2016 BMW M4! The long-term owner's review you neither needed nor wanted!

[Amaru]

What follows is my unofficial, uncertified, and probably largely unhelpful review of my 2016 BMW M4.

I picked the car up (new) just under a year ago and have since put 13,000km on her (~50% city commuting / 50% highway road trips).

Let us review….



2016 BMW M4 — ‘Elderly White Man' Spec

- Black Sapphire Metallic on Beige Merino Sonoma, Silver 19" wheels, moonroof;
- 7-spd dual-clutch trans (DCT);
- Adaptive M suspension;
- Executive package (HUD, F/R park sensors, rearview cam, heated wheel, etc);
- BMW Connected package (live traffic nav, concierge services, & other useless shit).
- Mods: no, fuck off.

=================================

“Does it look nice?”
Yes, I think it looks great. When this generation of m3/m4 was first launched, I was “meh” on the styling. Now, I think it’s one of the best-looking cars on sale today. 

The “power dome” on the hood is a bit much for me, and I find the blue brake calipers (stock) very un-BMW… but, otherwise, I give it very good marks for aesthetics.

“What about the interior… is it nice?”
Yep, it’s fantastic, I have basically zero complaints… very refined, great ergonomics, definitely gives off the kind of ‘high-quality, well-engineered’ vibe that you’d normally associate with Audi or Merc. No rattles or other noise/vibration issues at all.

The 5th gen iDrive system is great… very intuitive, fast, and easy to use. Nav works well. The standard 16-speaker HK surround sound stereo is actually really good too. (Harmon Kardon is a brand I can’t help but associate with $40 computer speakers but they did a solid job on the M4 audio system… it’s pretty much what you’d expect from a $90k vehicle.)

The seats…. are FANTASTIC. They’re VERY comfortable… normally on a long road trip, my back would be fucking ruined after 4-5 hours of driving. Not so in the M4’s seats… they are awesome. AND….. here’s the best part about those seats: THERE’S A FUCKING BACKLIT “///M” EMBLEM EMBEDDED INTO THE SEATBACK!!!!! Does your car have that shit!?!? Didn’t think so!!! (Seriously, they actually look great… sure, they’re only about 3% away from being SUPER tacky, but somehow BMW managed to pull it off…. and they’re sexy AF at night.)

Overall, the M4’s luxury features and overall level of comfort are easily one of the car’s strongest areas. Very quiet cabin even at high speeds, great seats, good stereo, decent visibility, lots of cool tech…. what more could you want in a DD?

“My Porsche dealer says Heads Up Display (HUD) is a stupid gimmick, is he right?”
Your Porsche dealer can suck my sack. HUD is the best feature to hit the automotive world since ABS brakes.

To be fair, not all HUD systems are created equal… but this latest-gem BMW unit is, for me, a game-changer. I haven’t looked at the instrument cluster in about 9 months, because everything I need is in the HUD — speed, bluetooth stereo/phone controls, cruise control, nav directions, etc. There’s also an “M View” mode that displays only a colour tach w/ shift light, current gear, and speed. I don’t use it much, but it looks sweet. HUD is amazing.

“BMW ConnectedDrive, that sounds fun! Is it awesome?”
No, it’s completely useless.

“How about practicality? Can I fit my 14 sets of golf clubs and my family of 9 in the back?”
Yes. Unlike, say, a Cayman (which happens to be the only other vehicle I considered instead of the M4)…. it has a back seat that is usable! For adults, even! The trunk is big(ish), and the seats fold down, so I can easily take my collection of Persian rugs for a drive around town when I feel so inclined.

There are obvious practicality issues that come with any car of this sort. It has ~480lb-ft of torque, and high-performance summer tires…. so, as you would expect, it’s not great for those January road trips to Saskatoon. In fact, it’s basically undriveable in snow and sucks in sub-zero temps. Obviously it would be OK with winter tires (lolz).... but, as I shall explain shortly, my #1 complaint with this car is lack of traction in all conditions.

“Yeah ok whatever, but is it FAST??”
Yes, it is extremely fast.

“So, the engine is good, then?”
Yes and no. I have never felt short on power in this car. Turbo lag is so minimal that it’s generally a non-issue, which is great.

Also…. power. Lots of power. BMW’s advertised power numbers (they claim 425hp) for the M3/M4 are a joke… a more realistic number would be around 480bhp (torque around the same). Many owners have posted results of their stock M4 dyno runs online… and quite often the power numbers at the WHEELS are higher than what BMW claims the car makes at the crank. Anyway, whatever… clearly, power is not a concern, which is neat.

However, the engine is not very nice in other ways. The powerband is very non-linear… the torque seems to arrive all at once (around 2600-2800rpm) but it’s unpredictable and, IMO, needs tuning to improve drivability. Traction is a HUGE problem in this car.

“Pffft…. are there actually serious issues with traction??”
Yes. Boys…. I’ve had wheelspin short-shifting into 4th on a dry road.

First gear is basically un-usable in anything but PERFECT conditions (i.e. when it’s hotter than Death Valley outside, you’re on a perfect road, using brand new tires that have been properly warmed-up…). But in the real world — where it rains and gets cold and shit — M4 owners need to get accustomed to “Mr Blinky” (DSC warning light) blowing up the dashboard constantly.

I can’t see how any human being not in possession of a valid FIA Superlicense could replicate the 3.7s 0-60 times that some car magazines and websites claim for a DCT-equipped M4. It’s simply too hard to get traction from a stand-still.

“Why don’t you just use launch control, you pussy?”
Because it does not work. Seriously. 

Yes, some F82 owners still cling to the belief that the M4’s launch control feature actually DOES work, but they’re wrong. It doesn’t work… at least not like you would expect when you hear the term “launch control”. It’s basically only useful for turning Michelins into smoke.

“So if traction is always a problem, what’s the deal with the M4’s traction control settings?”
The M4 features 3 levels of traction control setting: 'Nagging Mother' mode, 'Really Fucking Hardcore' mode, and off ('Instant Death' mode).

It’s way too invasive in the most docile setting, and the moderate (level 2 of 3) setting is too hardcore for normal use on public roads (it will allow a full spin — and I can confirm that from personal experience). Turning the traction control completely off, of course, is not really feasible in this car unless you possess a valid FIA Superlicense (or if you really enjoy dying).

“OK well that sucks. Does it at least have great balance and handling?”
Yes, thank God… in that regard this car lives up to the ///M tradition. It is balanced, poised, and has excellent grip in the corners. I haven’t had a chance to take it on a proper track yet, but there’s no doubt this car has amazing balance and excellent handling characteristics.

It’s a fairly difficult car to drive at lower speeds (due to wheelsman) or with the traction control off (as mentioned above)… but, once you get her out on a lonely twisty rural road at 2am…. yay.

Unlike most M4 reviewers, I have absolutely nothing negative to say about the car’s electric steering. It’s not over-boosted, it still offers decent feedback…. it’s fine.

"How are the brakes?"
Huge. Excellent. Best-in-class.

All the dust.

“Does it break?”
No, actually, not yet. I’ve had it back to the dealer twice — once for the scheduled break-in inspection @ 1500km’s, and once for a scheduled oil service @ 5000km’s. Build quality, at least in the initial stages, appears top-notch. No gremlins, glitches, or technical issues to report…. smooth sailing so far.

“Does it make cool noises?? Does it sound like a fuckin’ BEAST??”
No. It sounds like poo a lot of the time, actually.

At cold start, when all 4 exhaust valves are fully open (to reduce warm-up time), it is SO FUCKING LOUD. Like, for a stock vehicle, this shit is EARTH-SHAKING…. very loud, and not at all pleasant. It’s all bad noises until the car warms up (2-3 mins of normal driving).

When the engine is warmed up, it sounds "meh" in the most docile throttle response mode (“Efficient”)… pretty damn quiet. In the two more aggressive throttle response modes (“Sport” and “Sport Plus”), it sounds better…. not great, but at least you get some off-throttle backpressure barks and a slightly deeper rumble at low speeds / RPM’s.

Look, boys…. don't buy one for the noise. The REALLY fucking loud cold starts are very annoying (especially for my neighbours)…. and then once it’s up to temp, it’s generally too quiet. The only time I really love the way this car sounds is when I’m driving like an asshole. It would be fine on a track for sure, and exhaust drone is a non-issue when you’re cruising on the highway, which is nice. Overall, though, it sounds….. “meh”. I hope my next car makes better noises.

“Isn’t it SUPER LAME how BMW pipes in exhaust noise through the stereo??”
No, I truly don't give a shit about that, personally. I’ve never understood why some people get so worked up over a bit of exhaust noise coming out of the speakers. Whatever.

“OK cool… last question, bud: how’s that DCT transmission?“
It's a fantastic transmission. I’ve had the pleasure of driving some DCT-equipped exotics (MP4-12C, 458, Aventador), and this generation of BMW DCT trans is just as good.

When using the least aggressive transmission settings (level 1 of 3), upshifts are totally imperceivable. If not for the sound, passengers would never be able to tell there were any gear changes at all when a driver accelerates up to highway speed. It makes for a much smoother driving experience especially paired with the rev-matched downshifts feature (also awesome). At level 3, the most aggressive mode, the car will just hammer through the gears... it'll break traction on every upshift in the wet. I actually find it too much, because it really unsettles the car on full throttle upshifts, which can be super sketchy with traction control in sportier settings (ie. loss of control, death, etc).... but it IS extremely fast, with up and downshifts actually being so quick they kind of sound weird. There's no pause between the different exhaust notes of each gear, which some ppl hate.

...Personally it's a moot point for me because I don't actually need my gearshifts to be under 100ms, because I'm usually going to the office on a rainy Tuesday or hitting the Wendy's drive-thru at 2am.... so I roll with the efficient setting most of the time which sounds fine (and I have managed to survive with those "sluggish" 230ms upshift times thus far).

DCT = Great transmission overall.... Next time I'd buy a 6spd though. DCT is faster, true, and by quite a bit... but not from the line, because you can't get traction / a good launch very easily with either transmission. I don't use the paddles much (even tho they're great on the M4), so I essentially drive an automatic transmission 95% of the time......which is just...worse. I'd prefer a clutch pedal and 90kg weight savings, please. Plus there's other DCT annoyances generally, like the jerkiness in parking lots when engaging 1st gear or the forced downshifting into 1st at lights.

So yeah, the DCT is amazing and I like it, but I'd buy a 6spd next time. Maybe I'll reconsider when BMW fixes launch control.

=================================

“YO, TL;DR — WHAT’S THE FUCKIN CONCLUSION BRAH???”

Very very fast car; handles well; fun to drive; looks great (inside and out); very comfortable and practical; good luxury/tech (such as HUD, which is sick); struggles for traction in gears 1-5 in all conditions; sounds too quiet most of the time but is insanely loud at start-up; has some annoying quirks with car setup options/modes; has blue brake calipers.


Overall rating: 7.75 babies out of 10. 







Thank you for looking.

[originalhypa]

Great review.
Especially your disdain for Porsche dealers.

[twitchyzero]

Originally Posted by Amaru

No rattles or other noise/vibration issues at all.

just give it a few years

[white rocket]

A sarcastically well written honest review from a real owner in real world situations. I can dig it.

[smoothie.]

I really like how revscene has grown up and upgraded their class of cars.

...and left me behind in my civic.

[radioman]

your comment about not looking at the instrument cluster for 9 months made me think about a day where we no longer have a cluster but its all HUD.

Would be very, very strange.

Is the interior on par with the M2? I remember sitting in one at the auto show and thought the interior seemed a lot cheaper for an "M" car but I didn't have too much experience with them so maybe I had the wrong impression of "M" car interiors.

[Indy]

Originally Posted by radioman

your comment about not looking at the instrument cluster for 9 months made me think about a day where we no longer have a cluster but its all HUD.

Would be very, very strange.

Is the interior on par with the M2? I remember sitting in one at the auto show and thought the interior seemed a lot cheaper for an "M" car but I didn't have too much experience with them so maybe I had the wrong impression of "M" car interiors.

When i was a the autoshow i felt the M2 had a cheaper feeling interior compared to the M3/4/5/6. it was kind of weird how different it felt. Still better than my econobox Subaru though lol.

[jpark]

All car reviews should be written like this. I actually read the whole thing

[UnknownJinX]

Great review. I was actually looking at M4 a little while ago.

Just want to confirm: which engine does the M4 use?

As for the loudness, you will appreciate how quiet your car is once a stock RX-8 drives by you.

[underscore]

I read the whole thing and I don't even like BMW's

[tito_gsx]

lol nice review.

I have same car and agree with pretty much all of it. I got the 6speed which I love but DCT is also fantastic.

Any interest in modding?

Long term car for you?

[european]

Originally Posted by smoothie.

I really like how revscene has grown up and upgraded their class of cars.

...and left me behind in my civic.

I'm right there with you but without a vehicle :'(


Other than that, sweet review! Looks like a nice ride

[LP700-4]

Originally Posted by Amaru

At cold start, when all 4 exhaust valves are fully open (to reduce warm-up time), it is SO FUCKING LOUD. Like, for a stock vehicle, this shit is EARTH-SHAKING…. very loud, and not at all pleasant. It’s all bad noises until the car warms up (2-3 mins of normal driving).

When it cold starts half the valves are closed...unless you're opening them if that's what you mean. Try hearing one with the titanium MPE. Takes LOUD to another level

[Mr.Money]

dammit some reason i thought this was the ultra high performance version with factory roll cage

[Amaru]

Thanks for all the replies and flattering feedback, RS'ers... you're far too kind.

Originally Posted by twitchyzero

just give it a few years

Yeah, well, I owned an e46 for 7 years (sold it when it had 210,000km's on the clock)..... so yeah, I understand the potential for explosive heartache and huge repair bills.

Thankfully, I've got a 4-year warranty and a 3-year lease term (48,000kms).... so it's all good.

Next owner gets a discount of $40k off the sticker price so he can deal with the maintenance costs in a few years....

Originally Posted by smoothie.

I really like how revscene has grown up and upgraded their class of cars.

...and left me behind in my civic.

Hey man, when I first joined RS, I drove this base-model, well-used bucket of bolts:


Patience, my son, patience.

(FYI, I would have owned this M4 at least five years earlier if I hadn't dumped $20k in 'mods' into my previous cars. But hey, to each their own, don't let me stop you from buying that $4500 nitrous kit for your Civic... just be careful you don't blow the welds on the intake manifold!)

Originally Posted by radioman

Is the interior on par with the M2? I remember sitting in one at the auto show and thought the interior seemed a lot cheaper for an "M" car but I didn't have too much experience with them so maybe I had the wrong impression of "M" car interiors.

Yeah, the M2 is much different from the other ///M car interiors.... I think that's basically because BMW wanted to get the price down by $20k+ so that the M2 became "the M car for anyone" type thing. It's also more of a driver's car (and less of a GT car like the M4 has become), so weight savings was probably more of an issue. The M2 does not have a moonroof option (free on other M models, if you don't want the CF roof), HUD, and a few other luxury / tech features.

Not sure about the new M5, I bet that interior is another step up from the F82 M3/M4, but I definitely know that my interior (and available options list) is quite a bit more upscale what you'd find in an M2. Not that the M2 sucks, it's just.... more suede and less hand-stitched Sonoma leather.

I actually think most M2 owners are completely fine with the interior, because they saved $25k and ended up with a car that's just as fast as an M3/M4 on the track and drives a lot like the 'original' M3 (ie. a true driver's car, Cayman-lite type thing). I've outgrown that type of vehicle and my priorities now are old man things such as ride quality, tech features, etc... but if you just want a fun-as-fuck RWD Bimmer, then fuck it, get the M2 and live without a moonroof or HUD.

Originally Posted by UnknownJinX

Great review. I was actually looking at M4 a little while ago.

Just want to confirm: which engine does the M4 use?

As for the loudness, you will appreciate how quiet your car is once a stock RX-8 drives by you.

Thank you! Engine in my car is the S55B30 (new version of the S55 3.0L twin turbo inline six). Same for all 2015-2017 M3/M4's I believe, except maybe the GTS track bullshit model.

And um, I do appreciate that an RX-8 may be loud, but I would imagine it's actually quieter than the M4 at cold start. For comparison, the cold start on my car now is about as loud as the McLaren MP4-12C that I drove for a couple of days last summer.... (at lower RPM's, anyway).

I've had 3 separate complaints from neighbours -- two of whom live 2 houses down from mine --- about the sound of my car starting up in the morning. There are thousands of threads about the cold start noise, including one guy who decided to sell his condo because of all the noise complaints when he left for work at 4am.

To be clear, the cold start is the only time the car is earth-shakingly loud... after 2 mins, or when already warmed up (ie. if it's been driven in the last 6 hours), it's fine... well, actually, it's often too quiet for an ///M car. BUT.... at cold start, it's approximately as loud as a Eurofighter Typhoon in full afterburner.....

Originally Posted by tito_gsx

lol nice review.

I have same car and agree with pretty much all of it. I got the 6speed which I love but DCT is also fantastic.

Any interest in modding?

Long term car for you?

Thanks! Je suis le jealous of your clutch pedal, sir.

Mods? Sure, I have mods already.... painted reflectors!

Seriously though... yeah, I may buy the car out when my lease is up (residual seems really low ATM but we'll see what happens with the used market in 2 yrs time).... I definitely love it enough to consider owning it for more than the 3 year lease term. I'm not into modding anymore really, but I have thought about exhaust and a basic tune... f***ing expensive though ($8k for the MPE exhaust installed by BMW? GTFO.).

What have you done to yours? Anything you'd recommend?

Originally Posted by LP700-4

When it cold starts half the valves are closed...unless you're opening them if that's what you mean. Try hearing one with the titanium MPE. Takes LOUD to another level

Sorry, my bad, I said "valves" but apparently the cold startup sequence is actually initiated from the DME, and it's the wastegates that are fully open to heat up the cats as quickly as possible. Either way, AFAIK, the only way to prevent this feature is a full ECU re-flash (no piggyback solution).

I unplugged the exhaust valve connector about 6 months ago, so my valves are open 100% of the time.... but it doesn't affect cold start, that shit is loud as hell regardless. If all 4 valves being open makes the cold start even louder, it's only by a very small amount (ie. 2 or 3 dB type thing), because my neighbours and wife started filing complaints long before I had the BMW techs unplug the connection to open all 4 valves permanently.

It definitely sounds better, btw, with the valves permanently open -- except for very occasional highway drone issues (really a non-issue, even for cranky old farts like me who demand a quiet cabin).

BMW fucked up when they decided to use the throttle response settings to open/close the valves, btw... that should be independent so I can enjoy the sound of all 4 exhaust pipes pumping out the pollutants without having a jerky-ass throttle tip-in. Thankfully, unplugging that valve connector is an acceptable fix for me personally. (And I am experienced in this since I did the 'golf tee mod' to both my e46 and e92 previously, haha)

Originally Posted by Mr.Money

dammit some reason i thought this was the ultra high performance version with factory roll cage

Ewwwww.... GTS? The one with the picnic table spoiler bolted to the trunk lid? The one that requires refilling the water coolant (via a ghetto valve in the trunk) at every 2nd fuel-up? Jeremy Clarkson and I have only ever agreed on one thing, and it's the M4 GTS.

(PS. No offense to any GTS owners. I know it's fast, rare, and highly prized among fanboys. It's literally just the exact opposite, in every possible way, to how I want my car configured.)

(PPS. Does anyone on RS have a non-GTS M4 with an aftermarket GTS wing? If so, nice job! I bet your car is so much slower and less efficient and uglier now.... but, small price to pay for a slight increase in downforce at speeds over 260kph! )

[tito_gsx]

Amaru, pretty subtle mods to mine eibach springs, wheel spacers, and front lip. Mine has m performance exhaust and quite happy with it. I unplugged the exhaust valves which is quite entertaining except cold starts are even worse! No engine mods, thought about BMS stage 1 since it has good gains and easily reversible but don't want to risk any warranty coverage.

[Mancini]

This is the best written review I've ever read. It gives me a real feel for the ownership and driving experience. It's a rare owner that can objectively critique their own car. Well done. Someone buy this man more cars so we can get more of these.

[busdriverman]

Best review I have ever read on RS. Thank you.

[Energy]

Loved the review! Hope you keep enjoying the M4.

[westopher]

Haha great read.
RS needed this.

[tofu1413]

from demoing to selling these F8X cars almost on a daily basis, pretty much agree on everything except for the steering. (its a bit numb on center)


good read, made me lol because its all true



and Porsche can indeed suck it, saying HUD is useless. its one of the best feature in the car and BMW is the best in the business in that department.

[Amaru]

Thank you again, friends, for your kind words about my rambling review... you're far too kind.

And now, updates! Because my original review wasn't long enough.....

Actually, for realz though..... I forgot to mention a couple of fairly important things in the OP. Which I shall now address below.

"You forgot to mention ride quality you worthless twat!!"
Yes, forgive me. Ride quality. It's tolerable in the "Efficient" adaptive suspension settings (lvl 1 of 3). As for the other 2 more hardcore suspension modes.... nope. Better sign up to the waitlist for a kidney transplant before you go into "Sport Plus" mode.

I don't think any M4 owners use anything beyond "Efficient", ever. Even on the track. Unfortunately, BMW made the very poor decision to have the car go into "Sport" (lvl 2 of 3, it sucks) setting every time you turn on the ignition.... and didn't give owners the ability to customize the default startup car settings.

in concluding.... I don't think the ride quality is a strong point for the M4 by any means. But it's an acceptable trade-off for a car that would still be very at home on a race track.

PS. Adaptive suspension is a must-have option on the 2015-16 models, but for this year (2017), it's now standard equipment on all M4's.

"Wait so you said those drunks at the BMW Ergonomics Division put the car settings to an unchangeable default setup.... and the suspension setting they chose as the default was the intolerable "Sport" mode?"
That would be correct, yes.

However, it's all good to be honest, because they put 2 customizable preset buttons (M1 & M2) buttons on the steering wheel, so clicking the M1 button (my default granny-ass-driving setup) is the first thing I do after turning the car on. I have M2 set up for 'spirited' driving (with diff HUD setup, throttle response, steering weight, etc).

Those preset buttons are beauty. So easy to program them too. So, yeah, fuck you BMW for not letting me change the defaults... but I like your preset buttons on the wheel enough to let y'all off the hook.

"I am the type of person that drives to Bellingham just to save $0.11 per litre on gas... how's the fuel economy?"
Amazing.

Well, I mean, if you're used to a Civic or something even more eco-happy, you won't be impressed with the M4 gas mileage.

I don't drive the car hard a lot, but I'm definitely not a granny, either (that throttle pedal is too much fun to resist the temptation now and then).... and my combined city/highway fuel economy is around 12.7L/100km.

That's even slightly better than my wife's soccer-mom 2013 RDX gets, and better than my previous e92 335i. I don't know if if those numbers are much better than an RS5 or a C63S or whatever, but the M4 is definitely quite economical for a car with 450+bhp.



"Yo man fuck man welcome to the jungle. Last question. Does it have an auto stop/start feature?"
Yes! It does! So glad you asked. As you probably know, stop/start is a must-have for everyone who buys an M4....

I turned it off the very first time it kicked in at a stoplight, and except for when I bump the 'disable stop/start' button with my hand accidentally.... I haven't turned it back on.

It's hilarious that they even put that shit in ///M cars at all, but I guess it helps pass tight-ass EU emissions rules.... thankfully, BMW knew that owners would never want to use such an irritating feature, so they put a button to permanently disable it in a prominent place.

I haven't driven a car with stop/start that I didn't absolutely loathe although I'm told they exist.

"Any hot new dick-pics you want to share with the people of RevScene?"
No. But yesterday I did find some great pics of an M4 that is *identical* to mine... same colors inside/out, same leather package, same trim, everything except the wheels (mine are silver; they look better on black than the darker ones the pictured car has IMO).

And yeah, thankfully my seats aren't actually the color of a baby's diarrhea (as you might assume from the pic in my OP)....






This concludes my long-term owners review of the 2016 BMW M4. Thank you.

[Amaru]

Originally Posted by tito_gsx

Amaru, pretty subtle mods to mine eibach springs, wheel spacers, and front lip. Mine has m performance exhaust and quite happy with it. I unplugged the exhaust valves which is quite entertaining except cold starts are even worse! No engine mods, thought about BMS stage 1 since it has good gains and easily reversible but don't want to risk any warranty coverage.

Nice. Pics?

Did the wheel spacers make a big diff? 12mm/12mm?

[tito_gsx]

Originally Posted by Amaru

Nice. Pics?

Did the wheel spacers make a big diff? 12mm/12mm?

Yes spacers made big difference but only to a trained eye. Most ppl I talk to about spacers have no idea even with before and after pic....idiots! I went with 10mm front and 15mm back because they were left over from my old bimmer. I'll see if I can post a pic

[UnknownJinX]

Originally Posted by Amaru

Thank you! Engine in my car is the S55B30 (new version of the S55 3.0L twin turbo inline six). Same for all 2015-2017 M3/M4's I believe, except maybe the GTS track bullshit model.

And um, I do appreciate that an RX-8 may be loud, but I would imagine it's actually quieter than the M4 at cold start. For comparison, the cold start on my car now is about as loud as the McLaren MP4-12C that I drove for a couple of days last summer.... (at lower RPM's, anyway).

I've had 3 separate complaints from neighbours -- two of whom live 2 houses down from mine --- about the sound of my car starting up in the morning. There are thousands of threads about the cold start noise, including one guy who decided to sell his condo because of all the noise complaints when he left for work at 4am.

To be clear, the cold start is the only time the car is earth-shakingly loud... after 2 mins, or when already warmed up (ie. if it's been driven in the last 6 hours), it's fine... well, actually, it's often too quiet for an ///M car. BUT.... at cold start, it's approximately as loud as a Eurofighter Typhoon in full afterburner.....

I have always wanted to try the BMW trademark I6. The 2.0 turd-bo X3 I have driven as a rental is just full of lag. Absolutely hated that car because of that.

At least the car warms up fast. 2-minute warm-up sound awesome.

Originally Posted by Amaru

"Yo man fuck man welcome to the jungle. Last question. Does it have an auto stop/start feature?"
Yes! It does! So glad you asked. As you probably know, stop/start is a must-have for everyone who buys an M4....

I turned it off the very first time it kicked in at a stoplight, and except for when I bump the 'disable stop/start' button with my hand accidentally.... I haven't turned it back on.

It's hilarious that they even put that shit in ///M cars at all, but I guess it helps pass tight-ass EU emissions rules.... thankfully, BMW knew that owners would never want to use such an irritating feature, so they put a button to permanently disable it in a prominent place.

I haven't driven a car with stop/start that I didn't absolutely loathe although I'm told they exist.

When I drove the X3, the start-stop surprisingly didn't bother me. I actually left it on for the most part.

But if it's a sports car that I actually own, then I will probably leave it off for the longevity of the car.