Delivery! Comparison to E46 M3 on drive home
A little on my experience/background:
- Auto X for 12 years
- Driving Events for 8 years
- Racing BMWCCA for 4 years
I took delivery of my 1M today! It was a very smooth transaction with Allan Wilson at
United BMW in Roswell Georgia! They are a relaxed dealership that sponsors a lot of motorsports and driver safety training in our area as well as
Bimmerworld Racing recently. Their parts department sponsored my racing about a year ago so it made sense to bring my 1M purchase to them. They support BMW club racing so it makes sense to keep the business with enthusiasts.
The drive home was an interesting comparison since a good friend of mine drove me to the dealer in his nicely modded E46 M3. On the way home we swapped cars for about 20 miles. It was really odd going from the 1M to the M3 and back to the 1M just before going over
Blood Mountain. It's practically in my back yard so I know it well and it's the perfect variety of turns and elevation changes to get to know a car.
Low end torque proved to be too much for the S54, even with me using part throttle I was able to pull away on the ascent. We weren't near the limits of our cars (trust me, we have both passed them a few times) but it was obvious the 1M was faster. I worked on getting back into the boost early out of corners and quickly switched the M Dynamic Mode on because the traction control was intervening in every corner. Leaving it on is good for normal driving, especially wet conditions but it really did kill the fun. I never turned it off completely but with MDM it does allow some understeer and oversteer, both of which were hard to induce. The front end grip is just sick. Come to think of it, the rear grips better than my Z4 M Coupe did with Toyo RA-1's. I made quick steering adjustments mid corner 7 or 8 times to cause it to understeer and it barely made the front tires howl. Being smooth was very rewarding. I'm sure with some miles and time I'll find the limits but they are higher than any other street car I've driven and I'm not big on finding the limits on the street anymore. What a terrible situation....It looks like the car will have to go to the track soon.
Below are a few pics I took on the way home.
I plan on going up to the dragon's tail (deals gap) in the next few days so I'll hook my gopro camera up to video some of the drive. 318 turns in 11 miles should give a good view of what the 1M can do, even if I'm keeping the revs in check. I'm off to Road Atlanta with the car to attend a Skip Barber event later this week so the break in miles should be over quickly.
My first mod, for my daughter:
(before anyone calls the authorities...no she wasn't in the car today!)
Lamin-X
I stopped by
Lamin-X this afternoon so they could look at headlight film (and possible future paint protection) for the 1M. They applied a light smoke film to the headlights and made templates for the 1M so they can sell pre-cut headlight protection. They have several shades of tint as well as yellow, red, blue, and obviously clear. I have used their products on all my cars for years and the stuff is well worth the money. I once had a crow hit the front of my car at 80 mph and although the bird is long gone it didn't even scratch the film. Their product is different from 3M as it has a soft coating that tends to bounce rocks and debris (crows) rather than allowing it to cut the film. Whenever I sell a car I peel the film off and there's brand new headlights underneath while the film is usually pitted from abuse.
Here are a couple pics. Keep in mind when it's first applied it is darker then it is going to be after the glue sets up. You might notice the side air curtains are now blacked out where the small painted section once was. This is just some black vinyl. I wanted to see what it looked like with it blacked out. It makes it look like the lower middle section is now floating rather than connected.
Comparison to Z4 M Coupe
I recorded the 1st run going north with MDM on and "M" off so I could get used to the car with some electronics on to stop me from being the 1st to wreck their 1M. I mounted the GoPro HD to the side of the car near the b pillar and should have put a piece of electrical tape over the microphone but I forgot to bring any. The band-aid I used was worthless so I apologize for the wind noise. I had to stop a few times due to some Harleys but overall had a pretty clean 11 miles. I used 1 gear higher than I should have to keep the revs low and only used 70-80% throttle at the most. The front end has so much grip it was easy to keep momentum and let the car flow through the turns. I'm still blown away by the low end torque even though I knew this car was going to be full of it.
To compare the Z4 M Coupe and the 1M is very difficult. The seating position of the Z4 is so far back and low that it feels more like a sports car but the cabin is so tight you feel like you are wearing the Z4 MC while the 1 feels roomy and more like a sedan. I really like them both a lot but I prefer the 1M. It just seemed effortless in comparison to the high revving S54 but at the same time I know once it has some more miles the upper RPM's are going to be sick fast. I know some of you S54 guys want to punch me in the throat now. I am by no means dissing the S54, it's an amazing engine but I fell for the 1M today and I have seen the light, for me not everyone. Obviously they are both very different cars in every respect, other than the blue and white emblem so a comparison is really tough.
Comparing the Z4 MC / 1M / E46 M3 is like pulling teeth. Just the steering alone is so different in each car. I was talking to my friend who owns Lamin-X yesterday (and owns that E46) and he had some good praise for the 1M. His E46 has 225's up front vs. the 1M's 245's and the steering ratio on the 2 cars is vastly different. Yesterday I noticed that I could fidget with the stereo in the 1M (I hate reading manuals without trying things first) without wandering around in my lane like the Z4 MC seemed to do. That car demands your attention at all times which on a long trip can be tiring but in a twisty road or on track is awesome. The E46 M3 (non competition package) steering rack feels like a Lincoln Town Car compared to the 1M (his words, not mine). The 1M, to me, is the perfect middle ground and with the big meaty 245's and that wide stance it feels super planted, even just cruising down the highway or changing lanes.
1M:
Heal toe is effortless. It felt natural and I never once missed the sweet spot. The shifter is perfect in my opinion. Some will want a short shift kit. The brakes fit the cars power, for now. The tires....amazing! I wish BMW had put these tires on the Z4 MC. The stock tires were it's Achilles heel and I have to give props to BMW M for really matching the right components together to make a car that really has no weakness. Oh, the outside temp was 82 degrees and with the low speeds of the Dragon's Tail the engine oil came close to 250 and showed no signs of limp mode. Of course, this doesn't tell us if it will happen under tougher conditions but it didn't today.
Strangely, when I ran the southern direction my camera cover fogged up from the heat. I'm trying to fix it with my editing software. I was feeling confident in the car so I shut all electronics off and kept "M" off as well. Driving with the same 1 gear higher than I would normally I was getting some power oversteer coming out of the switchbacks in 3rd gear! I hope to get this video looking better soon.
On the way home I fueled up, reset the trip computer and saw 29.3 mpg cruising at 65 mph with the a/c on. I had a cop come flying up behind me, pull in front, turn his blue lights on but he was pulling over a semi just ahead. Today was a good day.
Video coming soon...