Looking at the mileage records for vehicles in the Edmunds.com long term fleet I usually find that I get higher fuel economy than other drivers. So I was waiting for that effect to kick in with the 2002 BMW M3.
No dice.
Lifetime average for the M3 is 17.4 mpg and I only improved the efficiency to a measly 19.6 mpg on the last tank after driving 277 freeway miles. I couldn't even crack 20 mpg!
This car is impossible to drive calmly. It was never intended to provide good fuel efficiency. It was built to deliver driving pleasure and even at its advanced age it does that quite well.
m_thrizzle says:
11:24 AM, 07/ 6/09
The best mpg I ever got in my '01 M3 was around 23-24 mpg on a trip from San Jose to Santa Barbara, going around 90mph with the A/C on. This baby likes to cruise! And if you put it into 5th and floor it at 80mph, it is amazing how much it pulls. :)
ahightower says:
11:41 AM, 07/ 6/09
Great photo
huyracing says:
12:22 PM, 07/ 6/09
its a race derived engine, enjoy it while you can...
subytrojan says:
01:47 PM, 07/ 6/09
I wonder what effect getting the valve adjustment performed at the Inspection II service would've yielded.
drmillerM3 says:
01:50 PM, 07/ 6/09
Phil, if you drove it Every day, you'd probably have a chance to get decent mpg (I avg 19mpg) but if you only get it for a day to a week at a time, no chance.
Just be happy you don't own it so you don't get the mod bug.
@suby, that's a great question because according to all the poles on m3forum, Edmunds fuel economy is on the extreme low side. Then again, we own our cars lol.
hondacura4 says:
02:14 PM, 07/ 6/09
"This car is impossible to drive calmly. It was built to deliver driving pleasure and even at its advanced age it does that quite well."
Phillip, a tactile, responsive, communicative chassis. Great brakes, stiff structure, composed suspension and a high revving engine will make one drive faster than they should. Its that "always willing to play" hummingbird personality that draws me to high performance Honda's and BMW ///M cars.
I know we've discussed and compared small displacement high revers to large displacement stump pullers before and I will still take the revs any day (BMW/Honda/Ferrari). There is just something about watching the urgency of the tach needle racing to its lofty redline, the sheer sound of the engine and that rush of power in the middle of the powerband that just amplifies the whole experience and takes it to the next level.
blueguydotcom says:
02:29 PM, 07/ 6/09
I'm with HondaAcura on the revs. I miss that so much with the 335i. There's no rush of power, no sweeping tach, no high redline. It's just a bland shove in the back - like driving a V8.
ace47 says:
02:55 AM, 07/ 7/09
+1 on hondacura4.
pyo_s65 says:
10:58 AM, 07/ 7/09
@blueguydotcom,
Sounds like you are ready for the new M3 with loads of torque and sky high revs!
The only drawback is the mileage it gets, which will average around 17-18. My lifetime average is still 16 btw.
roadburner says:
07:34 PM, 07/ 7/09
I love the 1.8 liter four in my Club Sport. Keep it in the power band and it moves along pretty well, but it's fun to drive even if you aren't flogging it. Best of all, at 80 mph/4,000 rpm it averages 31 mpg. I need another M car to park beside it...
drmillerM3 says:
02:00 PM, 07/15/09
Hehe I think Edmunds is secretly trying to keep this car forever...and I bon't blame them.
Now is the peak time to sell it price wise, so it should be now or never. My vote is never. Just keep beating on it and it'll keep taking it. For the love of god though, please get the valve adjustment done that is 10,000 miles overdue.