Now that the new M3 is about to be released any enthusiasts on this board considering getting it ?

I wonder when it is known that Mid engine design is the best place for a sports car engine why would BMW still go with a front engine design ?

Are there advantages to front engine design over Mid engine designs?

Thanks

None that I'm aware of, other than being able to install a larger displacement engine but if you can't get that additional power hooked up to the road what good is it? Plus the largest two variables are hp/weight and balance of the chassis, with each of these mid-engine smokes front or rear engine mounts. So overall no significant advantage can be drawn when comparing the two.

Simple answer. The advantage of front engine placement is you have room for back seats of reasonble size. Also, at the end of the day M3 is derivative of the 3 series and so it is cost effective rather than design a new model from scratch. M3 is not a sports car, it is a sports sedan.

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2006 Cayman S - Speed Yellow, Black Interior, Yellow Seat Belts
Sports Chrono Package, 6 Spd, PASM/PSM, Bi-Xenon headlamps
Carrera S wheels 19" - Conti Sport 2, Colored-crest wheel cap
Auto climate control, Heated seats
PCM 2.1 Nav, Denision ICE-Ipod, Bose Surround
De-snorked, Evo V-Flow

- cheaper
- easier to access the engine for maint.
- maybe more crash-worthy? (don't know, just speculating)
- more interior room

I'd always prefer mid-engine in a sports car, where packaging/cost concerns are de-prioritized vs. handling.

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M3 is actually a front-mid engine setup (engine is behind the front axle). So the weight distribution is very close to 50/50 as well. (even the cayman doesn't have perfect 50/50, it's like 46/54). Aston Martins and Ferrari 599 have similar setup of front-mid.

I had an E36 M3 for 7 years. I loved the car. In fact, when it was stock, it was very much like my 2.7 Cayman in a lot of ways. I never tracked the M3, so i can't speak to those differences from experience.

I passed on the E46 because it wasn't any faster than my supercharged E36.

The V8 in the new M3 is allegedly 8/10s of the V10 in my brother's M5. That engine is the most amazing powerplant EVER. Plus 30 pounds lighter than the six it replaces. I have no doubt it will be am amazing car.

On the track, a Cayman will always rule...but 420 HP in a capable car like an M3 will do fine I am sure. Out on the street, the punch of that high reving engine will be intoxicating...all for the price of an S.

I will check it out. But I wouldn't buy the first year or so of production.

M3 is 3 series car done by M Division ... Sports Sedan

Not a sports car. This might cause ppl a bit of grief but traditionally, sports cars are two seat, preferably rag top, stick you hand out the door ... touch the ground, meant to handle (not necessarily straight line power).

Agreed
Some years ago Lotus wrote in Autocar that the best balance was to be had from a front/mid engine with the gearbox over the rear wheels..........like the Porsche 944/968 Astons /Fiats and Vettes?
Mega

Short answer: no. Long answer, in a sports car... no.

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If you look at the top of the racing 'food chain', the engine is right behind the driver - F1 has been around for a while, and it started with engines in the front - it took them sometime but they did realize that the mid engine layout works :-)

On the other hand, sports cars are not race cars, as they have to have body panels to protect the driver, and the car's guts - are we ever going to see a mid engine car in NASCAR ?

The E36 M3, like the E30 before it, was a much more tossable and engaging car than the E46 which replaced it. BMWs keep getting larger and heavier, so while the straight line acceleration may increase with more powerful engines, the intimacy of the driver/car relationship has decreased. The only downside I can remember with the E36 was a problem with rear suspension or subframe failure in cars that were tracked. As I remember, BMW weasled out of any responsibility for those failures due to track use. Anybody remember the details of this?

BMW sets the engine as far back from the front as they can to get an almost 50/50 weight distribution. As far as a handling advantage their cars have been getting heavier just like Porsche's and one of the best things you can do is decrease weight and increase HP. With the correct suspension and tires they could both be made to turn about the same lap times. It comes to looks and do you need a couple of extra seats.

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