[stefan]

I think "ooh but it's controversial" is a bit of a cop-out used by buyers with confirmation bias. I don't think there has ever been an M3/4 design so universally hated. I know some don't want to admit it, but it's bad. Objectively bad from a design standpoint, subjectively bad from vast agreement from fans and onlookers. Nobody has ever said these look good. Dealership feedback where I live has been fairly negative.

I would say the car looks substantially worse in bright colours. Black actually isn't bad and works with the grille. Otherwise yes this car is way too big. It really could be a 6 now that we have the 8. As for the mechanical elements yeah it seems stellar and the ride has been universally praised which is a nice move away from WTF level stiff ride from previous M cars. The engine is amazing as well.

Originally Posted by dialogical

It's not misinformation. That car isn't available yet.

Remember the Giulia QV that was supposed to have a manual?

I will count the blackwing when it's commercially available, and until then my statement is 100% accurate.

Ugh.. YES. Don't remind me. What a heartbreaker. I would be driving one now if that were the case. Agree completely though. As I recall, Alfa was slated to release it... then it went into crash testing and the clutch pedal severed the dummy's leg. Rather than rework it, they just binned that option.

[RugbyBro]

Originally Posted by Jcali86

A few current owners have said it's softer than the F8X.

Yup this exactly, it is for sure softer than F8X but F8X is on the relative extreme end of stiff street cars so a marginal improvement to that may not result in the ride that a lot of reviewers are gushing about. I agree with you though that there does have to be some expectation by the buyer that this is a very sporty car and will have a ride to match, anyone who thinks otherwise is in for a rude awakening

[SilverSlug]

BMW's new design strategy: Make every coupe look like a Ford Mustang.

[BMthusiast]

I'm here for the sound of the S58!!! Less talk, more throttle.

[CanuckM]

I was convinced I wouldn't watch this review because I knew he would harp on the design for a long time. Thank God for Zack for giving positive and objective feedback

I am a longtime TST fan but sometimes I take Matt's opinion for what it's worth. Once he makes up his mind about something almost impossible to change his mind. He was extremely critical of the 2C but it turned out to be a fantastic car. I also get annoyed how often he cuts off guests/co-drivers both on his podcast and video reviews.

[AlexFL]

Originally Posted by SilverSlug

BMW's new design strategy: Make every coupe look like a Ford Mustang.

Mustang is a great looking car. Could have been much, much worse. Imagine they would imitate Dodge Challenger.

[gatorfast]

Great car, just ugly. Really isn't much more to it.

[jmg]

Originally Posted by jkap27

controversial to a bmw enthusiast who is well versed in brand identity and expected a refreshed F80 look imo. Polls here are not at all representative of what the general public will think. I think a large majority of people will see this car on the street and be absolutely blown away. But someone like a 911 owner will scoff at this more aggressive take when compared to their 'elegant, timeless German design' lol

The people I've come across asking me if I'm going to replace my CS with the G80 all agreed with me that it's an ugly car. I have a feeling had I said I liked the G80 they would find something positive to say about it rather than criticize it's looks. We are all pretty polite to each other's faces.

I know if I met a new G80 owner in person, I'm not going to call the car ugly despite my true opinion. That's just rude. I'll compliment the interior and how fast it is etc.

I think new owners have to come to the realization that the grill is polarizing, and there are people out there who think it's ugly. It shouldn't bother them, but at the same time, that's what people think. Embrace it. I have with my i3... people think it's ugly and that's fine. I'm not going to tell people they are wrong though, that would be delusional.

[CanuckM]

^ It is certainly an unconventional design. I also find the M4 to be the worse offender. It is the first time BMW designs any grill in a car (non-SUV) vertically.

[KevinM]

Originally Posted by dialogical

On the topics of transmission - the fact that this is the ONLY sports sedan in its class with a manual doesn't even get mentioned. If you want your car with a stick, it's literally the only thing in its class.

Yeah, and this was the case for the F8X as well. Which pretty much sold me on the F80 while waiting for the M2C.

If I didn't have an E39 M5, I would be strongly considering the G80...grill and all.

[Andrae26]

Originally Posted by jcali86

there's another thread running already. Obviously we love the car, i think it's the best looking m3 since the e46, but i also don't wear baggy jeans over new balance sneakers, so i guess we all have different ideas on what looks good.

🤣🤣

[dialogical]

Originally Posted by GhostyM

This is a confusing take. I've only seen people talk about it's look ALL over the internet. Confirmation bias is a bitch for sure, but I'd argue WAY more think it's ugly than beautiful. I haven't met a person who said it's good looking and I'm DEEP into the BMW forums/facebook groups/eco system (friends have a lot of ///M's). Only people from this forum think it looks good to me (which is fair).

For example: Remember the F-Type that Jaguar made (before the facelift)? Widely acclaimed for being beautiful, and while some will easily disagree with that point, the overwhelming majority would agree that the F-Type when it first came out was a gorgeous car. We're in the same boat with this car, except it's a negative in this case.

See my underlined points? If you think comparing the G8x to an Alfa or any other competitor is fair, let me tell you.. it's not.

An Alfa is a horribly unreliable car. The Audi RS's are slower. The AMG's are too heavy. The F8x minimized all those issues. It was fast. It was lighter. It was more reliable. The G8x now has the Alfa transmission, weight of a AMG (AWD model), and while it's not slow in any sense of the word, it's now terribly ugly.

Rather than improve on it's special dynamics (DCT, lightweight, etc). It ignores all of that to make it an ugly-but-mini-M5.

Not sure how you can read all the points I made and miss the message: the F8x isn't for sale anymore. You cannot buy it new. The Alfa, the RS5, and the C63 are the cars the G8x competes against. Unless your point is that the whole segment is worthless, in which case why even bother coming in here?

Facts are facts: the G8x is faster than the C63 from a dig, and faster than both the C63 and the RS5 from a roll. If the Giulia isn't broken then it may put up a fight, but I seriously doubt it.

[Transfer]

Not a very favorable review for the G82 but they're looking at it through an E92 and F82 lens. This is not those cars! People need to let go that the M3 is dead, long live the new M3. Wait for G87 M2 if a smaller car is desired. They also butcher the price specs at the end. Not sure if those option prices were given to them by BMW or what but multiple misquoted prices and options and that is a fully overloaded $100k car with all the junk included.

[dialogical]

Originally Posted by Transfer

Not a very favorable review for the G84 but they're looking at it through an E92 and F82 lens. This is not those cars! People need to let go that the M3 is dead, long live the new M3. Wait for G87 M2 if a smaller car is desired. They also butcher the price specs at the end. Not sure if those option prices were given to them by BMW or what but multiple misquoted prices and options and that is a fully overloaded $100k car with all the junk included.

No, that's just typical Matt Farrah messing up the car's basic specs, then comparing it to how he remembers a car from a decade ago.

[dialogical]

Originally Posted by GhostyM

I have driven it. It feels like smaller M5 rather than a faster M3/M4. It has better driving characteristics than the F8x but its lack of DCT and extra weight is quite noticeable. It's really just that simple. It may be faster and has tighter turn in, but the lack of special parts really takes away from it. And this is all ignoring the extremely obvious looks of the thing.

This forums reactions to it's looks said it all to me. Also, the weight, size, lack of DCT is another negative point.

Why does weight matter if driving dynamics are more important? Surely the downside of weight is bad dynamics?

How in the hell are you going to say the car is dynamically better than an F80 and in the same breath say that it's like a mini M5? By that logic the F80 handles the same as an M5.

The logical breakdown in what you're saying is stunning to me.

[pg80]

Originally Posted by Kuato2084

I'm here for the sound of the S58!!! Less talk, more throttle.

I only have like 69 miles on it but so far I have enjoyed it this is my first BMW and my first M car, iv been driving Mopars my whole life till now so nothing but HEMIs from the 5.7 to the 6.2 hellcat and even the demon for a minute and I have to say I'm enjoying it so far I haven't left comfort mode yet its definitely not a HEMI but I like it

[wdskukm3]

The side view looks like a mustang. And the new mustang is a good looking car.

[stefan]

Originally Posted by dialogical

Why does weight matter if driving dynamics are more important? Surely the downside of weight is bad dynamics?

How in the hell are you going to say the car is dynamically better than an F80 and in the same breath say that it's like a mini M5? By that logic the F80 handles the same as an M5.

The logical breakdown in what you're saying is stunning to me.

are you asking an enthusiast forum why weight in a sports car is bad?

[Andrae26]

Originally Posted by jmg

The people I've come across asking me if I'm going to replace my CS with the G80 all agreed with me that it's an ugly car. I have a feeling had I said I liked the G80 they would find something positive to say about it rather than criticize it's looks. We are all pretty polite to each other's faces.

I know if I met a new G80 owner in person, I'm not going to call the car ugly despite my true opinion. That's just rude. I'll compliment the interior and how fast it is etc.

I think new owners have to come to the realization that the grill is polarizing, and there are people out there who think it's ugly. It shouldn't bother them, but at the same time, that's what people think. Embrace it. I have with my i3... people think it's ugly and that's fine. I'm not going to tell people they are wrong though, that would be delusional.

Are you keeping the CS?

[M3Power22]

Now this is purely my subjective opinion but the sedan looks better than the coupe with the exception of the E36 and E92. Better lines, more pronounced fenders, wider stance, more practicality, better proportions, same performance. I've seen both G's in person and the gap has widened for me. If I'm going that big, I might as well get an 8 series otherwise I want 4 doors.

[jmg]

Originally Posted by Transfer

Not a very favorable review for the G84 but they're looking at it through an E92 and F82 lens. This is not those cars! People need to let go that the M3 is dead, long live the new M3. Wait for G87 M2 if a smaller car is desired. They also butcher the price specs at the end. Not sure if those option prices were given to them by BMW or what but multiple misquoted prices and options and that is a fully overloaded $100k car with all the junk included.

They don't necessarily like the new M3. That's the point.

[Transfer]

Originally Posted by jmg

They don't necessarily like the new M3. That's the point.

That's because they want an E46 with all the modern cool shit and moar powah. This isn't that car. I mean good grief they complained about having more elbow room! Seriously?

They should be comparing it to RS5, C63, Giulia, and Model 3P...not prior M3s. This is basically a new model compared to the historic M3 badge and the M2 is the new M3. Grumpsters will grump about this and that compared to history but the context has shifted.