Top Gear: M3, R8,599, LP640, GT3, Caparo, Atom, XKR, GT

[Zafiro]

I dont have the whole test, only what they said about the new M3

Top Gear: Sadly for the others, the M3 exists. Damn you, BMW
In the October issue of Top Gear Magazine the new M3 is taken to the Isle of Man along with the following driver’s cars:

Audi R8
Ariel Atom
Caparo T1
Renault Megane R26
Ford GT
Jaguar XKR
Aston Martin Vantage
Lamborghini Murcielago LP640
Ferrari 599
Porsche 911 GT3.

Here’s some words on the M3:


Matt Master: What needs highlighting is just how real-world this car is. Everything else we took to the Isle of Man was in some significant way flawed, even Jeremy’s beloved R8 that neither Bill nor I could change gear in comfortably because the clutch travel is hampered. But the BMW is perfect in every respect. Good looking and respectable with the Wanker Factor set low, easily the most usable with four seats, big boot and comfortable ride, and, of course, at any given time or place, astonishingly fast.

Paul Horrell: Yes, the Jag is a mighty GT. And when I was following it in the GT3, the Porsche couldn’t reel it in on a straight. That’s proper all-round talent, though naturally not as rounded as the awesome M3. When you lean it into a bend it gives you usefully more sensation of the road than the old one did. Yet when you’re not flat-out, it’s more refined. How did they manage that? Brilliant. Oh, and the V8 isn’t just about 8k-plus mania. It’s got torque too. I don’t think any other car here gives you so much exotic engineering for every pound sterling. It’s not just a souped-up 3-series – it’s truly fit to touch the hem of any car here, including Ferrari’s.

Matt Master: The M3 is the car I have to end up championing, even with money no object. Beset by image problems as it doubtless will be, and less desirable as it doubtless is against the big guns here, it’d be the car I’d most happily live with, share experience with, fall back on in a crisis, ravage in a rash moment. It’s not perfect, and it’s certainly not the car I most want, but it’s the car that’d let me sleep deepest at night.

Pat Devereux: Was I the only person not to get on with the M3? It’s got tons of power but you’ve really got to thrash it far more than you should have to in a car with a 4.0-litre V8. Actually, it’s not just the engine that has masochistic tendencies. The whole car gets a bit sulky if it’s not being bent sideways into a corner. We all like a car that likes to be thrashed, but I also want one that works with me when there isn’t the space to do so sanely. The M3 doesn’t do that. You dance its tune, or dance alone.

source: bimmerpages

 

[CorpusCallosum]

WOW...... sounds awesome

 

[Deleted member 25]

Finaly The M3 is not a piece of crap.

 

[Tarek]

So glad to read thier comments,the legend continues

 

[Mr Robert]

I have read the test. There are slim to none comaprisons in this open test. It is more to be looked upon as a description of a road trip - most of the cars get their positive sides explored.

 

[klier]

Finaly The M3 is not a piece of crap.

Well DUH

As I said when the car launched, and the whole world was saying the car was crap: it's the best car BMW has ever made in it's existance.

 

[DaSilva]

This magazine I will buy !!!

 

[DaSilva]

Right now I'm sitting in my livingroom with that mag in my hand..
Chill.... *reading*

 

[Deutsch]

Could have been nothing short of amazing conducting this test!

 

[Centurion]

I read it last week. A very nice read but it's not a comparison. They more or less only say positive things about all the cars.

 

[Tumbo]

And Clarksson declares the winner to be......


"To own a car means far more than how much mechanical grip you've got when you screw up in the wet. Audi R8 is the best car because it makes you stand out from the crowd WITHOUT makin you look like a pornstar with complex. What you all forget is that you have to be able to park outside the diner and then enter the car without soiling the interiour with ketchup! R8 is fast, as fast as most of the cars, and faster than some of them, but it is still useful. Important when you spend half of your time in traffic jam. The roads on Isle of Man is a playground for cars like this, but a part from a few weeks of the TT-races, it isn't a race track. If you are obsessed of putting down low track times, you're better of with a cheap diesel plus a formula car for the track to play with.. When it comes to living here and it pours down and are only one good restaurant on the island which you have to drive to, then you need a REAL car. I also happens to know that The Stig wants an R8 - thats as good as any recommendation for me.. "



"There's actually only one car here who deserves mine and your attention - Audi R8. It is almost as I stare as my new Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder and wonder if I can have my money back! You know the rule for being a supercar: It must draw attention, like a Murcielago Roadster (you would get less attention riding naked on an ostridge) and it has to be unpractically hopeless. If you can park it without squashing a kid or two, or exit the car without getting your testicles stuck in the 6-point belt, then it is beyond. It must leak oil, refuse to start sometimes and definately succeed in scaring the marrows out of your bones in every corner. Those are the rules, but it isn't the first time that Audi has rewritten the rules. First of all, the R8 hasn't been designed by someone with ADHD, it is discrete, but still unique. If you enter the car you still have your genitals intact, and you can park it (most of the times) without any incidents. It starts direct, faster than you will, and it won't rattle, leak in water or fall apart. And yet it is a supercar, easy on the foot, exactly as fast, but in a relaxed manner. It has the best quattro system so far, with a big advantage for the rear wheels. Something that helps it to its dominance on the Isle of Man.
Game Over for the old guards."

If Clarksson picks the R8 over Murcielagos and Ferraris, then it reeeally has to be something special if you ask me...

 

[Tarek]

The R8 is something for sure but i won't rank it above 599 or LP640.

 

[Kowalski]

Originally said by the one who didn't like the new M3:

Pat Devereux: Was I the only person not to get on with the M3? It’s got tons of power but you’ve really got to thrash it far more than you should have to in a car with a 4.0-litre V8. Actually, it’s not just the engine that has masochistic tendencies. The whole car gets a bit sulky if it’s not being bent sideways into a corner. We all like a car that likes to be thrashed, but I also want one that works with me when there isn’t the space to do so sanely. The M3 doesn’t do that. You dance its tune, or dance alone.

Hmm... judging by what your other mates said, I'm afraid that yes; You were the only one who didn't get the point of the new BMW M3, you tosser!