Goodbye Honda, Hello M3...

The day finally came, and the race bred, 9,000rpm screaming VTEC Honda was swapped for the M3. The last drive was uneventful, extra care being taken not to damage the car before the trade. The Honda had been sold even before the car was at the dealer's. It was sold based on just the photo taken about 2 weeks ago. All the bits that were on the car must have attracted the prospective buyer.

This is the cockpit of the car just after taking delivery in Saitama. So how did it drive? In one word: superb! The SMG II box was set immediately to Sport mode 5, and when I reached the Shuto Expressway, the Sport mode (track) was switched on with DSC (dynamic stability or traction control) off. First impression was the reserves of power it had pulling from above 3,000rpm. The exhaust note is really raspy, not unlike the Alfa Boxer engines of yesteryear. With the driver side windscreen down, the rasp was really addictive. I imagine it would be even louder with aftermarket mufflers e.g. Hamann, Supersprint, Arqray, etc.


The SMG II is what it promised to be, a real sequential manual shift. In S-5 mode, the up shift was very quick indeed, quicker than me shifting a manual certainly. The downshift was accompanied by a very well timed throttle blip, much like a double clutching downshift in a manual car. Only in the M3, it is executed perfectly, without under or over blipping!

The steering felt a tad light, much lighter than the S2000 in comparison. The Michelin Pilot Sport is quite grippy, though they do not feel as immediate as the Advan Neovas on the Honda. Perhaps the Tein suspension on the Honda was more communicative than the standard Beemer suspension, giving this impression. The M3 suspension is taut but not harsh, and rides over bumps very comfortably.

This is the car in the garage at home. It is true that driving an M3 puts a grin on your face, which remains long after you have gotten out of the car. More reviews will follow when I have a chance to drive it more in the days ahead. Stay tuned!