M3 SMG OR MANUAL?? thoughts please
Discussion
this has probably been asked before on here many times.
best mate
is about to buy a e46 m3, test drove 5 cars now 2 manuals and 3 smg's(one of which was a csl) likes both but still a little unsure about smg.
does the smg box have sorter life ??
any advice ? good/bad experiances??
cheers
best mate
is about to buy a e46 m3, test drove 5 cars now 2 manuals and 3 smg's(one of which was a csl) likes both but still a little unsure about smg. does the smg box have sorter life ??
any advice ? good/bad experiances??
cheers
Hi there Burcest170, I own a e36 M3 SMG and can honestly say that i love it !! It's a little jurkey at first but the gearbox `learns` it's self to your particular style of driving and once used to it you can smooth out the gear changes by playing with the throttle.
Others may correct me here but i've been told by a major player in the BMW circles that the gearboxes themselves are actually the same and that all the SMG `box is missing is the centralizing spring which would normally move the gearstick to nutral position.
At the end of the day i would call this a Marmite subject, You'll either love it and want one or hate it and wont dare to be differant.
Happy motoring !
M3john.
SMG on the E46 M3 is brilliant and free of any of the normal semi-manual quirks (such as jerky changes), and comes with launch control and a whole host of other goodies. So the decision basically comes down to individual preference.
SMG is good because it performs quicker shifts than the manual, comes with a load of toys, means you don't have to lift when you change, and makes driving in traffic a lot easier in auto mode.
Manual is good because it gives you a more direct connection to the engine, allows you to do things like blip the throttle as you pull up to a stop (although you can apparently to this on the SMGII cars), and there will likely be bigger costs associated with SMG replacement later in the life of the car.
Personally I'd certainly have SMG.
SMG is good because it performs quicker shifts than the manual, comes with a load of toys, means you don't have to lift when you change, and makes driving in traffic a lot easier in auto mode.
Manual is good because it gives you a more direct connection to the engine, allows you to do things like blip the throttle as you pull up to a stop (although you can apparently to this on the SMGII cars), and there will likely be bigger costs associated with SMG replacement later in the life of the car.
Personally I'd certainly have SMG.
I've just bought an E46 SMG car after test-driving both transmissions, and I absolutely love the SMG. Maybe the manual option is more purist, but the SMG gives you the extra features mentioned earlier and is great fun to use in practice.
Sure it is "another thing to go wrong", but unlike the old E36 SMG system, the E46 SMG II on the standard M3 has been very reliable. If there was any major design or reliability issue, the M3 forums would be full of people moaning about it...
I don't think there are going to be any reliability problems with SMGII, it's built by Siemens afterall and they don't mess about!
The only slight issue is that it may have higher long-term servicing costs, like Porsche Tiptronic S. When a Boxster or 911 hits about 90k miles the gearbox oil needs swapping, which costs £90 on the manual, but £950 on the Tiptronic S. Although it should be said that Tiptronic S is based on a true automatic box, whereas SMGII is fundamentally the M3 manual.
The only slight issue is that it may have higher long-term servicing costs, like Porsche Tiptronic S. When a Boxster or 911 hits about 90k miles the gearbox oil needs swapping, which costs £90 on the manual, but £950 on the Tiptronic S. Although it should be said that Tiptronic S is based on a true automatic box, whereas SMGII is fundamentally the M3 manual.
Me I'd have a manual, a regular 3-pedals on the floor and stick in the middle manual trans, since it's simpler, you can shift as fast as you can or slow as you want, likewise modulate the clutch as you need/want.
That and to me working a stick is very much part of the enjoyment of driving.
But being an E30 M3 kind of guy, I guess I would.
That and to me working a stick is very much part of the enjoyment of driving.
But being an E30 M3 kind of guy, I guess I would.
Gassing Station | BMW General | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff