Got A New Toy - GT350

[Automotive Goals]

I have been a long time BMW fan and haven't really drove anything except BMW's since my Lincoln LS V8 back in 2005 (first car). I recently traded in my M4 for a Comp M5. The M5 is a beast and is very luxurious, but I missed having a manual transmission. After extensive research, I realized that a car that meets all of my Manual withdrawls (and isnt too expensive) is the GT350. I picked it up a few weeks ago, and have to say that the car lives up to all the reviews that I saw online.

It is in no way a comparison to the M5. These two cars are completely different. The build quality on BMW cannot be compared to a FORD. Even though the car might not be put together all that well, once you press gas on this car, you forget about all of that. The handling is awesome (especially for a heavy coupe). The shifter is nice (I prefer it over the M4 shifter, the GT350 has shorter shifter). The exhaust on this car, is from another planet. The car is loud as hell, but sounds amazing, without any drone. Even at 2k rpm the car is loud with valves open. Ford really did a great job on this car.

I just wanted to share with fellow BMW enthusiast, just in case if anyone is pondering to try out the car.

[YanoM5]

Looks great! What do those do in the 1/4? I was contemplating going to an M3/M4, form my M5. How would you compare all 3 cars against each other.

[allmotor_2000]

Congrats! it's a great car. My buddy has one and the exhaust as you mentioned is phenomenal especially with the valves open (with the press of a button).

[URBAN LEGEND]

The sound of that car gives it character.

[TrevorM3]

funny, 4 m5's headed home the other night and all of a sudden this gt350 comes blazing up on us. we had some fun with him on the highway. sounded sick.

[Automotive Goals]

Originally Posted by YanoM5

Looks great! What do those do in the 1/4? I was contemplating going to an M3/M4, form my M5. How would you compare all 3 cars against each other.

Not sure about 1/4 mile, I haven't tried that yet.

All 3 cars are great. The M5 does not compare to the other two cars. It is more luxurious than sporty, but also great because it has power when needed.

I liked my M4 a lot, but feel like the GT350 is a bit more fun. I also prefer the sound of V8 over the Straight 6. That was one of the reason I switched the M4 for the M5, but just missed having a manual transmission. The interior is obviously a lot better in the M4, but the M5 is even better. The GT350 is not built to impress with the interior, it is built as a good handling car that makes a lot of noise, and it delivers that very well. So far I like the GT350 more than the M4, but that can also be because I just got the GT350 about 3 weeks ago. I will report after about 6 months ownership.

[M6-Coupe]

For sure this is not M5 competitor but what about M4?
Can you compare it with M4 9especially Competition Package) ... well except the shorter shifter

[M6-Coupe]

Originally Posted by TrevorM3

funny, 4 m5's headed home the other night and all of a sudden this gt350 comes blazing up on us. we had some fun with him on the highway. sounded sick.

Oh nice ... tell us more about the event buddy

[YanoM5]

Originally Posted by Ecoce1

Not sure about 1/4 mile, I haven't tried that yet.

All 3 cars are great. The M5 does not compare to the other two cars. It is more luxurious than sporty, but also great because it has power when needed.

I liked my M4 a lot, but feel like the GT350 is a bit more fun. I also prefer the sound of V8 over the Straight 6. That was one of the reason I switched the M4 for the M5, but just missed having a manual transmission. The interior is obviously a lot better in the M4, but the M5 is even better. The GT350 is not built to impress with the interior, it is built as a good handling car that makes a lot of noise, and it delivers that very well. So far I like the GT350 more than the M4, but that can also be because I just got the GT350 about 3 weeks ago. I will report after about 6 months ownership.

Thanks for the information. I love the M5, untapped as it is, I feel that it's a little big for my preference. But I'll see how I feel after I do down pipes, intake and tune. I was thinking of going m3 or m4, because it's smaller.

[Automotive Goals]

Originally Posted by M6-Coupe

For sure this is not M5 competitor but what about M4?
Can you compare it with M4 9especially Competition Package) ... well except the shorter shifter

I just did the M Performance driving school in March and all they give you is the Competition cars, which were awesome. So I got a chance to push the cars to their limits on the track. I haven't had the same opportunity to do so with the GT350...yet. What I did like on the m4, was that the torque was available at very low RPM's. On the GT350, you really do not feel the power until you hit about 4k rpm. On the other hand after you hit 4k, you really feel the power and the exhaust opens up like crazy.

I did a run with an M4 about two days ago (seems like all the M4's want to race me). We did a run from 30mph. We took off about the same, but I noticed that the higher rpm shifts at 8,250 really help out. My car was still pulling while the m4 started shifting and lost some distance because of that. On the other hand because I am still break in the car, I shifted kind of slow from 2nd to 3rd, the m4 gained some distance away from me (not sure if he was tuned, but did have an exhaust). Even though I lost the race, It was the first time I really pushed the car and realized that it has a lot of power in the higher RPM range, While the M4 has it almost instantly.

Handling wise - both cars are great. You can definitely feel that the Shelby is heavier, but it still holds turns and corners very well.

Looks wise - I had the M4 with all the M Performance parts on it. It looked very sexy. It's actually up for sale here: http://elevationmotors.com/2016-BMW-...5/Details.aspx

I think they did a great job with the looks on the Shelby right from the dealer. When I bought my M4, I purchased all the M performance parts for it, because I knew that there was a way to make the car look a lot better, but still stock. The Shelby is probably the first car, that I cant really find anything to purchase to make the car look any better. It already looks amazing, right from the dealer.

I am planning to go to the Ford Track in Utah, probably next year, and really get a feel for this car on the track.