M-Roadster vs. MCS

This is a comparison between a 2000 BMW M-Roadster and a 2005 MCS/JCW with the JCW Brakes and Suspension.

I swapped cars with my buddy for a couple of weeks. Mine is due for service and the terms of the 100K warranty require stealership service when the counter comes due. Since my buddy is a school teacher and lives about 75 miles closer to the stealership, we swap cars when mine needs service. The end result is that I got a chance to actually live with an M-Roadster for an extended period.
Anyone who has test driven an M-Roadster is either impressed or jaded. There have been many many variations of BMW 2 seaters, so I'll clarify what version I have. The Z3 came out in the James Bond movie Goldeneye. That car was in the movie before it was publically available. Back then there was an anemic 1.9 liter sewing machine motor under its bonnet that put out about as much power as a walk behind lawn mower. BMW upgraded to the Z3 2.3 and 2.8 (a little better), and a couple of years after that the 2.5 and 3.0 versions were available (getting there). Confused yet? Stay with me, because BMW decided to create an M version of the car. In 1999 and 2000, the M-Roadster had the 3.2 liter engine and 5 speed from the outgoing E36 M3 with 240 HP. In 2001 and 2002, the M-Roadster had the 3.2 liter E46 M3 engine and 6 speed with 315 HP.

Of course, this is more than a Z3 with more horsepower. The suspension is upgraded, it has a factory widebody conversion, massive wheels and tires, LSD, and gigantic brakes. There are cosmetic touches like a 2 tone leather dash and console and M insignias sprinkled about the cabin and bodywork.

This car is the 240 HP version which I think is probably the best variant. Sure, the 315 HP version is much more powerful, but this ain't a new car. The 240 HP version is a plain inline 6 that is somewhat easy to work on. The 315 HP version has double VANOS, 6 individually controlled electronic throttle bodies, and 6 variable length intake manifold runners. The 315 HP version also requires the same exotic (and overpriced) oil and sparkplugs as the E46 M3. I'm betting that the 240 HP version will be easier and MUCH cheaper to keep on the road as time goes by. If it doesn't have enough grunt, Dinan sells a supercharger....and it'll STILL be easer to work on than the 315 HP version.

Is it fast? In a word, YES. BMW claimed 0-60 in 5.2 seconds and I think it's at least that quick. I had a borrowed G-Tech several months ago and got a best of 6.15 seconds for the 0-60 blast in my MCS/JCW. It is more than just fast. It'll cruise in 5th gear at 30 mph without lugging and will accelerate just fine from that speed without downshifting. This engine pulls like a jet turbine from idle speed to redline with no hint of vibration and an intoxicating growl. The tach is necessary in this car because the engine is so smooth it would be easy to over rev (it has a rev limiter in case you ignore the tach).

Does it handle? Oh yeah! My daily commute takes me over 3 mountains every day, so handling is very important to me. The M-Roadster generates MUCH more grip than my MCS with the JCW Suspension and 21mm rear bar. In a steady state corner or a skidpad, the Roadster can show tail lights to my moderately modded MINI. The Roadster has less lean and more front grip than the MINI. With its RWD chassis and more than ample power, it can also induce oversteer on demand. (It can also write Coca-Cola in the road and sling yer *** into a ditch...) It is best not to steer the car with the throttle, it ain't the easiest thing in the world to control...it's actually a little frightening. Even though the Roadster has more grip, it DOESN'T have the razor sharp steering of the MINI and the MINI trounces it in transient response as well. Despite it's tiny size and enormous tires, the Roadster rides like a pillowcloud compared to a MINI with the JCW Suspension (wich in turn seems to have a smoother ride than a stock MCS)

Can it stop? Yes, it can! The brakes are good and they resist fade well, but the MCS seems to stop at least as good and the JCW Brakes are far superior to the Roadster's. My buddy (the Roadster owner) told me that the JCW Brakes were unbelievable.

Use as a daily driver? I'm 5'8" tall and I'm not a musclebound freak...just an average guy. The roadster is a challenge to get in and out of especially with the top up. Once you're there, it's comfortable but not in any way roomy. The ONLY storage is a small net in the passenger footwell that can barely hold a book on CD. I like this car, but I'd need a daily driver for my 110 mile commute. The boot in the Roadster is a joke...about like an MCSC, probably less. This is a fantastic car to drive, but you'll probably want a beater of some sort for more mundane driving tasks.


Rawhyde

 

I love the M-coupe!

 

I lived in Greenville SC when these came out. The Z3 replaced the 318i as the production vehicle of the Greer SC BMW plant. I had to kick myself several times for not having a camera when I was behind or beside test mules in traffic well before the movie or the release of the Z. One day I was in traffic on Haywood Rd near the mall behind a mint green Z3-I notice the rear is unusually wide, then I notice the 4 exhaust tips, I get beside the Z and see the side vents and think- this must be the M edition!-about 3 months later I see spy shots of that car in Motor Trend announcing an M edition of the Z3. I also got to see the M coupe, X5, the Z4 well before they hit the dealers on the roads of upstate SC.

 

The only cool thing I have seen before their relaese was 3 PT Crusiers being tested in some mountian road in Arizon back in later 99 or early 2000.

 

I owned a 99 M Coupe. A car I liked very much, but the suspension was just too stiff as a daily driver on CA roads. It wasn't even comfort. It was me making lane changes with no one on the road to avoid pot holes I had memorized over the course of my commute. As my only car, it just became too much trouble. The new Z4 based M Coupe just doesn't do it as much for me, though I really like the idea of the coupes over an M3 just because M3's are everywhere. Of course, if you drive an M3, you know why they are everywhere.

 

+1 on the smoothness and powerband of the 3.0L & 3.2L on M3 of the BMW E46 (E46 is the code for 3 series from 99-06). I have the 330i @ 235 HP and I can't imagine how much more fun to drive the M version which redlines to 8000 rpm. This may be a little bit off to your topic (re: Z) but I agree with you on the joys of driving BMWs, no matter what model range you drive.

 

i will be picking up a Z4 as my next car in 2 years or so..
is 3.0I or 3.0is fast enough (compare to MCS with bolt ons) so I won't regret not picking up a ///M ?

 

^+1

I was sooo close to buying a low mileage '01 gunmetal M-Coupe (the 315hp version) a few years ago...

Luckily, a combination of subpar customer service at the dealer, its limited practicality for me as a daily driver, just a bit too much tail happiness for me to feel comfortable driving it in the winter, and a last minute rush of fiscal responsibility conspired to keep me out of bankruptcy and/or a body cast.

If I still lived in California though..... :drool:

 

I haven't driven that version. Actually, I haven't driven any Z4, but the 3.0 should be just fine. I have driven and liked an E46 M3 (same engine as Z4M), but that engine (called S54) really DRINKS gas and the maintenance costs are through the roof. The roadster I wrote about has the S52 engine which puts out 240 HP, and is a MUCH more simple design. I expect that it'd be a LOT cheaper to keep running over the long haul than the later more powerful engine. Over the week I've been in the roadster, I've been getting a real world 25 mpg while driving in the mountains. The engine in the current 3.0 Z4 is probably on par with the older S52 from the 99-00 M Roadster.

I hope that makes some sense...I'm getting ready for bed and I'm pretty tired.

Rawhyde

 

Sports car vs. hot hatch. No comparison really.

 

indeed the only solution is to have one of each. At least that's my plan. The m-coupes can be had quite easily for 20k or around there. Really not all that expensive.

And it would be nice to have a rwd sports car and a fwd hot hatch.

 

I bought the MCS only because I needed a car quickly and couldn't find an '01-02 M-coupe for sale.

The station wagon shape of the M-coupe solves most of the practical/storage problems of the roadster for a DD.

 

We have both a 03 MCS and a 03 Z4 3.0. They are completely different rides. My MCS is much more smooth riding, most likely because her car still has the run flats on it. I would not recommend any thing less than the 3.0i, 224 HP. The new 3.0si has 255 HP. I would not trade my Mini for her Z4, just more practical. But that being said, when we go out on Friday nights, we use her car, with the top down, it's such a beautiful ride. A M roadster with 355 HP would be a interesting ride. If you get to that point you might want to check out a Mercedes SLK.

 

SLK???!!
with that soft slush boxes? no way....

well, Z4 is my current achievable dream car.. (college student)
so 3.0i or is in 2 years or so.. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm can't wait!

 

SLKs can be had with a stick, and from what I've heard it is a good transmission. I actually test drove an auto and the car was very nice and sporty (sounded great too), a different beast then the prior SLK.

We had both a 99 and an 02 M Coupe and on top of various sundry improvements they made, the newer one with the S54 engine was amazing on the freeway - not only seemingly limitless power and top end, but it was also less droney and luggy at high speeds vs the S52, the S54 engine just spun freer and in 5th gear it was easier to live with. In both cases the car really does not have the greatest suspension out of the box, there is a lot of squat and it can have a happy rear end (good looking too ) and I imagine the roadster could use improvement in that dept too, esp considering it is much less rigid then the coupe.

As Gromit801 said, its not really comparible to the Mini, it is simply in a different class as a rwd sports car.

 

I recently took a Z4 3.0i on an 14 mile test drive for a BMW charity event. In a word, WOW! my daily driver is a barely modded '06 MCSCa. The Z4 had the auto tranny, but the operation was identical to the one in my MINI so I drove in manual mode the whole time.

As has already been mentioned power was on tap through the whole RPM range. The only downfall is the thing is so quiet. The blown tritec is just more satisfying, with all the SC whine and what-not. You definitely need a tach on a Z4, because otherwise you would never know what RPM the engine was at.

I am a big guy at 6'3" and 250 lbs. I found the Z4 to be no harder to get in than the MINI, and roomy enough once I was in. Any one with longer legs than I would probably have a hard time driving it though.

The handling was almost too good. I was driving on the horrendous roads around Portland, Maine, and at times had to struggle to keep the car under control due to the bumps and uneveness of the road. Where the road was smooth the Z4 was every bit as point and shot as the MINI. I found this a little odd as the ride was MUCH smoother. I put the difference down to the much different geometry involved. I found steering with the throttle to be a little more intuitive than the MINI as well, again chalk that up to beiing RWD.

In then end I'll stick with my MINI. If I had the money just laying around I would get a Z4 to have as a fun weekend car with a MINI as a daily driver. I just could not imagine fighting that beastly little roadster day in, day out. I REALLY could not see having to drive the Z4 around Maine in the winter.

Now the 335ci is a totally different story. If I HAD to replace my MINI with a slightly bigger car then new 335 coupe would be the way to go. Comfy, slick, and handles like a dream, but that is a different thread.

 

Loved my M3 e46. Great car. I've always been curious about the M Roadster. I was in a Z4 M coupe recently and really got the itchies to have one. Ahhh... cars. The ones I like are so danged expensive!

Thanks for the writeup, Rawhyde

 

Just a clarification. The old Z3 based M Roadsters/Coupes only had 5 speeds in them. That was with both the S52 and the S54 motor. That was one of the main things that people weren't too happy about with the 01 & 02's because they only came with the 5spd. Still a great car to drive.

I love the M coupe. Always have. The only thing now, if you are looking to buy one, you can find any of the S52 motor M coupes easily (1999-2000). But you will have a hard time trying to find an S54 motor (2001-02) M coupe.

why you ask? well for those two model years they only built about 820 cars total! about 600 of those were staying in the US. Which means for each year, there were only about 300 cars. Very limited car. So now if you look up one of those cars, they are fairly expensive. They are more of a collector car now, because of the limited production run. You will probably spend somewhere in between $30-40k for most M coupes. Some may be more. Remember, they were only $45k new!

I haven't had the pleasure of driving the new M coupe yet. I have talked to people and seen them. I think it's a VERY good looking car, and i'm sure that it's got everything else to back those good looks up.

I would be happy with either one. Of course, i would probably drive the older one less. Just cause of what it is now.

 

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...74534362&hl=en

skip to about 4:00 in and again at 6:25 or so...

 

I've driven both coupe's (hardtops) with the S54 and S52 engine. Both awesome track cars in every sense of the word. I might not gain friends over this comment but the M coupes kick ***. they require little to know mods other than tires for heavy track use. I've spent thousands trying to get my car like that.

 

I agree with you completely. I think the exact same thing. And that's why i love the car.

 

when the new Z4 M coupes came out I was one of the guys that got to put a 1000 miles on one to break it in. Good two day trip from the plant upto the dragon then down to Charleston and back. Wish I could afford one. We were required to keep it below 105mph and below 5500 rpms but that car just has so much power it didn't matter. I'll be doing the same thing with the V8 M3's arrive...

 

I'm not a big fan of the Z4 looks myself. LOVE the older M roadster look though, as well as the longer version. The new bimmers look a little strange to me....

 

I am working on selling my '86 325 and picking up a Mini for a daily.

I have a S52 M Roadster for a fun car. Its got double adjsutable TC Kline coilovers, swaybars, rollbar, bushings, etc, and has intake cams, manifold, tuning, etc on it. Its a great play car and VERY capable.

Here is a pic...

 

Hey, it's a 325 what? is, ix, es ???