Thanks for the replies, especially from the previous Bimmer owners. A friend said I owed it to myself to at least look at the options from BMW and Audi before I put down my deposit on the Infiniti. He was right, because I'm exploring all the options to avoid buyer's remorse, but he is biased. The M3 and Mcoupe are phenomenal cars from a performance standpoint, but the German blind road doesn't suit me. I've had nothing but Japanese cars, trucks, and motorcycles and never had a problem. And I'm used to that, the rattles and little nuisances on the G pale in the comparison to what could happen on a high performance German automobile. 1 or 2 unexpected trips to the dealer due to failure, even under warranty would **** me off and I'd be kicking myself. Just weighing what I could get for the $ I want to spend. Time to quit fartin' around, just trying to make absolutely sure this time. I go through cars fast (not from ragging on them) and I want to buy something I can keep for a while. My decisions on automobiles are usually very quick, which isn't a good thing so it's probably a good thing, for me anyway, that I'm sucking bandwidth and making sure. Thanks again.

 

I just saw the post.
I had an S4 prior to the G. So when my lease was almost up, I considered only 2 cars: M3 or G35. As others have said, performance wise, bar none, the M3 wins, hands down. I took one home for 2 days, was inches away from closing on a 03 SMGII for about $45k. It was a really tough decision; sometimes I still look back and wonder, did I do the right thing? But when I get back in the G, I remember why I like it: 1) Great handling 2) Good looks (so's the M3), 3) just much better day to day driveability and 4) my wallet thanks me for it.

My issues with the M3 were:
1) the S54 engine has had a history of catastrophic failures as others have said; I loved the sound of the engine, but the V-6 is really high strung and though I probably would rarely push the limits on the car,
2) SMGII on the M3 is the 1st iteration of the transmission; longevity; who knows? But a failure can be very painful especially out of warranty since I was planning to keep the car long term
3) The car would be my daily driver. On 18's, I felt that it was harsh, on 19s, it just wouldn't be good for any passengers in the back seat.


So I went with the G. In the meantime,I can:
1) put the cash I saved into other financial instruments
2) Look and await the outcome of the new V8 M3/4
3) Look at the new GTR
4) Put a Vortech supercharger which will put the G in the realm of 400hp at the crank .

 

You spent all of your time evaluating the INTERIOR of the M3??? You definitely bought the right car.

 

awww come on dont be a 'hater' jk.
you know once you go german you cant go back!
hopefully something comes by soon to change your mind.

 

Never buy early year models of any BMW, especially the M cars. BMW is known to push the envelope of auto technology, and their reliability suffers from it. My last car was a 98 E36 M3 and it was very reliable through 110,000 miles. After 110,000, a few parts would break (shock mounts, air flow sensor) but nothing out of the ordinary for a car with so many miles.

 

M3 reliability?

I surely don't think a G35 is better reliability wise....

 

Given the stats thus far, I would disagree with you. Proove me wrong my friend.