MarkCup's BMW M140i

[MarkCup]

A neighbour took me out in his 140i a few months back. Auto.

It just felt relentless in terms of acceleration.

I timed my car to 100 and with a pretty good launch managed 10.3 seconds.

I filmed/timed two ZF8s the other day, one did 9.5s, the other 9.2s.

That's a mental difference. I was expecting maybe 0.5, mine is not a slow car. Watching the speedo footage of them all side by side is painful, it looks like there's something wrong with mine!

There isn't, the ZF8 is just a masterpiece. The shorter ratios make as much difference as the faster shift speed does.

 

[Waitey]

I timed my car to 100 and with a pretty good launch managed 10.3 seconds.

I filmed/timed two ZF8s the other day, one did 9.5s, the other 9.2s.

That's a mental difference. I was expecting maybe 0.5, mine is not a slow car. Watching the speedo footage of them all side by side is painful, it looks like there's something wrong with mine!

There isn't, the ZF8 is just a masterpiece. The shorter ratios make as much difference as the faster shift speed does.

Yeah the ZF8 can get the best out of anything.

My Alpina (pre issues) did a solid 9.83 to 100 and 4.18 to 60. Which for a 2wd Diesel estate car with 200k miles on it is mental!

 

[youngarthur]

I am in the Small car, lightweight, big engine camp. Never owned a BMW, but look to be well built, quality machines. Mine is around 1200kg, running 320/340, what do some of these BMW weigh out of interest?.

 

[Ex-User (19928)]

Yeah the ZF8 can get the best out of anything.

My Alpina (pre issues) did a solid 9.83 to 100 and 4.18 to 60. Which for a 2wd Diesel estate car with 200k miles on it is mental!

That 0-60 is mad.

Best dragy 0-62 I’ve got in my manual M4 is 4.7. Best 0-100 is 9.1 but the ZF8 will get those times every time and I will not...

 

[Waitey]

That 0-60 is mad.

Best dragy 0-62 I’ve got in my manual M4 is 4.7. Best 0-100 is 9.1 but the ZF8 will get those times every time and I will not...

I think 500 odd lb/ft at like 1500rpm helps there!

Video from Facebook today of a D4 doing 300kph!

 

[MarkCup]

I am in the Small car, lightweight, big engine camp. Never owned a BMW, but look to be well built, quality machines. Mine is around 1200kg, running 320/340, what do some of these BMW weigh out of interest?.

They're 1,400+ kgs - I've never been able to nail down the exact weight, I think it's 1,435 or something.

 

[MarkCup]

Here's the footage of the autos against my manual. Going by @Jeff simply 's post above, the white one is as quick as Jeff's M4!

 

[Ex-User (19928)]

Here's the footage of the autos against my manual. Going by @Jeff simply 's post above, the white one is as quick as Jeff's M4!

Quicker to 60 and slower above I'd have guessed!

Infact I know, I've raced Reg before and left him everytime (although he talked about reactions and traffic etc )

 

[497adam]

How does Dragy work? Is simply a gps app?


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[Ex-User (19928)]

How does Dragy work? Is simply a gps app?


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You buy the module which has a 10hz GPS receiver that works with the dragy app (and only the dragy app). It’s meant to be pretty accurate.

 

[RDH]

I’ve had the use of my mates 140 for a couple of days last week before it went back.

Epic machine and the want is even stronger. The pull from any speed is rediculous. Absolutely no reason to need anything faster on the road.

His was the auto. And on my 70 mile round commute showed 42mpg for both days. That was with cruise set at 70. Insane for the performance. One thing i would say is I would get the auto box mapped. An ever so slight delay in paddle input to gear change which would grate on me.

He’s just swapped it for a 335d which has been mapped to a supposed 400bhp. Had a 0-100 blast and would say the 335 was slightly quicker but gets a better launch due to xdrive.

 

[Crazylegs]

On a side note, I did Anglesey Circuit last year in my DC5. There was a stripped out M135i and it was savage, it tore past me on the straights at probably speeds of upwards of 120, it looked agile too and extremely good on its brakes which I was surprised about.

I think these modern cars are in another league, I've test driven an FK8 which got the power down amazingly well and I've also been a passenger in a Golf Clubsport S which again was brutal, I was by shocked how quick these cars are nowadays.

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[McGherkin]

When you think of the number of upshifts on a lap, it’s no wonder racing has largely ditched the manual.

 

[Speedy300]

The auto is very impressive but personally the extra involvement of a manual box is worth losing out on straight line performance. Ultimately it depends what you want from a car.

 

[Stay Puft]

That M135i on the end looks nice!

 

[MarkCup]

On a side note, I did Anglesey Circuit last year in my DC5. There was a stripped out M135i and it was savage, it tore past me on the straights at probably speeds of upwards of 120, it looked agile too and extremely good on its brakes which I was surprised about.

I think these modern cars are in another league, I've test driven an FK8 which got the power down amazingly well and I've also been a passenger in a Golf Clubsport S which again was brutal, I was by shocked how quick these cars are nowadays.

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I bet he'd either spent a ton of cash on sorting the suspension out or, it was a matter of fingers crossed and hoping for the best as he entered every turn.

They're good, very good, but not without the inbuilt flaws you get from giving a 116d 350bhp.

But, yeah, as standard the straightline performance is savage. With a £5k mods budget you'd end up with something that could keep up with just about anything.

 

[imprezaworks]

Lol at 116d with 350.

 

[Cookson]

There's not much of 2nd or 3rd in those auto boxes when on the boil is there, jeeeez ha ha

 

[-Jamie-]

On a side note, I did Anglesey Circuit last year in my DC5. There was a stripped out M135i and it was savage, it tore past me on the straights at probably speeds of upwards of 120, it looked agile too and extremely good on its brakes which I was surprised about.

I think these modern cars are in another league, I've test driven an FK8 which got the power down amazingly well and I've also been a passenger in a Golf Clubsport S which again was brutal, I was by shocked how quick these cars are nowadays.

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Orange one by chance?

 

[Rojer]

Watched a few of your videos yesterday Mark and i like your approach. Keep it up

 

[Crazylegs]

Orange one by chance?

Can't quite remember I'm afraid, think it may have been Grey.

It was rapid though whatever colour it was!

 

[-Jamie-]

Can't quite remember I'm afraid, think it may have been Grey.

It was rapid though whatever colour it was!

Fair, a guy I track with up here has a stripped orange one with about 440hp and was Anglesey last year, Had a rear cage done recently as well, It's f**king rapid!


Contrary to what @MarkCup thinks as well its not had a huge amount of suspension stuff done, The usual stuff you'd do to any other car really plus a diff, A good geo setup makes a huge difference

 

[Ex-User (19928)]

Fair, a guy I track with up here has a stripped orange one with about 440hp and was Anglesey last year, Had a rear cage done recently as well, It's f**king rapid!


Contrary to what @MarkCup thinks as well its not had a huge amount of suspension stuff done, The usual stuff you'd do to any other car really plus a diff, A good geo setup makes a huge difference

I'm sure Mark would probably admit he was going for dramatic effect with his opening line haha. He is very much not a "fire it into a corner and hope for the best" kind of guy!!

And with all these capable cars, you can buy a lot of corner speed with tyres before you need to touch suspension. Put some slicks on an otherwise standard M135i with the right driver and I bet it would drop almost anything at a track day.

 

[-Jamie-]

And then you'd probably need a new engine on the way home after it had starved itself of oil [emoji1787]

 

[AdDaMan]

@MarkCup Did you really just do a complete video about timings by using the speedos?!! Please tell me i'm imagining that and you were actually using a Dragy/VBOX etc?

 

[MarkCup]

@MarkCup Did you really just do a complete video about timings by using the speedos?!! Please tell me i'm imagining that and you were actually using a Dragy/VBOX etc?

I did, you're not imagining it, and no I wasn't.

 

[AdDaMan]

Sorry but that's an utterly pointless test then. Why go to all that effort when you could have borrowed a dragy or spent the £115 and done an accurate test. Madness.

 

[AdDaMan]

Just to add. I will happily send you mine for nothing if you would like to borrow it?

 

[MarkCup]

The purpose of the video was to compare auto v manual, to find out if they're close, or if a country mile separates them.

My methods were more than accurate enough for that, I don't think my conclusion, about a 1 second apart in cars that do 0-100 in about 10 seconds, is flawed in any way.

If I wanted to measure the absolute differences down to 0.01 of a second, sure, what I did was pointless. But I didn't. So it wasn't. I don't think.

Even if I had a Dragy/GPS thing, I'd need cars the same spec, same no. of doors, same fuel, same load, same driver, same tyres, same mileage, same diff, to be truly accurate and that's never going to happen.

Thanks for the offer though 😁👍

 

[JB21]

I love the ZF8 in my 330d. I'd expect it to be even better in the free revving M-lite. The MT just seems like its geared far to long for the engine.

 

[Ex-User (19928)]

You can pop my Dragy in your car when we go to Bedford @MarkCup

If nothing else it would be interesting to see how close your dodgy timing methods are to something more accurate ;-)

 

[AdDaMan]

The purpose of the video was to compare auto v manual, to find out if they're close, or if a country mile separates them.

My methods were more than accurate enough for that, I don't think my conclusion, about a 1 second apart in cars that do 0-100 in about 10 seconds, is flawed in any way.

If I wanted to measure the absolute differences down to 0.01 of a second, sure, what I did was pointless. But I didn't. So it wasn't. I don't think.

Even if I had a Dragy/GPS thing, I'd need cars the same spec, same no. of doors, same fuel, same load, same driver, same tyres, same mileage, same diff, to be truly accurate and that's never going to happen.

Thanks for the offer though [emoji16][emoji106]

My point is that speedos are not accurate. They all vary. And so does the point at which you think it hits 100.


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[Ex-User (19928)]

I love the ZF8 in my 330d. I'd expect it to be even better in the free revving M-lite. The MT just seems like its geared far to long for the engine.

Gears too long for a car that makes peak torque at like 2500rpm??

 

[MarkCup]

My point is that speedos are not accurate. They all vary. And so does the point at which you think it hits 100.


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Agreed, completely, which is why I stated very clearly in the video that those margins of error would apply.

Even the fact I'm using 25fps means I'm potentially up to 0.08s out if I judge the start and end wrong by just one frame each at each end.

It wasn't meant to be scientifically accurate.

 

[JB21]

Gears too long for a car that makes peak torque at like 2500rpm??

I get it has a wide power band but 100+ in 3rd and 130+ in 4th just seems far to long for a hot/hyper hatch. For me a fast hatch should have a slick, short ratio box that you can bang up and down the gears making use of heel and toe, longer gears just takes all the fun out of it for me. Looks more geared to the autobahn than UK roads.

 

[McGherkin]

It’s actually quite nice to go from corner to corner without having to change gears constantly. And if you’ve got the torque to catapult you to the next corner, why not?

 

[JB21]

It’s actually quite nice to go from corner to corner without having to change gears constantly. And if you’ve got the torque to catapult you to the next corner, why not?

Then surly the auto makes more sense. For me, if using a manual box I like to engage with it. That why I have a ZF8 for a daily and short ratio 6MT for fun.

 

[McGherkin]

Because it's an auto. I want to be able to change gear myself but not if it's like driving an 18 speed Eaton Fuller.

 

[-Jamie-]

Because it's an auto. I want to be able to change gear myself but not if it's like driving an 18 speed Eaton Fuller.

Should try an E92 M, 3rd gear pretty much everywhere, Bit dull though so I quite fancy a shorter FD

 

[Ex-User (19928)]

Then surly the auto makes more sense. For me, if using a manual box I like to engage with it. That why I have a ZF8 for a daily and short ratio 6MT for fun.

Sort of mate.

I suspect Mark would be better placed to comment as it's his car, but when I had a go in it the gears felt absolutely fine.

It has the same ratios (as far as I can tell) as my M4, which is 70 in 2nd, nearly 110 in 3rd (M4 has a higher rev limit) and something daft like 140 in 4th.

Would it be more fun with shorter ratios? Actually I think it would ruin it, it's not a zingy engine that you have to keep in a sweet spot to be fast, it's f**king rampant and you can't go flat in 2nd out of a corner (with road tyres at least) as it'll light the rears.