Hello all, my turn to share a dream story.
As a long time BMW enthusiast, my dream of owning a proper M vehicle finally came true yesterday!
Already drove 200 Km in these 2 days lol Gotta get the break-in done!
I've always been a BMW fan... I visited the Welt in 2012, and knew the brand spoke to me in a way no other brand does...
The M2 was my dream car since it was launched (OG F87 M2). I dreamed of getting one and doing Euro Delivery... Timing was never ideal, and then ED went away... I replaced my E90 with the 135i and loved it for many years, always thinking one day its replacement would have to be an M car. Nothing else would do.
When the G87 was first revealed (or the Chinese leak of the front bumper), I really disliked its looks... Not as much as the G80/82, but still didn't like it. Especially the rear. Then the reviews started to come through, and the car really grew on me. I felt I needed to have one, as it was absolutely perfect for what I need. I still needed to see it in person.
After coming to this forum to lurk, I got the following sentiment from reading all your comments: the car will never be available, I can probably order one and get it in 2 years, and if dealers mark it up, I'll never buy it... So I started to plan to get this car in 2 years, and my original goal was to visit the dealer to put a deposit in and wait patiently until my car was built.
My spec would be Toronto Red with Sunroof, Premium Package, Burnished Wheels, and of course Manual.
Fast forward to yesterday... Woke up Saturday and thought "let me check Autotrader to see how many M2s there are in Canada, and how much dealers are asking for them".
3 cars in Canada. 1 3,500Km away in the East coast, 1 900 Km away in another Province, and 1 "1 Km away". :P
I opened it up, it was Toronto Red!
At this point I'm stoked! What? They have a red M2?
Open it up, bummer, black wheels. "It doesn't matter, it's an automatic for sure". Kept scrolling and "OMG it's a manual!"
At this point I knew I had to see the car! Another bummer, Carbon Fibre roof
I really wanted a sunroof.
"Let me go to the dealer, I might be able to see it, if nobody buys it in the 5 minutes it takes me to get there".
Driving there, I thought "Sure I might see it, but they'll never let me drive it!" (I read too much of your forums' posts... :P)
Well, sure enough, I get there, I'm greeted by the Sales Manager, car is in the showroom, I sit in it, he turns it on, I look inside and out, and he asks if I want to drive it. Duh!
I also had my kid's car seat to test and see if it would fit. If it didn't, the dream is over.
Well, they manoeuvre the car outside, park it next to my 135i, I swap the car seat, and my kid and I go for a test drive. I knew the car was a blast because he fell asleep and slept through the entire test drive. He gets comfortable with noise and rumble... The 135i is much louder than the M2... :P I laughed almost the entire time driving it during the test drive, and I was surprised with the performance it delivered. I punched it in 2nd gear from 15km/h and it hit 100km/h in about 2 seconds... It's just ridiculous.
Yada yada yada "if I can drive the car off today, I will buy it". Long story short, drove the car off the showroom after lunch! No nonsense, MSRP deal, best treatment I've ever received in a dealer (and I worked at a dealer and I considered myself really good at it). Unbelievable day.
They mentioned it was the first M2 delivery in the island I live in. So, it's the first in the city. I don't doubt it. It's strange to drive and have people point at you, and pull their phones to take pictures!! The car is incredibly well sorted.
The car in question is an HEA.
Things the car has and I didn't want:
- Black seats with the M colours. I came around this, because I was going to spec it with Cognac seats, but it'd be hard to tell if it was the right choice without seeing it in person. Perhaps like the wheels. So I'm glad this car has the black M accent seats, they look great!
- Carbon Roof. It looks amazing. Sure it weighs less, but I still wanted the sunroof for the functionality. In the test drive I wanted to make sure I wasn't going to miss the sunroof. And I don't! Phew.
- Black wheels. I was able to see the Burnished wheels in another M2. I hated them in person. I'm glad I didn't spec the car myself... The black wheels just work much better with this colour.
- M Driver's Package. Seriously, $2,450 to raise the speed limit from 260km/h to 285km/h... I would never spec this... But, it has it.
- Red brake callipers. I'm glad it has it. I thought they would be black, but they are Blue as standard and they would clash with the car.
- Wireless charging. What BS... I knew it wouldn't work well, but it's just ridiculous. My phone turns off in 30 minutes, and I think it's a fire hazard too. The phone gets ultra hot and shuts down... So much for what the configurator claims "The built-in cooling protects your device from overheating." - I am thinking of putting a formal complaint to BMW Canada
Things the car has that I did want:
- Premium Package
- M Seat Belts
- M 50 Jahre emblems (was on the fence about them, but they look nice in person)
I was never on the fence about the carbon buckets because they are part of a $13,000 package in Canada, unlike in the G80/82. I wish they were available as a standalone option. I was able to sit in a G82 with them, and they are perfect. I did not have any issues getting in or out of the car, as I read many times... I'm 6 foot and 190 pounds if you're wondering. Perfect fit for me. It's a shame it doesn't have them.
Here are some photos and my impressions coming from a modified 135i with the N55.
- When you compare the rear of the 135i to it (and the F87 for that matter), I always thought the 135i's rear was much more balanced as a design. I still think it looks very good, it's classic and will always age well. But when you put the G87 close to it, it looks like a regular car... It's not aggressive, and the G87 is also more modern (perhaps obviously). The front end is just in another class... The 1-series was had a "tame" look, but the M2 being so aggressive is really a stark contrast.
And the hips? I don't think I remember seeing a car that had wider fenders and quarter panels than this car... It looks ridiculous, in a good way.
- The N55 has more torque in low RPMs. I can understand Thomas complaining about the M2, especially since he suffers from confirmation bias as an OG M2 owner. The N55 will pull much harder before 4k RPM. After break-in I will run the Throttle House test with a Dragy... LOL
- The drive is superb in the M2. Such a compliant suspension (in any mode), super sharp turn-in, great feedback from the tires. I drive with the steering in "Comfort" though, as Sport feels "fake". BMW always put some fake resistance when the steering is in Sport, since the inception of EPS.
- The sound of the engine is awesome, the power delivery is great, it pulls very hard up top, and the noise changes dramatically as you progress in the revolutions. The pedal input is much sharper than in the non-M 135i. Even in Efficient. Sport Plus shouldn't exist, especially with that name. It's an 'on/off' switch. The rev match function is actually nice, and the blips are perfect and done every time you switch gears down. I do not find it intrusive, even when I rev match myself, it doesn't "add on" to my throttle input if I'm rev matching by pressing the pedal.
- The gearbox feels the same as the 135i's, but it took me some getting used to the very high centre console. I have to drive with my arms wide open rested on the arm rests. I used to rest my right arm on my thigh, but it makes an awkward upwards angle to shift in this car. But, the shifts are exactly the same (for better or worse). The clutch feels exactly the same too.
- The iDrive 8 looks incredible, and is super responsive and full of features. I have not used much of it yet. To me iDrive could always have been an option and I wouldn't get it. But it's nice to have it and it works well.
- I setup my M1 button as:
Engine: Sport (so I can get a louder exhaust, a bummer that it doesn't get loud in Efficient, perhaps I can change that with coding in the future)
Chassis: Comfort
Rev Match: On
Exhaust: Loud
Steering: Comfort
Traction: MDM
- My M2 button is:
Engine: Sport
Chassis: Sport
Rev Match: On
Exhaust: Loud
Steering: Comfort
Traction: Off - Traction Level 2 (experimenting with this still, will know for sure after break-in)
- The child seat still fits in the centre of the rear seat, and I can put both front seats all the way back if needed, and carry 2 adults in the back with a baby/toddler in the middle, just like in the 135i. Win! (It was always a win carrying 5 people in a 4-seater)
---
Coming from a modified 135i, I will keep this M2 stock.
I've learned to enjoy cars for what they are, and it's nice to have some ground clearance to get less stuck in snow or rub less against driveways
The suspension is so well sorted, I doubt any aftermarket will make it drive better. Having a warranty is great too.
Hope to learn more about coding for this car (is it available yet?) and what I can get for winter wheels and tires later this year.
Thanks all!