[abrandonment]

Build

• Frozen Pure Grey
• 6 Speed Manual
• Standard Seats
• Sunroof

Previous Cars

• Golf R
• Cayman S
• E46 M3
• S2000

Preface
Everything here is how I feel, granted I've only driven the car ~20 miles. I haven't changed any settings from their default 'comfort/efficiency' configuration. This was my first time driving an M2.

I am in no way comfortable with this car, it has, maybe more than any other car I have ever driven, made me feel like I did the first time I drove on a public road; cautious, unsure, almost uneasy with how foreign it feels.

I was struck in the first mile or two, by how much of what I'd read and heard was incredibly accurate but how starkly I disagreed with a few things.

Size
I can't get over how big the car feels, in particular at low speeds. Coming from a Golf, it feels twice the size. Parking it in my full-sized garage took me 10 min (see uneasiness above). The door size and hold-points when opening will absolutely take some getting used to. I really may put door guards on for a while.

Steering
Hearing 1,000 people on Youtube say that the steering felt 'numb', 'disconnected' and/or 'like a video game' sounded to me like such a lazy way to describe a car like this, from where I sat. As soon as I pulled the car on to the road, I realized how right every one of those people were.

Maybe Sport Plus will make it better. Maybe the CSL mapping will fix it entirely? Who knows. In comfort, it sucks.

Clutch/MT
At first, I felt about this, the way I did about the Steering. Thinking to myself, wow, all those people who didn't love it were spot on.

Then, I realized I needed to adjust my seat. Once it was positioned properly the clutch felt fine. Room for improvement, sure but fine. The shifter I would say does lack that super notchy, mechanized feel that all my previous cars had but I think this is overstated by many reviews.

Ride
Hearing the majority of reviewers comment on the ride quality being 'only so-so for a daily' with comments like 'you feel every bump in the road' -- had me worried.

I'm not sure what air suspension equipped SUVs these guys daily, but oh my god, the ride (again, I've only tried comfort) is TWICE as nice as my Golf R. A different class of ride quality all together. Really nice surprise.

Cabin Noise
Something else that people seemed split on, same as above, very worried that it would be noisier than my Golf or Cayman inside.

It's half as loud. Really happy with the level of dampening inside.

That said, if you're driving over any sort of debris, specifically at low speeds, those massive rear tires fling it all into the wells and it sounds like someone pouring rocks into a metal pot.

Exhaust
Quiter than I expected. I'm undecided how I feel about it yet. I need to live with it, and of course play with the config before I can comment further.

Paint
The frozen grey paint looks even better in person, but does suffer from that odd illusion that can make it look dirty as you move around it in some light.

-------------------------------------------

I'm grateful and excited to finally have the car. Looking forward to spending more time with it, dialing it in and developing a level of comfort that will certainly alter how I feel about a lot of the above.

[abrandonment]

Biggest Gripe so Far
The car does not have a brake hold or the other intuitive convivence features that other cars do. Eg. Auto parking brake if you open the door with the car running.

I'm really going to miss that stuff a lot.

[c1pher]

Very short, yet largely accurate. I felt very nervous driving the M2 when I first got it compared to any other car. Even more so than my brand new 992 I got which was almost 3x more expensive. The pedal tip in is very aggressive and the car just wants to leap out very aggressively. Given you only have power going to the rear tires, it's very easy to break traction just driving normally.

On the size, while it's still comparatively small, it's huge feeling compared to like a 135i which was the last BMW I owned and was hoping for more of that. Overall though, I like it. It's a wiiiide car or seems so.

I think there is feel in the steering, maybe not as much as people like but I have some.

[abrandonment]

Originally Posted by c1pher

Very short, yet largely accurate. I felt very nervous driving the M2 when I first got it compared to any other car. Even more so than my brand new 992 I got which was almost 3x more expensive. The pedal tip in is very aggressive and the car just wants to leap out very aggressively. Given you only have power going to the rear tires, it's very easy to break traction just driving normally.

On the size, while it's still comparatively small, it's huge feeling compared to like a 135i which was the last BMW I owned and was hoping for more of that. Overall though, I like it. It's a wiiiide car or seems so.

I think there is feel in the steering, maybe not as much as people like but I have some.

Good call on the pedal tip/power -- the way I described it to a friend was the same feeling you get trying to walk a large, strong dog who doesn't have leash manners. He really really wants to lunge and pull, and you are holding him back.

[apez]

Originally Posted by abrandonment

Good call on the pedal tip/power — the way I described it to a friend was the same feeling you get trying to walk a large, strong dog who doesn't have leash manners. He really really wants to lunge and pull, and you are holding him back.

It is interesting that people say this, I have not felt this at all. I feel like I have to be really aggressive in sport and mdm to even lose any grip.

It could be because I have only driven on super soft snow tires during an abnormally warm and dry winter. (Of course as I typed this white stuff started falling from the sky. )

[iifymbro]

I had the same foreign feeling when I switched from a golf R to the M340i, it goes away after awhile. I think it's the very different dimensions of the front end that do it, you've got way more body in front of you then with the stubby golf R

[abrandonment]

Originally Posted by iifymbro

I had the same foreign feeling when I switched from a golf R to the M340i, it goes away after awhile. I think it's the very different dimensions of the front end that do it, you've got way more body in front of you then with the stubby golf R

I assumed it would but good to hear from someone who felt it. It's humbling.

[NJbaitshop]

I had a similar experience. My main car for the last 11 years has been a 2014 WRX. I also drive my wife's Crosstrek. Before the WRX I drove a MK4 VW GTI (1.8T).

The first few days I had the M2 I was overly cautious driving it around. Driving in a way that it felt like our Crosstrek. However, once I got comfortable with it and started opening up a bit it totally transformed the ride. Especially when you set it to the various sport settings.

I find the car definitely has two sides. A very comfy daily & an aggressive sports car.

In regards to shifter feel. My WRX shifter is super notchy & the clutch pedal is very stiff (aftermarket). When first driving the M2 the clutch pedal felt almost too light, but after getting used to it I actually prefer it.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that the more familiar I get with this car, the more I can feel what it's capable of and the more fun I have.

[Zatellia]

Originally Posted by abrandonment

Biggest Gripe so Far
The car does not have a brake hold or the other intuitive convivence features that other cars do. Eg. Auto parking brake if you open the door with the car running.

I'm really going to miss that stuff a lot.

What do you mean by brake hold? I am not sure if its the same thing or not, but it has a 'hill assist' or something like that (that i cant stand and cant figure out how to turn off lol)

As far as the auto parking brake, it does have a thing kinda similar - if you turn the car off without setting the brake it turns on, or if you forget to turn it off, it turns off once you start driving.

[blinkme323]

Curious of your take on this versus the Golf R (I assume MK8?) as you continue to drive it more. M2 is on my shortlist but the damn Golf R is just so good, not sure I can part with it.

[jhstjh]

I would say put the car in Sport would help.

For engine, Efficient mode flattens the throttle mapping and it feels weak initially and grows exponentially. Sport is much more linear and predictable. (Sport+ is too aggressive).

For brake, same as throttle, Comfort mode makes the initial bite much worse and suddenly slows down the car if you go over some threshold. Sport brake is again, more predictable. That being said, the pedal feeling is just off due to the whole brake-by-wire thing.

For steering, Sport mode will tighten it up a bit, still bit of numb imo, but not as floaty as Comfort mode.

[LCDRJohn]

wait until you realize that the steering doesn't really self-center!

You turn left on a winding road, relax your grip and expect it to return it center, and then YIKES! you realize that you are still turning! haha. I always have to remind myself to steer back to the middle. Scared a few oncoming vehicles until I got it right...

When I talked to BMW, I said it was like they packed the steering column with peanut butter. I've heard tho that the CSL re-program really helps with this. I'm doing it as soon as I put my summer tires back on!

[abrandonment]

Originally Posted by Zatellia

What do you mean by brake hold? I am not sure if its the same thing or not, but it has a 'hill assist' or something like that (that i cant stand and cant figure out how to turn off lol)

As far as the auto parking brake, it does have a thing kinda similar - if you turn the car off without setting the brake it turns on, or if you forget to turn it off, it turns off once you start driving.

Stop, press the brake and if enabled it holds until you touch the accelerator. Drive throughs.. traffic lights, etc.

Common on just about every car I've driven in the last few years, I can't believe BMW doesn't do it.

Maybe I get out of my car with it running more than most people... only applying the brake when off feels ridiculous.

[abrandonment]

Originally Posted by LCDRJohn

wait until you realize that the steering doesn't really self-center!

You turn left on a winding road, relax your grip and expect it to return it center, and then YIKES! you realize that you are still turning! haha. I always have to remind myself to steer back to the middle. Scared a few oncoming vehicles until I got it right...

When I talked to BMW, I said it was like they packed the steering column with peanut butter. I've heard tho that the CSL re-program really helps with this. I'm doing it as soon as I put my summer tires back on!

Can you find out if the mapping is easily reversed if you don't like it?

SO many questions about that mapping and the information feels guarded.

[abrandonment]

Originally Posted by blinkme323

Curious of your take on this versus the Golf R (I assume MK8?) as you continue to drive it more. M2 is on my shortlist but the damn Golf R is just so good, not sure I can part with it.

R 7.5 -- I'll be able to say more with more seat time. Steering in the Golf is far superior based on comfort mode.

[ScottyRyan2019]

Man if it took you 10 min to park it you should just push it into place...🤓

[abrandonment]

Originally Posted by ScottyRyan2019

Man if it took you 10 min to park it you should just push it into place...🤓

Maybe a slight exaggeration but.. there are extenuating circumstances that I'll spare the forum. It'll get easier.

[ScottyRyan2019]

Originally Posted by abrandonment

Maybe a slight exaggeration but.. there are extenuating circumstances that I'll spare the forum. It'll get easier.

I kind of thought so but just razzing you.

Wife sat in mine and said, "I can't see over the hood." I told her, "Perfect, don't have to worry about you driving it then." 👍

[murderspice]

Originally Posted by abrandonment

Can you find out if the mapping is easily reversed if you don't like it?

SO many questions about that mapping and the information feels guarded.

Can you actually tune a g87?

[toprarnen]

Originally Posted by murderspice

Can you actually tune a g87?

AutoID G87 CSL steering update + other commentary

[xtougher]

Great thoughts. I'll probably add a few thoughts on my thread as well.

Just to familiarize myself with some of the basic settings, I drove through a tank of gas with everything in Sport. Now, I'm in the middle of driving through a full tank of gas with everything in the default comfort settings.

After this tank, let's just say I will not be spending a majority of my time driving it in all comfort.

But still, I'm only like 470 miles in or so...I'm sure I'll learn more and have more thoughts as I go too.

Side note: brake dust thoughts were NOT exaggerated by the people on this forum. I'm just gonna tell people I have dark bronze wheels instead of the gloss black. Just go with it...

[JMcLellan]

Your perspective could/should completely change on some items once you are past break-in and you have no driving restrictions. I found myself driving very carefully and over-obsessing on things prior to the break-in service. Getting those 1200 miles behind the wheel and then being able to go full-tilt-boogie helps with getting comfy with the car.

Your car looks great and I love that frozen color. Enjoy the thing!