GT350 or BMW M4

[Rogue]

I currently have a LCI E92 M3, and a GT350 tech.

In terms of engine, I would say M3 is more special. It has a lighter crank, 44lbs vs. 50lbs of voodoo, way shorter stroke meaning faster rev up, and also 8 ITBs. the response is not close, s65b40 wins hands down. also the induction noise is something else. when i gun it i hear more of an induction noise than exhaust, which is very unique these days.

However, that response comes at a cost of lower tq, you have nothing under 4k rpm. from 4k to 8.3k is pure sex. for DD duty it is not as fun unless you rev it up at all gears.

Voodoo's advantage is bigger displacement and much more tq due to its square piston design. It is a great engine no doubt making amazing exhaust notes, but it is certainly not as refined as the S65 (not as smooth, due to FPC). I like it a lot, it is more DD friendly but I am not sure it is a better engine than say the old M5's v10 with 10itbs and over 500hp n/a, which was engine of the year for many years in a row.

Last but not least, when I take it to the track, I will be setting my limiter to under 7000rpm, the stroke is long for the gt350, at 8250rpm you are talking about extremely high piston speeds, and I do not want to risk it.

Long story short, it is a great car without a doubt I enjoy it very much turns heads everywhere, the bargain of the century at its current price point. If you can get it at a reasonable price, you should.

You must be joking. GT350 is in another league - that's why all the BMW forums start with "I wish BMW made something like that"

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[Koooter]

macinehead and AMpowerJ I agree.

Masar, I too have had an F80 M3 manual stickered at $66 for about 10 months 12k miles. I loved that car. It was an excellent triatholete. I have a 17 350R on order sticker around $68. But have only driven a regualr 350 for about 1 mile. I think its going to come down to one thing for you and it is the "Sound".

I do have a 15 F150 as a DD and the 350R will only be used 2-3 times a month so it works for my situation. If I could only have one car, it would have to be back to the M3 even with the lack of sound, and no the regualr GT350 would not be an option. The M3 was that good as a all around car IMO. The soul that you say is missing is the sound.

Only you can determine your needs. Hope this helps

 

[arsenalrocks]

lol

8 ITB vs. 1 big TB,
44lbs vs 50lbs, those are just hard facts
and 7x mm stroke vs. 94 mm stroke makes a big difference in response.

the truth is it is not even close, look at how slow the rev falls in gt350. and look at how fast rev falls on 600cc/999cc bikes which is FPC with super short strokes.
Ford claimed their FPC crank is 'light weight' but the truth is a 50lbs crank is still very very heavy.

You must be joking. GT350 is in another league - that's why all the BMW forums start with "I wish BMW made something like that"

 

[krt22]

lol ok stat sheet racer.

The GT350 revs do not drop "slow" by any means. The E92 just happens to be lightning fast, much of that is also related to being much smaller in displacement.

 

[nastang87xx]

lol ok stat sheet racer.

People like that are my favvy. No matter what you say to them, you never feel bad because you know they've never hit the track.

Ask any racer, any real racer. It doesn't matter whether you win by an inch or mile...winning's win-! Wait wait wait, that's not right, let me fix that. Ask any car enthusiast, any real car enthusiast. Stats are never brought up until the end, only the experience because that's what matters. Otherwise the Bugatti Chiron and the SSC Tuatara are the best cars in the world. :doh:

 

[AMpowerJ]

E9x M3 V8 was and is very special.

GT350/R engine is very special.

It's ok guys for two very special engines to exist at the same time.

Thankfully there isn't just ONE beautiful woman in the World and there isn't just one special engine either but there are very few. If you have a GT350 you have one of them. If you have the E9X as well then you are lucky.

I wish I still had my E90 M3 and my supercharged E92 M3.

But my sound vote would still go to the Voodoo. :first:

 

[nastang87xx]

E9x M3 V8 was and is very special.

GT350/R engine is very special.

It's ok guys for two very special engines to exist at the same time.

Exactly. Find me a V8 with as flat of a torque "curve" as the S65 does NA'ed. You can't. Or the uniqueness of the Voodoo. Good luck.

 

[Stuntman]

M4 is a better drift machine, but it does not have as much grip or ability to put power down as well as the GT350. On a racetrack, the GT350 is faster.

M4s are underrated, so a 500hp M4 likely puts down more power to the ground than the 526hp GT350; it's also smaller and thus accelerates better at high speeds (less drag).

The Voodoo is impressive and to make more power than the M5s 5L V10 (it's easier to make power with more pistons, lower stroke, and higher RPMs) with massively more torque is a big accomplishment.

 

[Syberspace]

I have an E36 M3 street/track car and E93 M3 convertible. I drive the Shelby more often and can't wait to hear that exhaust note (and the convertible has a cat back Corsa which sounds awesome). Fit and finish is lower than BMW, but I'm ok with that. It's what's under the skin that make the Shelby exciting. And those brakes...wow.

 

[jackolo]

First Post and Bump of an old Thread.
I'm just wondering if anyone else may have things to add to this topic.

I'm coming from an M4 DCT and am just not feeling it anymore. I had the misfortune (?) of having my windows down when a GT350 came rolling beside me at a stoplight recently.
I was already thinking of switching to a manual M or jumping ship completely then after hearing the motor roar to and away was enough.

I can't test drive a GT350 so I'll likely try a manual GT out sometime soon.
If anyone has driven an M and can comment on just pure Fun Factor, that'd be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[dron_jones]

First Post and Bump of an old Thread.
I'm just wondering if anyone else may have things to add to this topic.

I'm coming from an M4 DCT and am just not feeling it anymore. I had the misfortune (?) of having my windows down when a GT350 came rolling beside me at a stoplight recently.
I was already thinking of switching to a manual M or jumping ship completely then after hearing the motor roar to and away was enough.

I can't test drive a GT350 so I'll likely try a manual GT out sometime soon.
If anyone has driven an M and can comment on just pure Fun Factor, that'd be appreciated.

Thanks!

There are some other members in Edmonton as well, perhaps one might be nice enough to take you for a ride in the car. I know a member here in michigan was kind enough to do the same with me and from there it was game over, had to buy one for myself. As far as M cars, i have only ever owned an e92 M3, for me the GT350 is a much more visceral experience.

 

[Shift]

First Post and Bump of an old Thread.
I'm just wondering if anyone else may have things to add to this topic.

I'm coming from an M4 DCT and am just not feeling it anymore. I had the misfortune (?) of having my windows down when a GT350 came rolling beside me at a stoplight recently.
I was already thinking of switching to a manual M or jumping ship completely then after hearing the motor roar to and away was enough.

I can't test drive a GT350 so I'll likely try a manual GT out sometime soon.
If anyone has driven an M and can comment on just pure Fun Factor, that'd be appreciated.

Thanks!

The sound is absolutely intoxicating. You would jump ship even faster if you heard an R, or a GT350 with resonator delete. The backfiring that you can induce sounds like rolling thunder.

 

[krt22]

Yeah I'd jump ship asap, the M4 sounds like the love child of a lawnmower and weed wacker.

 

[Jb350]

I personally have never driven the m4, but I think it's a beautiful car. But if you feel it is lacking something, the gt350 will remedy that(you might.miss the torque though). The materials won't be as nice on the interior, but if you get one with the electronics package, the sync system is actually one of the best infotainment systems on the market today. Also just for reference , I attended a track day recently, and there was an m4 with a more experiencedetailed driver, I passed him regularly. Also maybe consider an M2, it's almost as fast, but much more involving.

 

[Side_Pce]

I personally have never driven the m4, but I think it's a beautiful car. But if you feel it is lacking something, the gt350 will remedy that(you might.miss the torque though). The materials won't be as nice on the interior, but if you get one with the electronics package, the sync system is actually one of the best infotainment systems on the market today. Also just for reference , I attended a track day recently, and there was an m4 with a more experiencedetailed driver, I passed him regularly. Also maybe consider an M2, it's almost as fast, but much more involving.

I can't get over how small the 4 series is on the interior. I'm a tall man at 6'4". Was a no brainer for me.

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