All posts tagged Rent a BMW
The BMW 1 Series M: Pure M or not?
I’ll say it now, and I’ll say it again, the E46 M3 will always be my favourite M car. It just had all the elements which make an M car, well, an M car. The styling was understated to most, but dramatic to the trained eye. The interior had subtle differences to the standard E46s, making it feel special. The handling was precise, balanced, poised. But the winning part of this car was the engine. And this engine (S54) was responsible for everything else that makes an M car special.
The S54 was a high-revving (8000RPM), naturally aspirated, 3.2L in-line 6, producing 252kw at 7900RPM and 365nm at 4600RPM. This engine gave the E46 M3 the sound of an M car, the response of an M car, and the power delivery of an M car. It had personality, character. Few will contest that it is BMW’s finest 6 cylinder to date, winning awards for 6 years straight. This M3 was not without its flaws though. It understeered a bit too much, and the brakes weren’t quite what they needed to be in terms of longevity. But the fundamentals of this car were spot on, and for that reason I will always love it.
The BMW gold rush starts!
If you are shopping for a 6-series convertible, please accept our congratulations. According to BMW market research, this is your third or fourth car—not ever, mind you, but currently.
To snag such customers, the Bavarians start with style. Although the previous-generation 6 ushered in an almost iconoclastic era of BMW design, the new 6, styled by Nader Faghihzadeh, returns somewhat to the elegance of the first-generation 6 introduced in 1976. From every angle, the new car looks low and wide and oozes a subtle but unmistakable aggressiveness. The front end features a new fog-light style—executed with LEDs—and a hint of the shark nose that had all but disappeared from BMWs. Thankfully, the 650i uses an evolution of the previous car’s fabric roof instead of a heavy folding hardtop.
BMW 1-Series M Coupe
BMW M development head Albert Biermann revealed the baby M model will come with a twin-turbo 3.0-litre straight-six engine mated ‘exclusively’ to a six-speed box driving, obviously, the rear wheels.
He said: “A closer look at the prototypes will reveal many similarities to the chassis, brakes and rear diff of the BMW M3.”
That 1,500kg weight is an interesting figure – around 200kg lighter than the current, V8-powered M3 (and so keeping to M Boss Kay Segler’s promise of a ‘small, lightweight racer), but still 200kg heavier than the original E30. This may upset some Internet fans.
Connect with Us!