Tom said:
Awesome Ryan, so give us the comparo between the M3 and NSX.
On paper, they are very similar. The power to weight ratio is similar (particularly with a lightly modded NSX), as is the top speed and straight-line acceleration. They put down similar lap times on a road course as well, whether it be Road America or the Nurburgring.
The M3 feels (and is) faster below 60mph than my NSX. Above 60 MPH, they feel pretty equal. The M3 has a torque advantage, but the NSX has a gearing advantage at high speeds. 0-100 MPH my money is on the M3. 100-170 MPH I'll take the NSX.
The steering on the M3 is nice and direct. It reminds me of the NSX, but the NSX has a bit more feel as a result of the lack of power steering.
This is where the similarity ends. They are very different to drive. Being mid-engined, with the engine behind your head and being only a few inches off of the ground makes the perspective from the NSX much different. The car feels like it envelopes you and you feel very connected to the NSX.
The M3 is very good for a car with a back seat and a trunk. It is probably the closest thing you can get to an NSX that has a back seat and a trunk.
The NSX gearbox is great. Very crisp and short throws. The M3 desparately needs a SSK and (to a lesser extent) the removal of the clutch-delay valve.
The C30A in the NSX likes to rev more than the S54 in the M3. The C30A feels like it could rev to 9500 (and can with nothing more than a chip, 10,500 RPM will bend valves). The S54 keeps pulling strong to its 7900 RPM redline, but I don't have as much confidence in taking the S54 beyond 7500 RPM.
I am worried that the S54 failures are the result of crank vibration at high RPM, which appears to be an inherent design flaw that can't be corrected. The crank is simply too long, given that the engine is an inline six of 3.2 liters.
Can anyone think of an engine with a similarly long crank, i..e inline of 3.2 liters or a V-configuration of 2x that displacement, that revs to 8000 RPM or even close? I can't think of anything off hand . . .