Maverickrr80

Hello everyone,
I am really interested in the new S5 I am a proud owner of a 2005 bmw m3 and was thinking about switching up and purchasing the new S5 with a trade in. I m curious to see if there is anyone out there who has made a switch like this one? And if so am i crazy for doing this? The reason why im making hte change is initially because 1 the m is greatttt cat I have the competition package but the problem is 1. snow; the car turns into a paper weight on ice skates when it snow and sometimes in heavy rain. however I 've gotten used to the weather and have learned to mange the power and drive it accordingly where its been manageable. But it gets annoying when I have to worry about the wether 2 BMW does not offer an extended warranty after 5 years or 100k unfortunately my car has 45k and I own it completely now so the maintanence is going to fall on my head which i dont mind but the maintanence as you know for m's are in the thousands.

Im going to go for test drive today and wanted to know what to expect and what to look for in comparison or if I should not even do this... thanks
















*

Merli

I did this exact change, and they really are two completely different cars.

The M3 was a much more raw machine, with a ton of feedback from the car through the seat and steering wheel. I knew *exactly* what the car was doing at all times on the road, and I felt extremely confident in pushing it very hard and only leaving a marginal buffer for error. I even took it to the race track (circuit) one day when the clutch exploded on my GTR and the way it handled on road tyres blew my mind. The M3 is a very raw, high performance machine.

The S5 is much more of a refined, , comfortable grand touring car. Although it's just as fast as the E46 M3, the power delivery is very smooth and deceptive in comparsion... Perfect for the daily commute with nice torque all over the rev range. Suspension is soft compared to the M3, and there's not a lot of feedback through the muted, light steering wheel (much like the E9x M3 in comparison to the E46 M3) which makes it effortless to putt around in. It's still fantastic for cruising those windy back roads at speed out to wine country, but I'd much prefer the M3 if I was trying to tear it up and set a new record.

I felt like I had out-grown the M3. It made me feel like a boy-racer, whereas the S5 is much more mature and modern car with ample grunt when you want to put the hammer down.

I'll leave the styling comparisons up-to you, but I love them both

pesos

I had two e46 M3s and I feel the same way pretty much. I really miss the steering feel of the M3s - a LOT. Otherwise I prefer the S5 (2008) for just about anything else...

Beevik

Love your license plate.

a5dude

Guess it all comes down to whether you want to be superfast race boy or an elegant sexy person. Its all about what you want, performance? Comfort? Or somewhere in between.

neunelf

Calling Dr. Freud!