M3 Evo Vs M3 Evo SMG

[tricky69]

Has any one had any experiance driving an SMG ? Is the gearbox any good ? I have heard that it is difficult to use at first but superb once you get the hang of them ???

[vixpy1]

Its one of those 'depends who you talk too' ones, i tried both before i bought my evo(RIP) , loved the SMG but i could'nt stretch to it at the time so bought a 6 speed manual, IMHO the six speed manual is crud, all three i've driven have been notchy and not pariculary nice to use, the five speed in the non evo is much better but i much prefered the evo car as a whole. it took me about 1/2 an hour to get the smg working fine, i've spoken to a couple of dealers who had them as co cars and said they hated it for the first week and then would'nt go back, best to try one i guess.

[tricky69]

Because i have been offered a straight swap for my evo and an smg. Both cars are about the same milage and same spec but my friends wife can't deal with the gear box on the smg.....

I think i will go for the swap, after a good long test drive....

[hughjayteens]

Make sure the SMG has BMW warranty as my mate, who works for BMW, tells me that they have quite a lot of warranty repairs on the SMGs for clutches and actuators - average cost is well over £1k so something to bear in mind (worth having warranty for the dreaded vanos issue too).

[tricky69]

Yeah his smg is still under extended RAC warranty for 3 years. It has full BMW service history as well, will RAC warranty be ok or should i try and get a bimmer warranty ?

What Vanos problem ?