The Jeremy Clarkson BMW M4 Review

[zosoboogie]

Now I can officially buy the M4 since he approved....I do want to see a video though and have the Stig ring it out!

[OmidHariri]

Originally Posted by Damasconian

I wouldnt say it was positive. Seems like he spent more time criticizing the car than praising it. Im not hater, I get my M4 last week of september so I have skin in the game. I really wanted this to come across better than it did.

But when you read this segment below then compare it to what he wrote in the review, the two just dont add up. Colors aside, does this review move you to think he'd actually buy one for himself?

I doubt that's even real, if you watch enough top gear, clarkson absolutely hates bmw's. Although his opinion may be starting to change.

[ihc95]

Originally Posted by Year's_End

That review is one of my absolute all-time favorites. That was back when adjustable drive settings were uncommon, and the transition in mood when he hit the M button sent shivers down my spine.

I agree. The end of that review basically sums up what is so great about M cars.

***looking for used E60 M5's now***

[Damasconian]

Originally Posted by Bahn360Photo

DCT is awesome but manual is way more fun

I want to agree with this statement but I cant. Until I drive a DCT equipped M car, Im going to assume the vast majority of people are correct when they say its one of the top transmissions available on any car at the moment. And Im a manual guy with a 6-MT on order for last week of Sept!

I cannot wait to get behind the wheel of a DCT.....soon.

[ss134]

Originally Posted by Year's_End

That review is one of my absolute all-time favorites. That was back when adjustable drive settings were uncommon, and the transition in mood when he hit the M button sent shivers down my spine.

It's my favourite too, 5 minutes with the gloomy music in the background telling you about all the things he hates then he pushes the M button - the music changes, the V10 revs up ......and he is in love with the car. Classic review. Seen it quite a few times and always end up looking for used E60 M5s on pistonheads for an hour afterwards!

[pkimM3r]

another knit picking of a review

so most on here now hate sutcliffe and now clarkson right?

[Black Gold]

Originally Posted by SlowSaloonM3

another knit picking of a review

so most on here now hate sutcliffe and now clarkson right?

in the other thread you have a point, but come on theres like 2 people in this thread doing that

I think the vast majority have a pretty even take on the review, and take it for what it is, just another opinion. a mostly positive one at that.

[tallshortguy]

Originally Posted by Damasconian

I wouldnt say it was positive. Seems like he spent more time criticizing the car than praising it. Im not hater, I get my M4 last week of september so I have skin in the game. I really wanted this to come across better than it did.

But when you read this segment below then compare it to what he wrote in the review, the two just dont add up. Colors aside, does this review move you to think he'd actually buy one for himself?

There's certainly positive reviews that don't indicate the author would immediately go out and purchase the car. He gave it 4 out of 5, that's definitely a positive review and he praised the driving dynamics very highly. He doesn't like the color choices and complains about lack of creep by the DCT, and with the colors he's just being clarkson (aka being a bit of a comedian).

[SOM3]

Originally Posted by stressdoc

His comments on DCT make me more comfortable with my choice of the manual tranny.

And one does have to chuckle at the thought of Lups' Hornet being a baby diaper...

That's funny.

[pkimM3r]

Originally Posted by KennyPowers

in the other thread you have a point, but come on theres like 2 people in this thread doing that

I think the vast majority have a pretty even take on the review, and take it for what it is, just another opinion. a mostly positive one at that.

i'm not commenting on the review - regardless of the opinion that is written, i still will follow what sutcliffe, clarkson, jethro, etc will have to say. one negative review is not going to make me change my take on them as a reviewer.

as far as the 2? there's already a number of "i disagree..." type of comments.

[schoy]

Typical Clarkson review. As previous poster said, spend 90% of the review whining about M subjective stuff (he's entitled to his opinion, just like everyone else on here is), and then spend the last 10% of the review loving the car. I expect the M4 review to go similarly like his e60 M5 review. It's what makes his form of reviewing cars so entertaining.

Sidenote: On the DCT creep issue, it does take a small tap on the throttle to activate Low Speed Assistant. The first few times you do it though, you will invariably push a little too hard and the car will lurch forward. Hence, the first few times I tried parking my DCT e90, it was a bit unnerving as I was lurching toward the garage wall/car parked in front of me. After a couple times (like finding the exact clutch engage point on a manual), you figure out exactly how much to tap to get the car moving slowly.

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by M4 JTD

His inaccurate and poorly researched comments regarding the DCT gearbox particularly annoyed me.

“a seven-speed flappy-paddle gearbox that offers no creep. Unlike a standard automatic, the car won’t move until you put your foot on the accelerator. Which makes parking a jerky bloody nightmare.”
- Incorrect: The M4 does have the ability to creep – It’s called “Low Speed Assistant” and activated by one small tap on the accelerator.

“And while we are on the subject of the gearbox, I was forever being told by bongs and rude messages that I might not turn off the ignition until I had put the gearlever into Park. But as far as I could see, there was no Park. What you have to do to solve the problem is to slam the lever this way and that while swearing.”
- Incorrect: You don’t have to do anything other than switch off the ignition – The car is just warning you with a check control message that you have left the ignition on and that it will not auto engage park until you switch it off.

The creep mode on DCT still isn't as easy as driving a traditional auto or manual. In either of those, you can creep by simply reducing pressure on the brake or clutch and modulating that pedal as needed to control speed. On DCT even with the creep assistant, once you come to a stop, you have to tip the throttle in to get going again, then let off -- and then you have to repeat that if you have to stop again. I agree it's hardly the end of the world, but I believe the point is that DCT doesn't creep automatically and therefore isn't as easy to use as other transmissions in parking scenarios. And Clarkson may well have known about the creep assistant when he wrote that -- after all, his comment that "the car won’t move until you put your foot on the accelerator" is accurate, since that's how you activate the assistant. And even if he was unaware of the assistant, since a huge chunk of owners never bother to RTFM (as we see in this forum all the time), I suspect a fair amount of buyers might react the same way he did.

Haven't driven the new M3/4 with DCT, so I can't comment on the second point, but I agree it would be a pretty shocking oversight on BMW's part if the car told you to shift into Park when there wasn't a Park button on the shifter. And on that note, I have always wondered why BMW couldn't just put a Park button or position on their M DCT cars just to make people's lives easier. The knob on the DCT-equipped 135, 335is, and Z4 35is have it....

[m3rxn]

Love Clarkson..He's a funny guy

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by Damasconian

What a dick. I can see these type of shots leveled at Americans from Germany or even Japan but what the hell does the Uk manufacture anymore? Jag/Land Rover now owned and run by the Indians while the rover group has pretty much died off, thank god. Outside of Maclaren, not sure what the Brits hang their hats on when it comes to UK engineering and build quality.

Watch the end of the Top Gear Season 20 finale.

[Damasconian]

Originally Posted by jphughan

Watch the end of the Top Gear Season 20 finale.

Tell me more!

[Tornrider]

JC's spot on-

Eventually, though, I was able to put the styling and the colour out of my mind and concentrate on the car, which — on paper at least — looks a step back from its predecessor, which was called the M3 coupé. That car had a glorious V8 that screamed and hollered as the revs rose and then howled in an orgy of what sounded like BDSM ecstasy as it neared the red line.

So, to recap, the colours are awful, the styling is blingtastic, the door mirrors are annoying, the gearbox is flawed, the engine is a step backwards and parking is hard. It sounds, then, as though BMW’s B-team hasn’t been able to overcome the emissions regulations, and as a result the car is not as good as the previous model. Yes, and there’s more.

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by Damasconian

Tell me more!

If you have Netflix, go watch it starting at the 40-minute mark or so. I really don't want to say more because it would ruin a fantastic segment. You'll be surprised at just how much Britain still makes.

[Black Gold]

Originally Posted by Tornrider

JC's spot on-

Eventually, though, I was able to put the styling and the colour out of my mind and concentrate on the car, which — on paper at least — looks a step back from its predecessor, which was called the M3 coupé. That car had a glorious V8 that screamed and hollered as the revs rose and then howled in an orgy of what sounded like BDSM ecstasy as it neared the red line.

So, to recap, the colours are awful, the styling is blingtastic, the door mirrors are annoying, the gearbox is flawed, the engine is a step backwards and parking is hard. It sounds, then, as though BMW’s B-team hasn’t been able to overcome the emissions regulations, and as a result the car is not as good as the previous model. Yes, and there’s more.

so, I don't think you read that properly.

what he is saying, is that at first appearances / in theory it seems worse

that's why this is the introduction and there is a lot of text / review below where he indicates his feelings for the car

fwiw I agree with his dislikes. im not a huge fan of the m4 styling, or AY

[bmwm3redblack]

Personaly me, i don't like clarkson review, i prefer CHRIS HARRIS!!!

[modkrazy]

I agree with his sentiments of overwrought styling and terrible color palette, but it seems even a Merc junkie cannot deny the performance.

And we finally have an official verdict: for someone who has no idea about Active Sound, it sounds like a "big bass-baritone that comes from the engine, not some laptop-activated exhaust valve." He must have been driving with the window up.

[Damasconian]

Originally Posted by jphughan

If you have Netflix, go watch it starting at the 40-minute mark or so. I really don't want to say more because it would ruin a fantastic segment. You'll be surprised at just how much Britain still makes

Fair enough. Ill do that tonight when I get some time. I like the show and even like the UK, I travel there all the time for work. If I had to choose between the French and English for hospitality, the choice would be the Brits 10 out of 10 times. Cars too.

I assume Ill see the smaller UK builders: Caterhams, Morgans, TVRs (?), etc.

Thanks for the recommendation.

[onatuesday]

Other DCTs (Audi, Porsche) creep along without needing a "low speed assistant". Why take something tried and true and make it so complicated? If I don't want the car to creep then I simply keep my foot on the brake?

I'd rather BMW offer what Porsche started offering in PDK where you can pull both paddles and go into neutral. Now that is actually something useful.