for a ride of their life.:thumbsup:

 

[AlpinaB3]

Damn that CSL sounds amazing:thumbsup:

The spirit of your challenge is what matters which is what we often lack on this forum and i hope some X3 guys will join you. If they dont want to risk their cars you can always take them for a ride of their life.:thumbsup:

Thanks. I am glad that you're seeing my post the way it is intended - not a bragging contest but more an eye openerer.

Your car looks wicked and the specs are impressive. Would have been nice to compete ... although I doubt that I could match it (with equal drivers). By the sounds of it, you've gone beyond the M3 - probably cost more than one too

 

[M3_FTW]

Those must be the biggest exhaust tips EVER fitted to an E9x M3. I will bring my E90 M3 along aswell.

 

[AlpinaB3]

Damn that CSL sounds amazing:thumbsup:

That actually raises another plus point of the M3. It sounds alive and manic, things which for me really add to the driving experience.

Check out what I mean in the following video. The first 3 minutes cover an E90 330d (which is also a mean machine) and then there is some footage of a E92 M3 (standard) and a 135i passing through the same section - the sound difference is substantial. The video ends with onboard footage and trackside footage of my M3 CSL.

Those must be the biggest exhaust tips EVER fitted to an E9x M3. I will bring my E90 M3 along aswell.

Great, the V8 & V10 M class is usually quite small and your chances of getting a trophy are very good. The V8's torque should be very entertaining through all the slow, tight turns at Zwartkops.

 

[Phumi]

OH BOY!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[E46M3]

AlpinaB3, that's a very good post well done!

I will be there with my "stockish" E90 335 Auto so you'll probably walk all over me but it'll be a good comparison no doubt.

I had a good go against Christo from BMW Driver Training at Kyalami during the Top Gear Festival. My 335 certainly had the upper hand when powering out of the corners due to the Turbo assistance at high altitude but it was completely obvious how much better the E92 M3 was under braking and cornering. He would catch me into (on the brakes) and through the corners (handing), but I would then pull a gap on boost at the start of the straights. As speeds picked up, he would certainly close up on me as the V8 openeded up. Luckily the straights weren't long enough for him to catch me We had a great dice!

The second comparsion for me was how Mark Jones in an E92 M3 DCT compared to me at the Phakisa Track Day in April this year. He managed a best lap time of 1:56.939 and my personal best was a 1:59.980. I would attribute a lot of that to the fact that when comparing stock vs stock the E92 M3 is a far better track weapon than an E90 335i but a big enough chunk of that also has to go down to the sheer skill of Mr Jones behind the wheel.

That said, I will be at Zwartkops with both my track car and my 335i to see how we compare...

Hopefully enough of the other 335/135 and V8/V10 M cars will come to play with us too!

 

[AlpinaB3]

AlpinaB3, that's a very good post well done!

I will be there with my "stockish" E90 335 Auto so you'll probably walk all over me but it'll be a good comparison no doubt.

Thank you. I'll be collecting performance data with my Video VBOX, hopefully Mark Jones and yourself can also collect data so that we can compare the different performance characteristics: acceleration, top speeds, braking and cornering.

For those of you that do not know Mark Jones, here is a video of him driving the pants off an E92 M3 to stay ahead of my E30 trackcar. He did very well considering the pressure that I put on him.