2016 BMW M4! The long-term owner's review you neither needed nor wanted!

[Amaru]

Originally Posted by tito_gsx

Yes spacers made big difference but only to a trained eye. Most ppl I talk to about spacers have no idea even with before and after pic....idiots! I went with 10mm front and 15mm back because they were left over from my old bimmer. I'll see if I can post a pic

Ah ok. In that case I probably won't bother haha. The wheels look plenty wide to me already... yours must be insane @ 15mm. Any tire rubbing issues with the springs + spacers?

Originally Posted by UnknownJinX

I have always wanted to try the BMW trademark I6. The 2.0 turd-bo X3 I have driven as a rental is just full of lag. Absolutely hated that car because of that.

At least the car warms up fast. 2-minute warm-up sound awesome.

I've driven an X3 with that motor as well. I don't remember it being BAD per se, but it sure isn't anything similar to the classic BMW NA inline-6 classic. I don't actually know if there are any I6 non-turbo engine choices left in the BMW lineup anymore...?

I'm sure they'll improve the tuning of their turbo motors over time, but yeah, the S55 in my M4 is absolutely nothing like the glorious NA inline-6 in my old e46 330ci.... Jeremy Clarkson called that engine (M54) "smoother than Pierce Brosnan smothered in butter" and (I guess for the second time ever) I have to agree. Perfectly linear powerband, incredibly smooth delivery all the way to redline. You can pick one up for about $75 at your local scumbag used car lot.....

Let's be honest though, a silky smooth I6 is nice... but 450bhp is better. Maybe you can convince BMW to put an NA V12 in the upcoming 8-series??? Best of both worlds...???

[parm104]

I love everything about the M4 and was close to picking one up but just couldn't get over the interior. Granted, I was looking at 2017 but that was a part of my problem. There are really no changes between the 2015 interior you have and the 2017 interior today. I wish BMW would make more of an effort distinguishing their model from the interior.

But when that M4 kicks in from 2nd to 3rd degree, what a PUNCH in the gut you feel.

[Amaru]

Originally Posted by parm104

I love everything about the M4 and was close to picking one up but just couldn't get over the interior. Granted, I was looking at 2017 but that was a part of my problem. There are really no changes between the 2015 interior you have and the 2017 interior today. I wish BMW would make more of an effort distinguishing their model from the interior.

But when that M4 kicks in from 2nd to 3rd degree, what a PUNCH in the gut you feel.

Fair enough... but I mean, the first model year of this current generation (F80/F82 - M3/M4) first launched for 2015 and is due for an overhaul in a year or two at most... most manufacturers don't really make wholesale changes to a car's interior between generations. I imagine the new M5 (launched as a 2018 model IIRC) will have their newest-gen interior layout, maybe other models will follow suit when the time comes for a full update. (Not that it makes much of a diff but mine is a 2016 model year, btw. You're right that the 2015 looks the same except for a few minor changes to optional equipment.)

I personally love the interior -- I think it's the best BMW interior I've been in, ever -- but to each their own. What do you dislike specifically, aside from the fact that it hasn't changed in a couple of years? Do you prefer the Merc/Audi interior (ie. in the RS5 and C63S, for example) to the M4?? You must hate Porsche and their "oh don't mess with what works" attitude towards styling.....

You're right about the M4's power though, it does kick you in the ass at a certain RPM.... that's when you break traction on the rear wheels and your inevitable spin/crash/fiery death occurs....

[twitchyzero]

what kind of lighting are you using for the photos in 2nd post?

[Amaru]

Originally Posted by twitchyzero

what kind of lighting are you using for the photos in 2nd post?

Google Images

Car is identical to mine, but I found one of the pics on a BMW forum and then reverse-searched Google Images to find the rest of the set. Definitely a corporate shoot of some sort.

[parm104]

Originally Posted by Amaru

Fair enough... but I mean, the first model year of this current generation (F80/F82 - M3/M4) first launched for 2015 and is due for an overhaul in a year or two at most... most manufacturers don't really make wholesale changes to a car's interior between generations. I imagine the new M5 (launched as a 2018 model IIRC) will have their newest-gen interior layout, maybe other models will follow suit when the time comes for a full update. (Not that it makes much of a diff but mine is a 2016 model year, btw. You're right that the 2015 looks the same except for a few minor changes to optional equipment.)

I personally love the interior -- I think it's the best BMW interior I've been in, ever -- but to each their own. What do you dislike specifically, aside from the fact that it hasn't changed in a couple of years? Do you prefer the Merc/Audi interior (ie. in the RS5 and C63S, for example) to the M4?? You must hate Porsche and their "oh don't mess with what works" attitude towards styling.....

You're right about the M4's power though, it does kick you in the ass at a certain RPM.... that's when you break traction on the rear wheels and your inevitable spin/crash/fiery death occurs....

Fair points, many of which I didn't think of. Logically speaking, I guess BMW has no incentive to make changes to their interior yet.

I don't HATE the interior of the M4 or M3 for that matter. I actually really like BMW's interior but for me, the F15 Generation of X5s are my favourite BMW interior. I wish the M4 had a full digital cluster as well or at the very least, a decently sized one in the middle rather than just a little tiny screen near the bottom. I suppose the part I didn't like the most about it was that I was accustom to the interior of the 440i and it didn't feel much different to me from that. I think when it came down to the price and what I was spending, I wanted something different from what I was used to.

I've actually been an Audi fan boy since day 1 and have loved what they do with their interiors. I veered away from Audi this time and went Merc for the first time and settled on a C43 AMG coupe. In hindsight, much of the C43 AMG interior is similar to that of other C-Class interiors; I suppose it was just different to me. I do have the same gripe with the E-Class and S-Class interiors. They're almost indistinguishable nowadays.


As for Porsche, it's one of my favourite interiors by far. I'm thrilled that they've done a facelift on the interior and upgraded their outdated screens and clusters!

[spacemanrick]

Great review and I agree pretty well 100% with your review! I have had my 2016 M3 with premium package, adaptive suspension, carbon fibre roof, and a 6 speed manual for 20 months and have 23,000 km on it.

Overall a great car but my 2 biggest complaints also are the lack of traction and the sound of the exhaust. Any time you hammer the throttle under 10 km per hour the M3 is going to struggle and the traction control is going to kick in. I first experienced the traction problem when I had my car for only 2 days and I was going up the hill from the Second Narrows bridge on a cool clear day In January with my winter tires and I floored it in second gear at 30 km per hour and the rear end immediately kicked out before the stability control saved my butt. After that I knew that the second level of 3 stability control levels is the most extreme you want to take it on the street and even then handle with care. Yes cold start up in the morning is too loud and can upset your neighbours. Generally if I ever have to leave the house before 8:30 AM I take my wife’s car (ha-ha my wife also has an RDX!) to avoid waking the neighbours up. Besides the cold start racket the exhaust sound on full hard acceleration has a sound many have described as a tin can fart sound....not the deep sexy exhaust you would expect.

Besides the aggressive but understated sexy body, great handling, classic functional interior, and great comfortable soft leather seats my favourite feature is the heads up display. Whenever I get in my wife’s car I look down at the dash and think what the hell this thing needs a HUD. When you just want to cruise like today on a cool clear fall morning there is nothing like rolling down the windows, playing some great music on the HK stereo, and putting on the heated seats and the heated steering wheel and then dropping it from third gear to second gear as you take your first corner........pure driving ecstasy!

By the way I test drove an M3 with the DCT before I bought my 6 speed manual and I wouldn’t have bought my M3 if it only came in DCT. The DCT shifted much faster than I could ever shift but it was BORING. To me the DCT felt like driving in a video game and took all the fun away from having a sporty car.....please see above again for my definition of driving ecstasy

[tito_gsx]

eibach springs...very mild drop with wheel spacers. No rubbing at all even with people loaded in car, autox, and track driving.

[parm104]

Originally Posted by spacemanrick

Yes cold start up in the morning is too loud and can upset your neighbours. Generally if I ever have to leave the house before 8:30 AM I take my wife’s car (ha-ha my wife also has an RDX!) to avoid waking the neighbours up. Besides the cold start racket the exhaust sound on full hard acceleration has a sound many have described as a tin can fart sound....not the deep sexy exhaust you would expect.

From my experience, tearing out the active exhaust unit and throwing in an upgraded exhaust from Dinan makes a world of a difference. It's relatively inexpensive too.

[Amaru]

Remember how I told you the car was loud during cold startups? Yeah, I tested it with an iPhone 'decibel sound meter' app.

Before I started my car yesterday afternoon (it was my first time driving it that day), I put my phone on the ground roughly 6 feet behind the M4 rear/mufflers.

I recorded the volume levels for 35 seconds.... here are the results:



ok then.

110dB max, 103dB average.

That is roughly equal to a 'jackhammer' or 'helicopter' and hearing loss may result after an hour of exposure to extreme volumes (@ 105dB), according to this guideline from a UK audiology clinic:





Makes no sense, BMW.

[BIC_BAWS]

Originally Posted by Amaru

I don't drive the car hard a lot, but I'm definitely not a granny, either (that throttle pedal is too much fun to resist the temptation now and then).... and my combined city/highway fuel economy is around 12.7L/100km.

That's better fuel economy than my e46 330ci, mt too wtf.

Originally Posted by UnknownJinX

I have always wanted to try the BMW trademark I6.

Noticed your location said Victoria, you can (maybe) drive my e46 the next time you're in town. Just don't launch in 1st, I haven't gotten around to doing subframe [emoji23]

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