///M badging opinions

[mrgoochio]

Although I love the M wheel and shiftknob, I kindof disagree with BMW leaving it half/half. It's either an M car or its not an M car. I do appreciate the extras with the M aero kit included, but apparently the general consensus is that it is NOT an M car. BMW sure did stirr things up with the 1 :drinking:

[crzy4135i]

Originally Posted by mrgoochio

Although I love the M wheel and shiftknob, I kindof disagree with BMW leaving it half/half. It's either an M car or its not an M car. I do appreciate the extras with the M aero kit included, but apparently the general consensus is that it is NOT an M car. BMW sure did stirr things up with the 1 :drinking:

I could care less but with M suspension, M steering wheel, M shifter and M styled body kit.. the only hardware keeping the 135i from being a M is lack of a rear lsd.

[mtla4]

Originally Posted by crzy4135i

I could care less but with M suspension, M steering wheel, M shifter and M styled body kit.. the only hardware keeping the 135i from being a M is lack of a rear lsd.

M cars do not share engines with Non-M cars. That N54 is all over the place. High volume car not even close being an M. Mind you that the a4 s-line has all the s-aero things and badges its not even close being an s4 or rs4.

[shawshank772]

I agree with MTLA4 it is the engine that makes an M car an M. I can slap on as much M logos as I want, it will never have an m engine and not fully engineered from wheels to engine by M. Heck I have a 2000 Cougar (yes I have a 2000 cougar and its red! lol). Its almost identical to the Countour SVT. I actually have the parts in my car to make it Identical to the Contour SVT. HOWEVER, you still dont see me putting SVT on my car. Its because SVT didnt REALLY have a hand in producing it and putting their name on it. Even though it in EVERY aspect is identical to the Contour SVT

[mtla4]

Originally Posted by shawshank772

I agree with MTLA4 it is the engine that makes an M car an M. I can slap on as much M logos as I want, it will never have an m engine and not fully engineered from wheels to engine by M. Heck I have a 2000 Cougar (yes I have a 2000 cougar and its red! lol). Its almost identical to the Countour SVT. I actually have the parts in my car to make it Identical to the Contour SVT. HOWEVER, you still dont see me putting SVT on my car. Its because SVT didnt REALLY have a hand in producing it and putting their name on it. Even though it in EVERY aspect is identical to the Contour SVT

On a side note I always loved that 2.5 v6 with a nice borla exhaust or any aftermarket exhaust.

[shawshank772]

LOL yeah, thats exactly what I have is the borla on my car. Sorry to get off topic people

[adc]

Originally Posted by mrgoochio

Although I love the M wheel and shiftknob, I kindof disagree with BMW leaving it half/half. It's either an M car or its not an M car. I do appreciate the extras with the M aero kit included, but apparently the general consensus is that it is NOT an M car. BMW sure did stirr things up with the 1 :drinking:

Welcome to the modern M, which stands for Marketing.

The roots of M are a mixed bag, from strictly motorsports activities initially, switching to supercar production (M1), to building hotted-up versions of sedans and coupes (M535i, M635i, M5), to a lone homologation special (E30 M3), etc.

When they've started slapping M bits and trim pieces and selling apparel, it's no wonder there's confusion about the true clear meaning of M. :iono:

[moff]

You lot are confusing me....

In the UK, Europe, Australia we get the following options for BMW's:

ES - poverty spec
SE - standard spec
M Sport - top spec

On nearly all BMW's e.g. BMW 330i M-Sport and BMW 330i SE

The 330i M-Sport will come with 'sports' suspension, additional bodykit, M badging for steering wheel, gear lever etc.

This doesn't mean it's an 'M' car, just that it has some cosmetic enhancements and a more aggressive suspension setup.

They are all completely different from ///M cars as they are built elsewhere with their own suspension, engines etc.

BMW's M-Sport cars such as the 135i M Sport in the UK is no different from Audi having an S-Line version.

Having said all that, anyone trying to pretend that have an ///M car is just tacky. The M Sport badges look a but crappy too IMO.

[mtla4]

Originally Posted by moff

You lot are confusing me....

In the UK, Europe, Australia we get the following options for BMW's:

ES - poverty spec
SE - standard spec
M Sport - top spec

On nearly all BMW's e.g. BMW 330i M-Sport and BMW 330i SE

The 330i M-Sport will come with 'sports' suspension, additional bodykit, M badging for steering wheel, gear lever etc.

This doesn't mean it's an 'M' car, just that it has some cosmetic enhancements and a more aggressive suspension setup.

They are all completely different from ///M cars as they are built elsewhere with their own suspension, engines etc.

BMW's M-Sport cars such as the 135i M Sport in the UK is no different from Audi having an S-Line version.

Having said all that, anyone trying to pretend that have an ///M car is just tacky. The M Sport badges look a but crappy too IMO.

Thats it we just figured.
-You can slap an M-Sport on a 135I(S-Line on a4)
-You can slap the M to a 135(cant slap an S to a4)
M-sport=S-Line
Personally I still agree with what ADC said above M=Marketing
Does the lever or steering wheel,anthracite headliner,door sills,261 wheels make me go faster...No....Sorry to say but there is NO GO fast parts in the 135I M-Package

[mprhead5]

BMW did the muscle car thing and strapped a large car engine in a small car and made it fast. I understand why that dosn't make it an ///M car but it dose make it damn close. I'll just dabadge and call it a day

[adc]

Originally Posted by mprhead5

BMW did the muscle car thing and strapped a large car engine in a small car and made it fast. I understand why that dosn't make it an ///M car but it dose make it damn close. I'll just dabadge and call it a day

Just slap an "RS" badge on the back and have 2 communities mad at you. :biggrin:

[mprhead5]

after seeing all the negitive feedback to the Idea I have learned my lesson. no ///M for me

[shawshank772]

Yeah, I would totally nix the idea of putting //M on. I briefly contemplated putting a small //M badge (like on the steering wheel) on my auto shift knob. Then I came to me senses and decided against it

[mrgoochio]

Originally Posted by crzy4135i

I could care less but with M suspension, M steering wheel, M shifter and M styled body kit.. the only hardware keeping the 135i from being a M is lack of a rear lsd.

Ah I forgot about the M suspension as well :headbang:

[lacrosse]

Originally Posted by adc

If I were to install items from the perf catalog, I'd put a tri-color badge on the rear of the car - if nothing else, simply to annoy M car owners.

If you want to annoy a ///M guy buy the Dinan kit and blow him into the weeds. :eyebulge:

[adc]

Originally Posted by lacrosse

If you want to annoy a ///M guy buy the Dinan kit and blow him into the weeds. :eyebulge:

Unless Stage II makes a lot more power, you won't. Stage I traps around 109mph in the 1/4 mile - or maybe 110. Anyway, measurably below the M3.

To make a 135i quicker than an M3 in any scenario - road track and 1/4 mile - you need a lot more than basic power mods. Tuning, catback, perhaps downpipes, plus suspension, LSD, brakes, wheels/tires. We're talking $10-12k plus installation - that's getting mighty close to M3 money...

It's very hard to justify this type of expenditure when you take into consideration all aspects: warranty, resale, etc. All in all, when you think about this, the M3 is not terribly expensive for what it offers, not more so than the 135.

[AppFresh]

No go area for me do!

---- small story ---- (excuse my bad English)

Last week a GOLF 2.0 GTI drove in front of me (The Badge says it was a GOLF 2.0 GTI).

I was driving an Opel GTC with a slow engine, but it seems that I was faster then him. We stopped at the red light and he was trying to race with me?..

He had a lot of "gone wrong tuning" on his car : ) So I checked his license plate on my iphone and it says that he was driving an Golf 1.4 ...

Ok it was funnier when it happened... but what a moron, well at least that was my thought.

[ScullyD]

i don't understand how an M badge makes a car cooler. I remember when I had my Audi RS4 for a little while, i pulled up next to a kid with a fake RS badged A4 with his girl in the car. Honestly the shame on his face was an image burned into my brain for all of time, it was like i pulled his pants down in the school yard.

I bought a 135i cause its a sleeper car, average people have no clue how fast it is. Imagine having a 135i badged (not debadged) car with a dinan or procede chip, and meeting an e92 m3 at a light. Now that would be something. Pure sleeper goodness, and that would actually be cool.

Sticking an M-badge on this car is like when people put Si and VTEC badges on their stock Honda Civics, absolutely no difference. When you have a brand new BMW, try to have some of the class that comes with the marque.

[Zirenz2006]

Lame! If it isn't an M car it doesn't belong.

[backtoreality15]

Originally Posted by mrgoochio

Ah I forgot about the M suspension as well :headbang:

I thought it really wasn't; they just said that for marketing purposes...?

[Lester]

There are no less than 8 'M' logos on my car, from the factory. When I ordered the valve stem covers, I chose the roundel rather than the //M version. Just to stay on the safe side. I would put an //M Sport logo on the trunk, if it were available from BMW.

[Mad Dragon]

People who don't know what an M badge is won't care, and people who do know will only laugh at you.