Head of BMW's M Division confirms U-Turn on the ethos of the M brand

Wait and see what they do over the next few years I guess, I doubt much will actually change :p
 
well... with the E92 320d M Sport starting at £32,600... I damn well know their idea of affordability isn't the same as mine!
 
OllyM said:
Wait and see what they do over the next few years I guess, I doubt much will actually change :p
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they've already produced an X5M, which they previously said would never happen

they're now turbocharging the M cars, which again they said would never happen.

A lot has changed already ...
 
There is not an M in the range today that would make me want to own it. Not to say they are not good cars for they are, but they have become badge management of the worst kind and have lost their appeal somewhat, to me at least. I remember waiting for my first M3, 9 months I was on the list and driving it out of the showroom in 2002 was a great moment only bettered when I drove my GT3 out of the OPC. The RS4 was a "giz the keys and I'll read the books when I get a moment" and the current M3 is much the same.
 
"The measurement of 0 to 100 (km/h) isn't as much a thrill anymore," Segler tells TheDetroitBureau.com. He goes on to explain that it's how a car feels via the driver's "butt-o-meter" matters more
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Surely this suggests emphasis on driving feel and the overall experience, rather than merely flat out performance?

Recent M cars have matured in as much as they have got more refined, despite being faster, but seemingly (judging by the reviews) aren't quite as sharp to drive. The E92 M3 is undoubtably a quicker car than the E46 CSL, but which would most people prefer to thrash around a track?

A move towards lightweight, greater handling feel, and less emphasis on the 'arms race' of outdoing each other in pure straight line performance figures would only be a good thing in my view. The difficulty is doing this whilst basing the M cars on the 'normal' models, which in some ways is always going to lead to a car with inherent compromises - as time marches on it seems cars inevitably get bigger, heavier, more insulated as the market demands greater safety and refinement..all desirable areas to improve in your company car, but less helpful when creating the ultimate driving machine.
 
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Will said:
Surely this suggests emphasis on driving feel and the overall experience, rather than merely flat out performance?

Recent M cars have matured in as much as they have got more refined, despite being faster, but seemingly (judging by the reviews) aren't quite as sharp to drive. The E92 M3 is undoubtably a quicker car than the E46 CSL, but which would most people prefer to thrash around a track?
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True enough, I'd take an M3 CSL over almost anything for use on the Nürburgring, but as a daily driver ...I'd go with a Jaguar XFR or an AMG merc.

What I loved about the E39 M5 and the E34 M5 ...was the balance they struck, between an every day car and the 'ultimate driving machine' ...an M3 CSL is a bit too focussed for every day road use in my opinion, but the vanilla E46 M3 was brilliant in this regard.

The newer ones ...I dunno, unlike the older cars I can now come up with a list of things I don't like about them, I never used to be able to do that really. I still think the newer M cars are great but they have lost something the old ones had.
 
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Give it 5 years and the 'M' badge will be plastered on every 3rd bimmer on the roads.

What a sad end to a once excellent concept :( Ruined by marketing men trying to shift more cars.
 
matt_fsr said:
Give it 5 years and the 'M' badge will be plastered on every 3rd bimmer on the roads.
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It shouldn't matter how common or rare the M badge is, what should matter is whether the car underneath deserves it.
There is nothing wrong with cheaper performance models that are more affordable and wear the M badge.
 
M has been eveywhere for years and years, M Sport models outsell SE models by a large margin now and have done for some time.
 
It'll be interesting to see where this goes. I am not so opposed to the M brand moving it's focus as I am to the 1 series becoming FWD. Times change and things adapt... but FWD is just against the BMW grain.
 
Alibaba99 said:
Seeing as 80% of 1 series owners think that their car is FWD already, that isn't really going to affect the market.
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True enough in terms of the 1 series, but...I cant help but think that some 3/5/7/et al owners will be dissapointed by BMW's move. Cant really wager a guess what percentage of what is a huge number of owners would be dissapointed.

Sure it doesn't affect them in terms of their physical car choice, but it devalues "their" brand a bit i'd wager. Probably not explained myself too well here, but someone might get the gist of what i'm trying to put across.
 
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