Question about BMWs

Dis86 · 18 Feb 2017 at 15:59

Psycho Sonny said:
oh really?

4WD aren't magic however they do tend to stick to the roads far better. there is a reason why all the top performance cars are 4WD.

Can you show me a 4WD m car please?

Pen66 · 18 Feb 2017 at 16:41

Psycho Sonny said:
oh really?

4WD aren't magic however they do tend to stick to the roads far better. there is a reason why all the top performance cars are 4WD and all off roaders are 4x4 too.

Oh really, I like how you've edited my quote to take the context out of it. Here it is again:

As long as you are sensible and aware of the conditions then the car is no different or dangerous than FWD/4WD.

Lashout_UK · 18 Feb 2017 at 16:53

Dis86 said:
Can you show me a 4WD m car please?

X5 M, X6 M... *runs*

Next-gen M5 is AWD, mind.

Dis86 · 18 Feb 2017 at 17:04

Lashout_UK said:
X5 M, X6 M... *runs*

Next-gen M5 is AWD, mind.

GTFO now you disgusting heathen!

theone8181 · 18 Feb 2017 at 17:26

Dis86 said:
GTFO now you disgusting heathen!

Probably work it's way down to m3/4 and 1 and 2 eventually.

flinco · 18 Feb 2017 at 18:25

Unless you're running on crap tyres, you need to provoke the car to get the back end out on a roundabout, even in the wet.

mrk · 18 Feb 2017 at 19:07

AWD is mostly the product of forced induction these days. The gigantic torque numbers produced especially by the tuning divisions now call for it.

Audi are not new to it, and BMW are gonna do it, Jaguar already do with their SVO cars, and Mercedes are going to as well.

chaparral · 18 Feb 2017 at 20:08

flinco said:
Unless you're running on crap tyres, you need to provoke the car to get the back end out on a roundabout, even in the wet.

I even had the back end spin around 180 degrees with a front wheel drive car many years ago (mk2 XR2) ..

But this was on a corner and not a round about...

I Entered a corner too fast so I pressed the brake pedal and of cause doing that took the weight off the rear wheels so they lost grip..(Or something like that)

Diddums · 18 Feb 2017 at 20:12

Shouldn't this be "question about RWD cars"? Your colleague is a plank. Ignore him. Sounds like a guy I worked with once who thought his decade old diesel Passat was the fastest car in the world because it was quicker than his dad's car.

Nasher · 18 Feb 2017 at 20:38

You just need to be careful when it's slippy. I've managed all year round in an MX-5 (pre-traction control) and a GT86, which are a lot more tail happy than the average BMW. I've only ever spun once on a roundabout

Most of those SUV things aren't even permanent 4WD. Most of the time they are just FWD. They don't stick to the road like a Suburu's 4WD.

NooBish AbbZ · 18 Feb 2017 at 21:40

He obviously can't drive then, can he.

Clarkey · 18 Feb 2017 at 22:14

Psycho Sonny said:
oh really?

4WD aren't magic however they do tend to stick to the roads far better. there is a reason why all the top performance cars are 4WD

That's not true at all though is it, most top end performance cars are rear driven, even 2/3 of the hybrid hypercar 'holy trinity' are rear drive only despite having massive power output.

Anyway yeah, old school raw, uninhibited rwd cars take a bit of self control to keep them in a straight line but modern stuff is neutered and harmless.

thezappa · 19 Feb 2017 at 12:05

Diddums said:
Shouldn't this be "question about RWD cars"? Your colleague is a plank. Ignore him. Sounds like a guy I worked with once who thought his decade old diesel Passat was the fastest car in the world because it was quicker than his dad's car.

That was my thinking, not the plank bit, he's alright just has his opinions.
He drives an 05 A3 2.0 petrol turbo and is looking at an S5 for his next one (not sure how that's significant, probably tells you more than it does me).
Also goes on about needing to do over 25k miles pa to warrant having a diesel, not entirely convinced on that one but there we are.

Malt_Vinegar · 19 Feb 2017 at 12:12

RWD was the norm in my parents generation, on skinny crossply tyres, terrible suspension and no driver aids.
Most of them managed fine. A modern RWD car is child's play even with more power.

Armageus · 19 Feb 2017 at 12:29

thezappa said:
He drives an 05 A3 2.0 petrol turbo and is looking at an S5 for his next one (not sure how that's significant, probably tells you more than it does me).

It's significant in that he probably has no idea what oversteer is. I had a 2.0T A3 and it was a lot easier to get into an understeer situation than to try and force oversteer (e.g by lifting off mid corner)

[TW]Fox · 19 Feb 2017 at 13:07

Malt_Vinegar said:
RWD was the norm in my parents generation, on skinny crossply tyres, terrible suspension and no driver aids.
Most of them managed fine. A modern RWD car is child's play even with more power.

This fairly irrelevant point comes up a lot in this sort of discussion.

The reality is that not only were road casualty levels considerably higher back then but also cars much less powerful.

Malt_Vinegar · 19 Feb 2017 at 15:36

[TW]Fox said:
This fairly irrelevant point comes up a lot in this sort of discussion.

The reality is that not only were road casualty levels considerably higher back then but also cars much less powerful.

Its a good point, but how much of that is down to the poorer safety of the cars (in terms of driver/pedestrian protection) as well as the RWD aspect?

Not to mention the lack of ABS.

I got caught out once in the MGB many moons ago when I hopped into it from my driving e92 330i and managed to go straight on at a tight country lane left hander. I locked up the front. Was not really pushing at all! Was just not considering the difference between the cars and failed to adjust my driving.

Akagi · 20 Feb 2017 at 01:49

If you drive like an idiot you have more chance of coming unstuck. If you don't, you should be fine.

That said, I have two RWD cars with no assists and drive like an idiot, and I only come unstuck very occasionally, and I haven't managed to stack it (yet)