2019 BMW M3 vs 2019 Mustang GT

[MaskedRacerX]

Not sure why there's so much BMW hatred on this forum.

As I've said before, my '08 335xi coupe was a blast to drive. No hiccups well into six figure mileage. My '18 F150 went through three engines and a buyback in 4k miles. Stuff happens.

However, if you don't think an M3 has soul, you're doing something wrong. Most people who buy Mustangs, Camaros, etc. buy them to brag about HP numbers and throw out some Americana heritage talk. But when it comes to heritage, the M3 has plenty and then some.

Whether you like the Mustang better or you like the M3 better, it doesn't change some of the facts that exist between the two. Yes, in a straight line, the GT is the faster car. In the same way that the M3 is the better car in: handling, resale, build quality, ride quality, etc. You pay for what you get in the M3, but you do get it. I personally feel my GT/CS, at $48k MSRP, was WAY overpriced. But I bought it because I like Mustangs, I wanted a nice V8 soundtrack, and the return of the CS was pretty cool. This is the nicest GT/CS package Ford has ever made in my honest opinion. And I love my car. But I certainly would love an M3 as well.

Bottom line, we all like what we like. But to say "A BMW is the ultimate leasing machine" is no better than those that say "Every '18 & '19 GT has engine problems due to the cylinder lining". Every brand has good and bad. In my experience, Ford is the only buyback I've ever had out of over 100+ new cars I've owned.

I don't think it's "hatred", at least it's not from me, we owned 3 BMWs (Z3, 330Ci, X5 4.4i ... and yes, they were leased ) Full disclosure, decent service, all the problems, mostly small things, were under warranty.

Ride quality, if you haven't driven a PP car with Magneride, you should, it makes a huge difference (in both handling, and street manners). Seriously, if you're going to compare a GT to an M3/4, you at the very least have to go Premium, 401a, Perf Pack, Magneride (and probably S&S, upgraded audio, and at that point, might as well add the AE setup) - and actually it's great that if you just want the performance you can get a no frills GT (not an option in a BMW).

I don't feel my GT was overpriced, even at full MSRP, it was a good $25K less than a comparable M convertible, if anything, the BMW is overpriced given my car matches or exceeds it on performance/features, and a few subjective metrics.

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[rishi_says]

I had a 2014 Audi S4. Have several friends who had E9X and F3X BMW's. The interior in the S4 was much much better. Even they admit it. Out the door at the time I believed the idea of the German Master Race when it came to performance and high performance sedans and coupes. I got rid of my S4 for the 2019GP PPL2. The S4 had 22k miles on it... Here's my thoughts on this generation of Mustang and specifically form the POV of my MY19PPL2

• Interior with the 401a is really not that spartan. The ergonomics are well thought out and its very nicely driver focused. The materials do not feel cheap or plasticy though they are not german quality but the price of the vehicle reflects that.
• Driving both PP1 with and without magnaride (never drove the PPL2 but bought it) the handling on both was competent. I didnt drive in a straight line.
• The fit and finish could use some improvement, there's odd niggles but nothing that is obvious, you really have to look for these things.
• The PPL2 is a much much better drivers car than my S4 ever was. And I dont mean this around the city, I go up into the north GA mountains often and so far have done it twice in my 2 months of ownership.

I think each car/brand has its place but these new generations of Mustangs are nothing to sneeze at. Its my 2nd mustang (S197 and now this) and I've owned multiple Japanese cars and three Audi's. I say this with a lot of confidence that for what I want my car to do, this new Mustang is the most fun and easily the best car I've owned. The looks are great and agressive, the paint looks great in all lights, the styling cue's draw attention, the interior is more than liveable. The sound adds a sense of drama all the while being a car that inspires confidence when driving.

 

[FastCarFanBoy]

Man you nailed it! It's like that dirty girl in highschool you never forget;)

The gift that keeps on giving?

 

[nastang87xx]

However, if you don't think an M3 has soul, you're doing something wrong. Most people who buy Mustangs, Camaros, etc. buy them to brag about HP numbers and throw out some Americana heritage talk. But when it comes to heritage, the M3 has plenty and then some.

Whether you like the Mustang better or you like the M3 better, it doesn't change some of the facts that exist between the two. Yes, in a straight line, the GT is the faster car. In the same way that the M3 is the better car in: handling, resale, build quality, ride quality, etc. You pay for what you get in the M3, but you do get it. I personally feel my GT/CS, at $48k MSRP, was WAY overpriced. But I bought it because I like Mustangs, I wanted a nice V8 soundtrack, and the return of the CS was pretty cool. This is the nicest GT/CS package Ford has ever made in my honest opinion. And I love my car. But I certainly would love an M3 as well.

Bottom line, we all like what we like. But to say "A BMW is the ultimate leasing machine" is no better than those that say "Every '18 & '19 GT has engine problems due to the cylinder lining". Every brand has good and bad. In my experience, Ford is the only buyback I've ever had out of over 100+ new cars I've owned.

I spent so much time around E90 and E92's that the new ones seem sterile to me. They're very capable and in every statistical way is better than the E9x but something IS missing. But I've been spoiled too.

Now if I were given one I'd be a happy effin' camper and would defined it to the high hills. But buy one with my own money? Yikes......

 

[dn1984]

Man, if the S550 feels "raw" to you then I hate to see how disconnected the M3 feels. Mine feels like a Bentley compared to my old 2012 and I'm even lowered. The only F30 I've driven is a 340i M Sport and it really wasn't anything special, felt very generic. I've had many BMWs in the past, M and non-M and the newer ones just don't do it for me at all.

 

[dn1984]

I spent so much time around E90 and E92's that the new ones seem sterile to me. They're very capable and in every statistical way is better than the E9x but something IS missing. But I've been spoiled too.

Now if I were given one I'd be a happy effin' camper and would defined it to the high hills. But buy one with my own money? Yikes......

An E9x M3 with aftermarket exhaust is still IMO one of the top 10 best sounding modern engines

 

[Hack]

I don't hate BMWs. I don't really like straight six engines and the sounds they make, though. I think the styling of BMW is a little plain as well.

I also like to hang onto my money, so if I can get more performance for less money, that's the way I'm generally going to go.

I actually looked at an older E9X M3 recently, thinking I would trade the Corvette for it. Very nice interior. There were a million lights on the dash. It was in limp mode. I looked online and the horror stories about clutch prices, rod bearing failures and other expensive repairs made me decide to stay away. It was newer than the Z06 I own, but the Corvette has pretty much been trouble free. I think that's why the M3 values plummet so quickly. Expensive repairs and more common failures compared to other cars.

The 8 series coupe with the V8 looks a lot like the Mustang, and if I could get one of those with a manual and the twin turbo small V8 for 60k or so I'd be very interested. But even the non-M 8 series is about twice that much. Crazy expensive and no thanks.

 

[thasuperdude]

I owned an E92 M3 manual for 5 years. It's a special car, other people's words can't take that away. (1 of 1250 made) There is no way that Ford didn't use the E9x platform to make the current GT what it is, down to the lit doorsills. And that's a good thing! If you want to be the best, you have to hangout with the best. Driving wise, I felt 1% safer at the limits of the M3, but the s550 chassis is right there. There's a little mid-corner push that can make you pucker on some of the corners at the Tail of Dragon. Autocrossing is the only place the older M chassis shines brighter. Things I miss are all convenient things that I didn't want on my GT, 4 doors, rain-sensing wipers and the tighter woven carpeting are the top 3. Mechanically, I prefer the hydraulic steering and quicker steering-ratio of the M car. The LSD in the M was slow to lock while the GT is a bit clunky when it engages, but that's simply just a difference of preferences. Vicious LSDs aren't 100% lock-ups, but they're more forgiving trail-braking at high speeds. I think that's why Ford dialed in some mid-corner understeer, to reduce the oversteer induced by the Torsen LSD.

They are 2 different directions that 2 car companies took to get the driver experience MOST drivers aren't looking for. We are a special group of consumers that car companies are getting away from. Be happy that a car that starts life @ $23K can hang with a car that only the 10-percenters get to experience new. It's a great time to be able to own 400+ HP cars and manual transmissions. Soon enough they'll take that away from us.

 

[Chola]

...We are a special group of consumers that car companies are getting away from. Be happy that a car that starts life @ $23K can hang with a car that only the 10-percenters get to experience new. It's a great time to be able to own 400+ HP cars and manual transmissions. Soon enough they'll take that away from us.

So true. Wrt taking manuals away from us, I feel that with all the self driving cars coming out, the writing is on the wall, they are gonna take driving away from us. It's gonna start by making insurance cheaper if you opt for a self driving car. Slowly that will be ramped up and it will be prohibitively expensive to own a car that a human drives vs a computer driven one.

 

[revinto7]

I own a 2018 A10 pp a 2019 bullitt and a 2020 M340i x With the B58 engine they are all absolute fun fast cars my Favorite is probably the the one im driving at the time ..seriously i think my A10 PP car has the edge it makes such sweet noise at 6500-7500 rpm and that transmission in drag mode is wickedly fun .

 

[Nevyn]

I've enjoyed this thread. Especially the comments about the Mustang having soul.

I am about to take delivery of my 2019 GT with Magnaride and have previously owned 911 turbo and R8 (V8)
Of those two I always said the Porsche had soul. The R8 was ruthlessly efficient and made a better noise but was disconnected and lacked the soul of the 911.

I am really looking forward to getting back into a car with soul after 6 years of a supercharged Range Rover.

 

[revinto7]

For the Money it cant be beat i have owned everything thats fun and fast i am never disappointed with these new 5.0si own 2 of them an 18 auto 10 speed perfomance package and a 19 bullitt manual they are both awsome .good luck and Enjoy

 

[hlfbkd420]

I don't think that poor M3 this morning was expecting the bus lengths I put on his shiny new ride. (Having a blower under the hood helps). He gave me a ricer fly-by with a finger out the window for good measure.

 

[revinto7]

I just ran a 2018 m3 with a plate that read 5OH-NONO..well after 2cars on him through 4th he wouldn't even pull next to me at the next light. And that was my 6 speed car ,good thing he didn't run the A10

 

[MaskedRacerX]

He gave me a ricer fly-by with a finger out the window for good measure.

His thumb? Like, "You are awesome!" ?

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