[TRZ06]

Please note that all comparisons are to my current (yet outgoing) 2016 F80 M3 with DCT, base leather interior package, Ohlin coilovers, and Advan Neovo 08r tires.

This initial review is after driving home about 300 miles and 3 days of commuting, followed by 3 nights of "playing" in the evenings after work and after traffic has died down.

I started "driving it like I stole it" at about 500 miles

I will break this down in categories...

INTERIOR QUALITY:

IMO the 2SS 1LE interior is every bit as nice as my base interior in the M3. I am not too much of a fan of the Alcantara steering wheel and shifter, so I will probably swap them out for the standard SS leather ones, however the quality of them is great. While there are some plastics, the M3 has them as well.

The 1LE beats the M3 in the lack of creaks and rattles. I had a major issue with me M3 door seals creaking and it took BMW having to 3M all seals to get them to stop. The cabin is tight and very quiet in the 1LE except for the shifter which has a slight buzz in the upper RPM range.

The 1LE instrument panel lighting and cluster is nicer IMO than the M3, at night especially, the 1LE cluster and lighting looks very classy and up scale.

HANDLING:

What can I say here, the 1LE does 1.2g's around corners, simply INSANE!!! The limits are obviously WAY higher in the 1LE over the M3 and with the Mag ride, it is well dampened in both Sport and Track modes. I haven't played with Comfort mode yet.

The M3 in stock form was AWEFUL, the rear-end was all over the place when heavy braking or when upset mid-corner. It took me adding Ohlin R/T coilovers to tame the rear-end and make the car stable, however in doing so, I lost some of the daily drivability as the Ohlins were rather harsh over big bumps.

The traction/stability control again is simply superior in the 1LE, with many modes to choose from and it works with you. The M3 in both on and MDM mode (their version of relaxed mode) are both VERY intrusive and works against you. It cuts in way before necessary.

TRACTION:

I am still getting used to how much available traction the 1LE has, its amazing. The M3 was very traction limited (even with extreme performance tires) and the over zealous traction control system didn't help either.

ACCELERATION:

Here is where the M3 wins out, I know the numbers say they are just about even on paper, but in real world driving the M3 feels quite a bit quicker. Part of it I am sure is the DCT, the other part is the power delivery of a turbo motor over a N/A motor. The M3 (for a turbo motor) is amazing, it revs to 7500 and is strong all the way up, in addition the M3 has a feature that keeps the turbos spooled. While the 1LE feels a little lethargic. I even tried starting out at 4,500 RPM (the beginning of the max TQ curve) and it still feels a little weak, I remember my C5 06 feeling a little stronger even than this. I am sure weight is at play here, but I am slightly dissapointed in the lack of "throw you back in the seat" acceleration feel.

THROTTLE RESPONSE:

Again, this goes to the M3. It has 3 different settings and the most aggressive one gives you about 75% of the throttle with only about 25% pedal deflection. I know many hate that but in day to day traffic driving, I prefer it. In the 1LE, in all modes, it seems to have good tip-in, then a big dead spot in the middle of the travel and then it picks back up when pressed deeper, which gets tiring in traffic .

LOW SPEED "FEEL":

Again, this goes to the M3, hands down. The M3's rear-end is hard mounted to the sub frame, you take that and with the Ohlin coilovers with stiff springs and at low speeds the M3 feels like a race car, very tight and Euro feeling. Its when you get up in speed that it falters. The 1LE which has bushing in the rear and softer springs and mag rid (which I am sure relaxes things at low speed) feels a bit wishy washy and mushy both in front to back and left to right motions. I am probably going to try to remedy this with BMR rear cradle lockout and upper / lower control arms.

That is all I can think of at the moment, I will add to this tread as I notice more and get more familar with the 1LE.

[satanschariot666]

"The 1LE beats the M3 in creaks and rattles" L . O . L

[TRZ06]

Originally Posted by satanschariot666

"The 1LE beats the M3 in creaks and rattles" L . O . L

LOL, fixed. Bad wording on my part.

[satanschariot666]

i did notice that m4 was snappier than me the other day too
i could tell by the sound

[birdmanf16]

Good write up and comparo....thanks!

[Eldi Z]

Thanks for this detailed write-up!

Can you please compare to the Audi S4 and to the TT-RS as well?
I used to drive a S4 B8 (2011) and a TT 8N, but heavily modded in every respect.

[TrackClub]

Nice write up. Do note 1le ediff needs 1500 miles before it is broken in. So drive it like you stole it but keep her under 4000rpm When you change the original diff fluid and clean the magnetic plugs youll see why....

[TRZ06]

Originally Posted by TrackClub

Nice write up. Do note 1le ediff needs 1500 miles before it is broken in. So drive it like you stole it but keep her under 4000rpm When you change the original diff fluid and clean the magnetic plugs youll see why....

Too late!!

[TrackClub]

Haha i figured that but you still have 900 miles to play nice lol

[TRZ06]

Originally Posted by Eldi Z

Thanks for this detailed write-up!

Can you please compare to the Audi S4 and to the TT-RS as well?
I used to drive a S4 B8 (2011) and a TT 8N, but heavily modded in every respect.

It's been a while since I had either. The S4 was a great cruiser, but it did not have any performance DNA. The brakes were soft, the handling was just ehh, the power average. It is a good daily driver, but not a good performance car.

The TTRS in stock form (previous gen.) is a little underwhelming, but a lot more fun than the S4. Mine did not stay stock though for long. I added an APR Stage 1, MSS springs ( to dial out the understeer and to get rid of dive/squat, and Extreme performance tires (RE-11's at the time) It was a rocketship and very fun to drive, I liked it much more than my M3.

I actually was going to get the new TTRS instead of the 1LE, however the prices on them have increased and Audi does not discount them. Plus, I would have wanted to do about 8K in mods to it.

Considering I got 7K off MSRP on the 1LE, I could just not justify spending double to get the TTRS and mod it.

The TTRS is a lightweight car and with the new Gen., you add a stage 1 tune and you are low 3 seconds 0-60. Even stock they run like a 3.6

Although my dream car is the GT3 RS, but that ain't happening unless I win the lotto or the crypto market takes off again.

The Audi TTRS, along with my old C5 Z06 are my favorite cars I have ever had. Undecided on where the 1LE ranks yet.

[S2K+1LE]

Interesting that you liked the previous gen TTRS so much. I've driven several, from completely stock to "Stage 3" cars (oh how I loathe the VAG "stage" speak...) and they just didn't do it for me. Seating position was all wrong, steering feedback was basically nonexistent against the artificially heavy wheel, terminal understeer at the limit regardless of suspension setup which is borne from the awful chassis geometry of that generation. We all have different experiences, but I wanted to like that car so bad and to buy one only they just felt so cobbled together and disconnected. Pretty much have to lobotomize me to talk me into that over a Cayman S.

[TRZ06]

Originally Posted by S2K+1LE

Interesting that you liked the previous gen TTRS so much. I've driven several, from completely stock to "Stage 3" cars (oh how I loathe the VAG "stage" speak...) and they just didn't do it for me. Seating position was all wrong, steering feedback was basically nonexistent against the artificially heavy wheel, terminal understeer at the limit regardless of suspension setup which is borne from the awful chassis geometry of that generation. We all have different experiences, but I wanted to like that car so bad and to buy one only they just felt so cobbled together and disconnected. Pretty much have to lobotomize me to talk me into that over a Cayman S.

Interesting, I was able to dial out just about all the understeer in mine with MSS springs and aggressive camber settings.

However I did not use mine on the track at all, it was a daily driver and canyon carver, for that purpose it worked very nicely. I would not want to track it though.

So far the 1LE isn't as daily driver friendly to me, but OMG the handling is INSANE, the limits and composure are crazy good. This car just might actually get me to the track for the first time. In traffic driving though, it's not as fun as the M3 or TTRS

[S2K+1LE]

Interesting that you felt the understeer was gone with alignment and springs.

We all have different styles and feel different things, but no it was absolutely still there in a very big way. You can't hang that much weight out in front of the front wheels and have that not be a factor near the limit (which you likely weren't approaching on the street).

I still do love those cars though, for some reason.

[Badgerbimmer]

I still love my S4. Best work car daily driver I have ever had. Plus put snows on in the winter and it handles everything up to a blizzard. Plus it is way faster in a straight line than my old M3 after all the mods E46 M3.