I’m currently in a 2021 M340i Sedan and I love it. I was thinking that the 2024 Manual M3 was potentially the last opportunity to get a new gas-powered manual M car. Maybe it will be my last gas car. Anyway, I have never driven a manual M3 and was told there is no way to test drive one. I’ve enjoyed owning manual cars in the past, however only up to perhaps 180 HP. Is this a crazy idea? Are there any M specific things (manual or otherwise) I should consider?
2017 F23 M240i; B58 6MT. (Sorry, I don’t know everyone posts the flair).
I love it. Rev matching is nice. Changing from 1st to 2nd is a bear. I also find there is little difference in great ratio between 5th and 6th.
Also, driving a manual is really much more fun in an underpowered car. However, my B58 engine really does have a lot of power for daily driving, that there is often no need to downshift even for quick accelerations or steep hills.
In short, it isn’t perfect. But I still love it more than I would an auto-transmission.
(On a separate note, I did have an issue the other day, though. The ABS sensor started to act up. I lost cruise control, and then changing gears was really awful because the rev matching over-revved. The car was vibrating terribly. The next day, I lost rev matching completely, which was better and just did toe heel, then the damn computer warned me that the clutch was overheating. I always toe heel out of old fashioned habit even with rev matching switched on, so not sure where this nonsense was coming from. In either case, all problems disappeared after I got a new ABS sensor.)
TL;Dr - get the manual! It’s your last chance!