[W///]

Originally Posted by jphughan

I'm sure Sam can put words in his own mouth, so I won't try to do it for him, but I interpreted his comment about the M3/4 being "sanitized" to mean causing the driver to feel more disconnected from the car and the road due to suspension tuning, steering feel, overall handling, emotional engagement/theater, etc, and having driven the M4 myself I do consider it more sanitized than the E9x I had at the time -- and so does the owner, who is actually toying with the idea of getting an M2 or Boxster Spyder instead. It was still fun and undoubtedly faster than the E9x, but I didn't see the value in upgrading to it from the E9x I had given what it would cost. The M5/6 have even more trouble putting their power down, but I would nonetheless argue that they're even more sanitized than the M3/4, because they're designed to be. I don't think one has any real relationship to the other.

Ah, gotcha. I took "sanitized" as luxo-barge, if that makes sense. I just interpreted wrong. In that case, then I definitely do agree with you and Sam. The stiffer ride and instant torque that pulverizes tires made it feel way more muscle car than typical M.

Like I said, I've only driven the M235i, but that felt much more like a friend that you can't ask too much from than the M3/4. I would expect the same from the M2, which is a really great thing.