SpecB vs M3, performance comparison Options

[Danger]

I was comparing notes with an old school mate a while back, my SpecB vs his M3....it doesnt look good...

Spec B / M3

Engine Size(cc) 3000 / 3246
Cylinders 6 / 6
0-60 mph (sec) 6.7 / 5.3
Power Output (bhp) 241 / 338
Valves 24 / 24
Torque (Nm / lb-ft) 297 / 219 / 365 / 269
Top Speed (mph) 151 / 155


WTF??!! almost identical engine and nearly 100bhp more than me? Git! The only way ours look good is when you compare the costs....

Cost new (£) 26,945 / 47,445
Worth? (Dealer, 06, £) 9,905 / 25,795

£ per bhp new 111.8 / 140.4
£ per bhp now 41.1 / 76.3


So, more we get more bang four our bucks, but they get more bangs. Gutted. Why so much difference in power, can anyone shed the light?

This post has been edited by Danger: Feb 7 2010, 08:36 PM

[Mark07SB]

you missed off the 2 bits which give you all the performance..
aspiration: turbo vs natural
ecu: modified vs factory.

i dare say with a big enough turbo and a decent remap you can beat the numbers with just about any block.

i wonder how the H6 would perform with a couple of turbos...?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q983tvB1qKU

[SevenR]

M3's are great cars. The engines are so good and the handling is excellent. If I had the money, I'd have an E46, but I couldn't afford one.
The legacy has put a massive grin on my face since I got it on Saturday. It ticks all the boxes for me as a guy with a family, who plays drums in a band and loves going fast when the situation is presented. A lot of people in my work don't even know what it is when they look at it. The different badge throws them a bit too.

You could compare many cars to the Legacy and it would probably lose out, but I've yet to find something about it I really don't like. M3's really do come with a reputation. The Legacy doesn't. And that's a major plus point for me.

[Longun]

Hi - I was going to state welcome aboard, but then realised that you have actually been on here a while. But, nevertheless, welcome along - you'll love the TT Legacy.

I see that it needs to come up to scratch to compete the the cars you currently have. I actually had a go against an M3 about a year back to see how the performance of these TT's compared -- sorry, don't know the exact spec but was an '03 plate, if I remember rightly. Neck and neck is how I would describe it and to add to the mayhem, a J / K plate Mitsu 3000GT also joined in. There was nothing between all 3 cars!!

Was this In a straight line or fast A road? I've been able to keep up with one on a fast A road. I'm talking about a B road blast, or track, on/off throttle, our cars just aren't responsive enough to keep up. I've chased one before and as soon as we got into a bend i struggled to get the power in quick enough coming out of the corner, the lag isn't much but over 4/5 corners it mounts up. Let alone the sheer grip those things have, ok a wet road we'd drive round the outside of them, a dry road though they really do grip!

Obviously driver skill accounts for so much, I've been passed by much slower cars on a track through lack of skill. On the straights I pull away but every corner they are back on my rear, so I indicate over and let them through.

I feel I may have got side tracked from the original question

[Lycheed]

Not sure if comparing tiny two door coupes with estate cars makes sense, but I will give it a go.

Matching the E36 around the 'Ring was the goal of the design team of the BE5 1999 - 2003 B4. The BH5 is a load carrying device, so is not as optimally set up as the B4, and is of course heavier, softer, and less sturdy.

The E46 was less of a target for Subaru for the BL 2.0-litre twin-scroll turbo cars - they had become more focused on the Audi RS-line saloons and tourers. The Japan only 2003 2.0 GT-spec B Legacy tourer is famed for beating an RS4 around a circuit - so arguably they acheived their goal. The 3-litre powerplant in the UK 3.0-litre Spec B is a beautiful sounding engine more designed to attract exec saloon buyers than to represent the pinnacle of Subaru Legacy performance - that role was occupied by the EJ20 H4 + STI sourced twin-scroll turbo. This lump delivered max torque of 250ftlbs @ 2400rpm and held it to about 5k rpm, so was supremely driveable. This car retailed at less than 30% of the cost of the E46 M3 in Japan and is entirely comparable in performance terms whilst being an estate. Yes, we have it good ;-)

The later S402 STI special (2.5-litre 290ftlbs 2000rpm-5000rpm) is even faster again, and super driveable, yet still retailed a 50% less than the E46 despite the full STI leather Recaro interior, full STi suspension set-up, and mild wide-body treatment. Now three years old, they still retail at new prices (35 grand) here in Japan, whereas a same age E46 M3 would have lost 35% of it's value in Japan.

My opinion:
E46s are currently very cheap in the market place and are a formidable performance package, if a little small. Just go for a real manual and learn how to heel and toe - not the mamby-pamby SMG. And watch out for those fuel bills.