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!

Narita Golf Course

Sunday was golf at Narita Golf Course, a short 5,991yds 18-hole course just next to Narita airport. Playing partner had diarhoea, and called it quits before the first nine finished. He left after lunch. His condition was not inspiring, and I shot 53 on the first nine due to the wait for his toilet break, and subsequent curses when he could not hit well. On one hole, he had to rush into the bush just before teeing off. Poor chap.



I decided to continue after the lunch break and shot 45 on the second nine. I had 3 pars, 5-bogeys and 1 double par due to an OB. I was beginning to warm up as the walk on the first nine had helped to loosen me up. On a 312yds par 4, my drive put me only 20yds from the green but only managed to par it. My approach was not near enough for a one putter. Managed to try the Mizuno 401 Cross Eight ball. It went really far, much further than the Callaway ERC Hot. After the bath and onsen, helped myself to the foot massage and body massage machines at the clubhouse. Traffic was smoother than usual and I reached home within an hour from leaving Narita.

Tip Top

Last night was out drinking with industry colleagues for Karaoke and later adjourned to a bar called tip top in Roppongi. Very interesting bar counter which has an aquarium lining the bar around the bartenders...

Here's 3 of the airline folks left after 2 others had left..

K & N Typhoon

Ordered a K & N Typhoon Air Intake System today for the M3 from ebay. The cost was US$329 including shipping by international express mail. This is still cheaper than buying it locally in Japan, which costs JPY51,000 ($450), a saving of $120!

The K & N is a high performance air intake (filter) system which increases airflow to the engine and consequently horsepower. The product is backed by a million mile warranty and is supported by actual dyno data for each car. The M3 (E46) was tested and gained 8.9hp at the wheels ! This translate to over 10hp at the crank...the chart shows the power gain is consistent throughout a broad range of engine speed.

Japanese PM resigns (again)

It seems that it is becoming a trend for the Japanese PM to resign whenever he runs into trouble. PM Fukuda announced his resignation in an unexpected twist to further weaken Japan's LDP. Fukuda is the 91st PM of Japan.

This comes barely a month after he announced a re-shuffle of the cabinet....and the relatively short tenure of his predecessor Shinzo Abe.

Such is the result when positions such as the PM are not directly elected by the population. The candidate selected from within party ranks may not have the drive, tenacity or dedication to see through a full term and push through a vision or policy for the country.

Japanese political system is very nepostic, with many ministers having "inherited" their positions by virtue of the family name and background. It is almost like a family business.

Lesson to be learned here is don't wear the hat if it doesn't fit...