GR86 White GR86 from Scotland

drz252 said:
I loved - and still love - the car itself. And I was prepared to accept its many shortcomings, as I believed - and still believe - that it has an endearing character, for which there is no obvious substitute. But in those dark, frosty days of staring out at the car - "as idle as a painted ship, upon a painted ocean" - I reflected on the process of acquistion, and the post-handover customer service, the absurd insurance premium, and the missing equipment... and decided to return the car. The catch wasn't better than the chase.
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I don't quite follow. I still don't really understand why you've got rid of it. You loved the car, don't think there's a good substitute, and the only irritations that you mention are ones you can live with...but because the ordering process was poor, you sent it back? That seems counter-intuitive to me; the shoddy ordering process was all but forgotten the moment I picked up the keys for mine, and giving it back would have rendered that agonising 10 months completely pointless. Apologies if I've misinterpreted that.

Was there no chance of at least keeping it until the spring, as it comes across that much of your disappointment with the car seems to be from not driving it. And I doubt you would have lost any money in that time.

Still, all the best with what you decide...I take it you will be moving into a 2-series then? I think you must be right about that being the best alternative. JamesUK has just sold his GR86 for one. And I have to admit, before the GR86 was announced, I was thinking about an M2 Comp as a replacement for my GT86. But I couldn't stomach the cost. But it has the right formula for me...small coupé, RWD, manual option.
 
Sort of off topic, but I expect M2s and M240is etc. to be quite different in terms of driving dynamics due to the sheer weight of the things. Half a tonne more, I think the six cylinder ones are (and I'd wager the four cylinder ones are similar but I'm feeling too lazy to check this morning!).

It may well not be an issue for many. But they are very heavy. What do they make them out of - black holes? ;)
 
Silver Fox said:
Sort of off topic, but I expect M2s and M240is etc. to be quite different in terms of driving dynamics due to the sheer weight of the things. Half a tonne more, I think the six cylinder ones are (and I'd wager the four cylinder ones are similar but I'm feeling too lazy to check this morning!).

It may well not be an issue for many. But they are very heavy. What do they make them out of - black holes? ;)
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Half a ton, really? I didn't realise it was that much. I guess that's the price you pay for not having an interior made out of old egg cartons.
 
The car isn't perfect but I like it. the interior has a similarity to the MX5, so yeah it is a bit cheap but at least there are buttons for stuff you need rather than sub menus! You say that not being able to drive it snow was part of the reason to get rid, appropriate tyres would have solved that. I have experience of driving rear driven BMW's in winter, well actually I don't they are utterly useless on normal tyres, anything more than 2 inches of snow just get your boots on and walk. Cross climates or winters may have solved the problem but for the amount of times I would have needed that it wasn't worth bothering with, in Scotland though probably a different matter.

All the best for whatever you get.
 
Conscript said:
Half a ton, really? I didn't realise it was that much. I guess that's the price you pay for not having an interior made out of old egg cartons.
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Just had a quick look on the BMW website. M2 auto "weight not laden": 1800kg. 'Kinell
 
Even the 230i (probably the closest to the GR86) is 1600kg. Supposedly the pick of the bunch for how it drives but quite a different proposition still.
 
mackie said:
Even the 230i (probably the closest to the GR86) is 1600kg. Supposedly the pick of the bunch for how it drives but quite a different proposition still.
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Shame they don't come in a manual.
 
Silver Fox said:
Just had a quick look on the BMW website. M2 auto "weight not laden": 1800kg. 'Kinell
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From memory that’s heavier than my old W204 C63 with a 6.2 litre lump of V8 up front 😳

Anyone who’s interested in listening to one of the greatest exponents of light weight in a car should watch any interviews with Gordon Murray , the GMA series on the T50 is fascinating , as is the Jonny Smith tour of GM’s personal car collection

 
Lucky that he ended up in that gap between the kerb and the lamppost. And a bit disappointing too, seems like it might have taught him a lesson for driving like a pillock.
 
If it's like that in the dry imagine what it's like in the wet or snow!
 
Conscript said:
Lucky that he ended up in that gap between the kerb and the lamppost. And a bit disappointing too, seems like it might have taught him a lesson for driving like a pillock.
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When my dad first taught me to drive 32 years ago he said "remember the accelerator is not an on/off switch".

(He also said "drive as if everyone else is a blind idiot, then you'll never be caught out and you'll sometimes be pleasantly surprised.")
 
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