M-Spec's cars: Track photos (Post 104)
- Thread starter ///M-Spec
- 107 comments
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- 26,628
- OREGON
- a6m5zero
Mid-life crisis, M-Spec? 
Seriously though, like some others in this thread, I don't really care for the Z4 either. But I must have some kind of "M" biase. 6-Series and the old Z3, I never liked that much either, until the M versions came out(M-Coupe especially!). And I really like your new car too.
Congratulations on a wonderful purchase.
👍
Seriously though, like some others in this thread, I don't really care for the Z4 either. But I must have some kind of "M" biase. 6-Series and the old Z3, I never liked that much either, until the M versions came out(M-Coupe especially!). And I really like your new car too.
Congratulations on a wonderful purchase.
👍
- 26,628
- OREGON
- a6m5zero
I drove a convertible for the first time last summer. My coworker bought a used M-Edition Miata, and let me borrow it over a lunch break. I NEVER wanted a convertible before(maybe except the RX-7 one, I used to like those as a kid), but boy it was fun. 👍
I just hope your car have a reliable top. Same guy bought a new (soft)top for his Miata, but he tells me that if it's coming down hard enough, little bit of water tends to find a way inside.
- 4,805
First off Congratulations on the new purchase ///M-Spec!!!
Also are you still living in "T-Town", FLA? If so I need to come over damnit!
Also are you still living in "T-Town", FLA? If so I need to come over damnit!
///M-Spec
Staff Emeritus
- 4,928
Funny you should mention a Miata M Edition. My wife used to have one, but we sold it when we had our first child. It was a '96 Starlight Mica Blue. We loved that car.
First off Congratulations on the new purchase ///M-Spec!!!
Also are you still living in "T-Town", FLA? If so I need to come over damnit!
Thanks Pimp racer, but sorry I moved to New Jersey last summer
If you come by, I'd be happy to take you for a ride. You may want to wait till spring, though: it's about 18 degrees outside right now M
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Scaff
Moderator
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- He/Him
- ScaffUK
Thank you. It's BMW no. 6 for me, actually. I think I might have a problem with addiction
Perhaps when I finally get myself to the UK, I'll have to hire (rent) one and eat some of Scaff's dust.
M
M if you ever get over to the UK let me know, I will have to take you on a tour of a few favourite roads and have a look at some nice UK club circuits.
👍
Scaff
///M-Spec
Staff Emeritus
- 4,928
You're on, my friend. 👍 What would it cost to hire a good driver's car there? (I don't need a 911 or anything.. a 3er would be great)
EDIT: And if you're ever in the NJ area, I'd be happy to take you on drive through bumper to bumper traffic and scenic industrial wastelands. If we're lucky, we might even be carjacked!
M
EDIT: And if you're ever in the NJ area, I'd be happy to take you on drive through bumper to bumper traffic and scenic industrial wastelands. If we're lucky, we might even be carjacked!
M
Scaff
Moderator
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- He/Him
- ScaffUK
You're on, my friend. 👍 What would it cost to hire a good driver's car there? (I don't need a 911 or anything.. a 3er would be great)
EDIT: And if you're ever in the NJ area, I'd be happy to take you on drive through bumper to bumper traffic and scenic industrial wastelands. If we're lucky, we might even be carjacked!
M
Hire wise you would be looking at around £80 a day for a descent 3-series or C-Class.
On the New Jersey front, quite bizarrely the American parent of the company I work for has a number of offices in Clifton, New Jersey (ADP Dealer services on Main Avenue); so you never know on that front.
Scaff
///M-Spec
Staff Emeritus
- 4,928
Economic opportunities. When most people think of Jersey, they think Newark or Elizabeth, which is the sort of industrial hell that inspires cyberpunk novels.
Move further out and Jersey isn't bad at all. I have seen more deer in my backyard than I did in rural North Florida. Property taxes are effing insane, though.
M
///M-Spec
Staff Emeritus
- 4,928
Thanks! I do have a few new ones.
My wife and I took the Zed on a short road trip up to Hyde Park, NY and spent the long weekend there. Not much in Hyde Park except for some really good restaurants, local farms, winerys and some much needed seclusion. The trip not only allowed us to enjoy some of historic Hudson Valley's scenic winter landscapes, great driving roads and eat some delicious local cuisine, it finished off the M Roadster's 1200 break-in period.
Here's a shot of the car when we got back.
Here's a couple of shots of the car's winter get up. Since the car replaced the 330i, it needed to be an all weather driver. Thus, some suitable rubber was in order.
The tires are Dunlop Wintersport M3s in 225/45-18. The wheels are M6 replicas made by ALT wheels, in 18x8. I would have preferred 17s, but very few 17s fit over the front brake calipers on the M. They look good, but are actually kinda cheap on closer inspection. Whatever; they're just winter wheels and only a fraction of what the real things cost.
After the 1200 break in service (engine oil, tranny and diffy fluid change), I treated her to a full detail on Friday. The weather over the weekend was fairly nice, leading to some top down motoring on Saturday.
My camera seems to have trouble dealing with sunny days, so sorry for the lackluster photos.
A couple of misc. details:
Cheers: Padding on the transmission tunnel for your knee to brace against during hard cornering. There's one for the passenger too. 👍
Jeers: Worst. Cup. Holder. Ever. 👎 Now some of you might be snickering to yourself thinking I'm some kind of big girl's blouse for whining about cup holders in an M Roadster. Well sorry, but the car is a daily driver and like many people, I expect to drink my coffee on the way into work in the mornings. Between the craptasic design, broken NJ roads and the buckboard ride, I may as well slip my coffee mug in a paint-mixer.
Not much to report in the on the limit driving department. Even with the so-called 'winter performance' tires on the M6 knockoffs, sliding the car around is a little like kissing with a fat lip. It's happening, but it's curiously joyless. With the DSC off, the car will shred the rear tires with alarming ease. So once the weather warms up and autocross season begins, I'll have more interesting driving impressions to share.
M
///M-Spec
Staff Emeritus
- 4,928
I took some pics of the S4 a couple of weeks ago; finally got around to posting some. Now, some of you here take some really nice photos. Me, I just point n' shoot and hope it comes out alright. I posted only the ones that looked okay.
The car is a 2006 S4 25quattro. (more info) Apparently, they only made 250 of these, all for the North American market. It is mostly a cosmetics-only package, but really gives the B7 S4 (which I always thought was a little ho-hum looking) a more butch look. Kinda like a poor-man's RS4.
One notable mechanical feature is the Torsen T3 center diff, which has a static 40/60 torque split. This was introduced on the RS4 and subsequently filtered down to all 2006 S4s with manual transmissions.
This particular car was in pristine condition inside and out. There were a few small stone chips on the hood and some light scratches on the interior trim. Otherwise, a 'cream puff' as the car salesman like to say.
Sadly, the cool looking outer brake vents are non-functional.
...as are the rear side vents
This would have been a MUCH better picture if the S wasn't so overexposed. Oh well.
In case you're wondering, the M Roadster is a better driver's car. It is also considerably quicker. On that perfect sunny day on that perfect deserted road, I can't think of many cars I'd prefer to be driving.
But on every other day (which, let's face it, is most of them), I'll take the S4.
The 25quattro package adds a nice two tone black and gray leather interior. The carbon fiber trim has nice, fat weaves and looks absolutely the business.
All the cars came pretty much one way, which is loaded. Sat nav, sat radio, Bluetooth, voice control, Bose DSP sound, etc. I admit the gadget freak in me loves these features. I never thought I would get into using sat nav, but I've finally been won over by Audi's RNS-E system. It's easy to learn, plots routes quickly and works very, very well.
Stupid flash went off.
I really dig the color contrast stitching. BMW never does that except on the M steering wheels, which is borderline gaudy.
Not sure why, I just like that picture for some reason. This car needs an SSK badly. Not as badly as the BMW 550i I was thinking about buying, but the throws are too long after 2+ years snick-snicking around in the M Roadster.
M
The car is a 2006 S4 25quattro. (more info) Apparently, they only made 250 of these, all for the North American market. It is mostly a cosmetics-only package, but really gives the B7 S4 (which I always thought was a little ho-hum looking) a more butch look. Kinda like a poor-man's RS4.
One notable mechanical feature is the Torsen T3 center diff, which has a static 40/60 torque split. This was introduced on the RS4 and subsequently filtered down to all 2006 S4s with manual transmissions.
This particular car was in pristine condition inside and out. There were a few small stone chips on the hood and some light scratches on the interior trim. Otherwise, a 'cream puff' as the car salesman like to say.
Sadly, the cool looking outer brake vents are non-functional.
...as are the rear side vents
This would have been a MUCH better picture if the S wasn't so overexposed. Oh well.
In case you're wondering, the M Roadster is a better driver's car. It is also considerably quicker. On that perfect sunny day on that perfect deserted road, I can't think of many cars I'd prefer to be driving.
But on every other day (which, let's face it, is most of them), I'll take the S4.
The 25quattro package adds a nice two tone black and gray leather interior. The carbon fiber trim has nice, fat weaves and looks absolutely the business.
All the cars came pretty much one way, which is loaded. Sat nav, sat radio, Bluetooth, voice control, Bose DSP sound, etc. I admit the gadget freak in me loves these features. I never thought I would get into using sat nav, but I've finally been won over by Audi's RNS-E system. It's easy to learn, plots routes quickly and works very, very well.
Stupid flash went off.
I really dig the color contrast stitching. BMW never does that except on the M steering wheels, which is borderline gaudy.
Not sure why, I just like that picture for some reason. This car needs an SSK badly. Not as badly as the BMW 550i I was thinking about buying, but the throws are too long after 2+ years snick-snicking around in the M Roadster.
M
- 24,344
- Midlantic Area
- GTP_Duke
Beautiful car, mate! BUT: do one thing to make it even more beautiful. Take it to a great paint shop and have the black band behind the front license plate painted to match the body. It will improve the front end looks 1000%. It looks to be even easier to do on the S4 because it is a shiny black paint, not the textured molded matte black like a standard A4.
It does look like a creampuff. How many miles?
It does look like a creampuff. How many miles?
///M-Spec
Staff Emeritus
- 4,928
Damn straight. Also enjoy quiche Lorraine and a liver pâté with a glass of chardonnay while the hired plebs manicure the back 9.
Any advice on avoiding the overexposure problem in the future?
I have to admit, I actually like the Trout Pout grill. I think the larger brake ducts on the RS4 and my car really go a long way to visually balance out the grille. I'm also not keen on modding the car too much; I expect it to hold it's value better than a standard S4 and prefer to keep it as stock as possible. For that reason, I may not go with an SSK. But I think I'm going to get at least an intake; the car is just too damn quiet.
It had 41xxx miles on it when I bought it. Higher than I would have liked--there was one with only 21xxx in upstate New York I was thinking about going to see--- but you couldn't tell unless you looked at the odometer. The car looks, drives and even smells like a 15k mile car. It was also a California car until I bought it, so that probably contributed to it's condition.
Thanks for the all the compliments, guys 👍
M
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- 509
Most cameras should have something to adjust the exposure by a few stops one way or the other. Or a way to adjust if it is spot metered or center weight, et cetera. I'm not sure what your camera allows though, since I have no clue what you have as far as cameras go, since you did "save for web" in Photoshop and stripped the exif data off the pictures
As for handling over exposure in the post processing phase, you can use the "Shadow Highlight" tool under Image > Adjustments to correct things a bit.
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