[Ronin76]

Originally Posted by ourlee

This is unpopular with the 718 boys but I didn’t like the 4.0. It’s known for it’s AMAZING noises, all true, but they are only enjoyed on the street 5500 rpm to redline in first gear (45 mph) and second gear (80 mph). The rest of the time it’s a high strung brilliant motor making mom sounds at 2k rpms on the street. A terrible street experience. I’m all about the base or S turbo with PDK because I don’t track.
If you have $10k laying around and give no fvcks about a warranty, a DeMan gear set would make the 4.0 the best car ever.
Now consider mid engine balance, great steering, 3100lbs and a biggie for me, analog old school interior, the 718 is like no other.
I’m leaning something like this after my m2 test drive
https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/1...-8d0235c02e13/
Add OHLINS and I’d be all set.

Thanks for the reply man, I appreciate it. Yeah, I do not track either. Most of my driving will be highway going to work...I also have a heavy foot so maybe it won't be that bad for my use case? I do care about warranty. No way am I owning a German car without warranty...financial suicide if no warranty lol. I think you and I are on the same page as I have also been thinking about the S or the 2.5GTS. Save a lot of money, two door two person, mid engine, sports car. Aftermarket suspension (I was thinking Bilsteins) and nice aftermarket wheels, I think I would be happy.

Only thing that has me thinking twice about going that route is, am I really contemplating a 4 cylinder engine over an M2...especially if the prices are that close?

[ourlee]

Originally Posted by Ronin76

Thanks for the reply man, I appreciate it. Yeah, I do not track either. Most of my driving will be highway going to work...I also have a heavy foot so maybe it won't be that bad for my use case? I do care about warranty. No way am I owning a German car without warranty...financial suicide if no warranty lol. I think you and I are on the same page as I have also been thinking about the S or the 2.5GTS. Save a lot of money, two door two person, mid engine, sports car. Aftermarket suspension (I was thinking Bilsteins) and nice aftermarket wheels, I think I would be happy.

Only thing that has me thinking twice about going that route is, am I really contemplating a 4 cylinder engine over an M2...especially if the prices are that close?

That’s the argument and if more cylinders mean more value then that’s hard to dismiss. But look at it another way, who’s a better athlete, Curry (4 cylinder) or James (6 cylinder)?
I’m looking to maximize my street experience.

[Ronin76]

Originally Posted by ourlee

That’s the argument and if more cylinders mean more value than that’s hard to dismiss. But look at it another way, who’s a better athlete, Curry (4 cylinder) or James (6 cylinder)?
I’m looking to maximize my street experience.

Ha…well said man. Both quality cars. Don’t think one car go wrong with either, thanks man!

[Tag]

Add the 2024 Z4 M40i to your short list...

Manual Transmission Revival: Tailored for the U.S. Market

While the overall looks of the car have not changed much, the underpinnings have. So let’s start with that. Under the hood, we’re still getting the glorious B58 3.0 liter six-cylinder engine making 382 horsepower. But instead of sending the power to the tried-and-proven ZF 8-speed automatic, BMW decided to give the Z4 a proper send off. And that means a revised six-speed manual transmission, also developed by ZF.

During my ride with the 2024 BMW Z4 M40i, Nick Gerstner, Product Manager of BMW Z4, tells me that the transmission was engineered specifically for this new Z4. It starts with the shift linkage which is different than the Supra’s. It also has a shorter gear lever and a completely different shifting behavior than all of the 6-speed manuals offered today in other BMW products. Plenty of new and old M2/M3/M4 customers complained about the somewhat vague and rubbery shifter in their cars. The first to second gears of the BMW six-speed are always twitchy, with long throws, making it a bit difficult to have a clean shift.

It’s well known that the F87/G87 M2, G8x M3/M4 and Toyota Supra share a common ZF 6-speed transmission with comparable shafts and clusters. Any variation in shift feel is likely attributable to differences in the isolation and bushing of the gear lever. This is the reason why the six-speed manual in the Supra feels different. The Japanese automaker opted to uniquely tune their manual transmission to align with the Supra’s character. BMW took note of this, particularly in response to customer feedback.

Let me start with this: The revised six-speed manual in the 2024 BMW Z4 M40i is fantastic! The shorter shifter is great, the shifting is quicker and more precise (think Porsche transmissions), and going from first to second is extremely smooth. The third gear is still quite long allowing you to take the Z4 to high speeds before having to shift. Couple this revised six-speed manual with the equally fantastic B58 six-cylinder and you have a winner on your hands. The rev matching works brilliantly as well, but of course, you can turn it off if you’d like.

BMWBLOG 2024 BMW Z4 M40i 6-Speed Review – Save The Manuals

[deneed4spd]

The article stated, “transmission was engineered specifically for this new Z4”. What!! We always say m2 and m3 got the old manual but to build a new manual for even a lower demand z car sounds crazy! Put one in the LCI M2

[bmwdrive]

Originally Posted by Ronin76

What were your thoughts on the 4.0 Cayman GTS. I am deciding between that and the M2. I really like the size of the Cayman.

I have a BGTS 4.0 and drove the G87 at a BMW event on a small autocross course. Both are really, really fun cars. The G87 slides much easier and has monster power (for me). The GTS feels very precise and nimble in comparison. The GTS also sounds amazing if that matters to you. I don't think you can go wrong here. If you can deal with the extra cost and don't care about backseats, the GTS is probably the better driving experience. It's an awesome, awesome sports car. But there is nothing wrong with the G87. It's the better bang for the buck.

[kyrix1st]

Originally Posted by Tag

Add the 2024 Z4 M40i to your short list...

BMWBLOG 2024 BMW Z4 M40i 6-Speed Review – Save The Manuals

This likely means that general demand for a manual transmission BMW in North America is quite high, or the Z4 sales are disastrously low such that BMW felt 6MT will help boost its sales figure. Either way, BMW must have felt that 6MT is a compelling proposition in 50~70K sports cars bracket.

[Tag]

Originally Posted by kyrix1st

This likely means that general demand for a manual transmission BMW in North America is quite high, or the Z4 sales are disastrously low such that BMW felt 6MT will help boost its sales figure. Either way, BMW must have felt that 6MT is a compelling proposition in 50~70K sports cars bracket.

Only reason it's getting a MT is because of the Supra so guess everyone can thank Toyota for making BMW, well more BMW. Supra also got high praise for the calibration on the MT by Toyota. BMW was like, wait, what? Can't have that, hold my beer.

[TheLegend]

This gives me hope that BMW will actually make a good manual for once. For many years they've offered a manual for the sake of having a manual but this day and age it's just not enough. It has be a good manual.

What I cross shopped:
1) G80 M3/G87 M2 manual
2) Emira manual
3) Supra MKV manual
4) 992 Carrera T manual
5) 718 GT4 manual

[Tag]

Supra GRMN

Rumored to be getting the S58 and MT.

https://www.instagram.com/wilcoblok/...RvPMxcD/?hl=en
https://www.instagram.com/wilcoblok/...Gf9MgUP/?hl=en
https://www.instagram.com/wilcoblok/...tRxsRbL/?hl=en

[xtougher]

"Cross-shopped" is a strong term, in some sense for me. It's more like I just kept eliminating cars from the list once in a while.

I currently drive a 2016 F30 340i 6 MT. Ordered that car over 8 years ago, tracked ships in the Atlantic, all that. Now, with it approaching 95k miles, it's starting to grow a list of items for maintenance/repair/etc. that are normal, but also a decent chunk of change.

Queue the "do we just buy a new car now, or do we spend the money and keep it for a few more years?" internal debate. We leaned towards the "buy now" side and so then started making a list.

My personal non-negotiable was a manual transmission. From there, it was about what choices are left, and where that leaves us with budget, power, feel, etc.

I started with one of those "new cars that still have a manual transmission" lists, and I vetoed some of them, and my wife vetoed a lot of the others. One example was similar to a comment mentioned by someone else earlier in this thread: you're too old to be driving around the Type R. Welp. Scratch that off.

Eventually, it really came down to a few "possibilities", but narrowed down to what I may actually purchase:

- G87 M2
- Porsche 718 Cayman base
- Supra

Half of the Supra was a lateral move from my current car (essentially the same engine/power, etc.) but in a sportier package.

Porsche was intriguing, but couldn't justify the base still being approximately $25k more than the essentially fully-loaded M2. It would've been a different (and great) driving experience, but I also know I'm daily driving this new car, and putting miles on it over time.

I'm about as "driver enthusiast" someone can get that will never track the car, not really heavily modify the car for performance, etc. It's more car than I need, but I like the fun of driving with a car that is capable of more than I will need, sounds and feels great, etc.

So here we are...deposit paid, allocation received, and waiting impatiently.

[Squidget]

Originally Posted by Tag

Supra GRMN

Rumored to be getting the S58 and MT.

Shruuugg? Lack of power wasn't the Supra's problem, IMO. For me, the problem was that it was a miserable DD. The price differential between the Supra and G87 wasn't enough for everything you had to give up.

Given the rumors are that the GRMN will likely cost more than the G87, and probably will be torque limited just like the G87, AND still be a crap DD, I'm not compelled.

I know, I know, the GRMN is supposed to be a more pure track car, not a DD, but in those cases we should be comparing it to CS variants instead of base G87.

[Smilodon]

Because of the new car situation (a drag-on from Covid days), I was mostly shopping cars that weren't sitting on a lot or drive-able. I did something I swore I would never do as a result, paying to get "on the wait list" for an upcoming car.

I have mostly been a Japanese car buyer. That mostly ended up being a "bang for the buck" sort of thing. These days, they are offering mostly neither in the "sporty car" market.

The car in the "fleet" that was looking to be replaced was a (rare) Infiniti Q60S with a manual transmission. It was a well-liked car, but was involved in an accident, and while it was expertly repaired, while we were waiting, we started looking at other cars (and this was when supply was terrible).

One of the issues with the Infiniti was that got it frequently left behind in the garage was its limited cargo space (it has a Miata-like trunk and it is difficult to get stuff in the back seat to try and compensate). Also, the cockpit was very claustrophobic. It was a decent performer, but not that exciting to drive and had a very sloppy gear shift.

Good points, rear-wheel drive, manual transmission, comfortable and nicely appointed interior. Could carry more than two people for a short trip.

I say all this, because all of the pluses and minuses of the existing car weighed heavily in our search criteria.

So cross-shopping wise, we were looking sporty, manual trans, rear-wheel drive, not really a pure two-seater. So that had us looking at the (upcoming then) Dark Horse Mustang, Challenger Scat-Pack wide-body, M3 or M4.

All good cars. The Challenger (which we could drive) was ruled out because of the size. It was just too big of a car for what we wanted. The Mustang just turned out to be expensive for a highly-optioned car. It was still in the running, but local dealers figured that they had customers by the short and curly's and were upcharging for a Mustang (pretty common car in general) that was already expensive and I couldn't drive either.

M3s and M4s were simply pushing my price limits when optioned. I could make a reach and get one, but the M2 was still in the ballpark configured as I wanted and somewhat smaller (which I liked).

The G87 M2 was equally not drive-able. But, we had driven a regular 2 series and liked a lot of things about it. I knew that M3s were good stuff and the M2 was getting a lot of those bits.

So, I took a chance and waited for one. The Infiniti was fine to drive for as long as we needed to wait. The dealer charged no extra fees like the Ford guys. I received the car and couldn't be happier.

My favorite bit is the split personality. It can be more comfortable than the Infiniti was (the chassis couldn't cope very well with the big "S" tires) and way more of a performance car at a push of a button. Probably more performance that I'll use, but hey, I'm considering things like track days when I have something like this!