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Reasons to love SMG

22K views 133 replies 59 participants last post by  grkm3 
#1 ·
Instead of always posting about our problems, lets make this thread about being grateful for having SMG and some reasons why we like it. I'll go first.

The extremely fast gear changes are a blast. Especially on the free way. Dropping down a few gears to do a pull feels really good.

I like that you can keep both hands on the wheel to shift gears.

Launch control is the sh1t. (I've only used it once but still it's awesome)

I think our cars with SMG makes it somewhat exotic. People always trip out when they see how it works. Makes our cars seem more modern.

Please no bashing on SMG. Lets keep this positive.
 
#81 ·
ive had my smg since october now and had an e46 330ci sport package before my m3. and i have to say i love the smg m3. ive driven many manual m3s at my job and actually wanted the manual over the smg at first. but now that i drive my smg every day its so much better and so much fun. love it
 
#82 ·
I got my '02 M3 coupe in September with no one but the seller and his mechanic in favor of the SMG M3s (NOT very comforting)! The naysayers included my son, his mechanic (BMW specific) in Gainesville, my tech wizard (BMW pro) shake his head back and forth like a rag doll each and every time I mentioned the three letters SMG before I made my final decision to get one, so I've been very much the loaner in my choice of SMG over a manual! I will say that if you aspire to get the best out of these cars, you HAVE to treat them with much more attention than any automatic OR manual (once you can drive a car well )...it's almost like it's alive and always changing and you as the driver are forced to work WITH it! Like a thoroughbred she's edgy almost moody and almost bad mannered at times but if you can take the time to get to know how the SMG system works in each of its settings and combinations then tap into the monster within, there is hardly any greater reward! THIS CAR IS A BLAST TO DRIVE
 
#84 ·
it's almost like it's alive and always changing and you as the driver are forced to work WITH it!
This is so very true. I remember the first time I went up a really steep drive. I turned into the driveway in third gear. Half way up the car decided that it needed to be in second to avoid stalling. Scared the **** out of me when it paused to shift. I was going pretty slow.

Knowing when to downshift was the main thing I had to get used to. Like if you're coming to a complete stop it's okay to let the car take care of all the downshifting. If you're just coming to a rolling stop often times you'll be in too high of a gear.

It's not a fault, though. The car only downshifts when it may stall. Optimal downshifting is left up to the driver. The only thing I really miss about a stick is having complete control over the clutch. But I think the benefits of SMG really make up for that. I do enjoy driving it. I could have bought a manual M3 easily. But I can buy just about any car in a manual and I've owned a ton of them. I wanted something unique.
 
#83 ·
I agree the SMG is a blast to drive , learning the sweet spot to shift at the right RPM, every one is bashing the SMG but lets do a comparison if you don't know how to drive a standard you can do more damage to the transmission than a SMG , a clutch and stripping the gears is way more costly to fix .
Maintenance is key change transmission fluid ever third oil change , it is cheaper to change transmission fluid than engine oil on a smg , there is a soft ware up grade for the SMG the shift is a lot smoother ,they do it at the stealers, if you have an up to date shop they can do it a lot cheaper I spoke to my to the mechanic another thing to do is change the ball and spring for the pump the spring gets week and the ball get away and damages the pump , one more thing when parking on an incline put your hand brake on before you put it in 1 mode to park,when you are ready to restart you can hear the transmission struggling to shift into N I love the SMG.
 
#91 ·
Yea when I first looked at car thought it was a 6sp manual but looking farther I noticed the paddle shifters and the smg on the gear knob and yea have the original window sticker from deal ship and it was like a 2500 added option to my car believe that car was 46000 in 2004.. It's now parked on my garage and wanting to fix it ASAP myself can't afford the dealership.
 
#99 ·
Hi everyone,
Let me please ask one question to you guys. I had an opportunity to drive an SMG M3 the other day. His was '04 and mine is '06, but it felt like his smg shift a bit quicker even the mode that i use was the same (S4). He said that he had to replace the smg pump about a year and half ago, do you guys think this could be the factor that the smg shift a little faster? Is there any other factors that make the difference for the shifting speed with the same mode? (S4 vs S4, or S5 vs S5)

Thanks in advance.
 
#102 ·
I'm going to guess that he has an older SMG software because his car is 3 years older. The older software a shift faster and more aggressive. BMW started coming out with updates that slowed down gear changes to not put so much wear on the cars. But yes maybe his newer pump made a difference. Not too sure. If you want faster changes get the CSL software. It shifts faster and raises the launch control. You can also get the Euro software that has higher launch control but shifts will be the same. Hope this helps.
 
#101 ·
amazing to drive the smg in daily driver situations.. and when i go to the track or even hwy pulls.. there's never a moment u feel like ur not in a 6spd car.. u can adjust how fast the shift takes place which in daily just going to work situations is amazing.. and turn all the traction "sports mode" and u get the benefit of having another level to upgrade to.. ohhh man.... EVERYYYYYY NICEEEE!!!


-Daily Driver, -Nightly racer!
 
#104 ·
Thanks guys for the input. Okay, maybe the software is different as mine is newer by 3yrs. If that is the case, i want the older software as it wasn't harsh at all. (it was with S4) I know we can't go back to the older one though.

So if i drive it harder, it will shift a bit faster as it learns how i drive after a while? Actually you are right as i don't drive so hard but he does. This is very interesting...
 
#108 ·
Shifting speed is primarily influenced by the setting you select with the SMG (setting 1 being very slow setting 6 being brutal fast). These should really be adjusted to suit current driving conditions.. i.e. setting 2/3 used for in town commuting/speeds, setting 4/5 for hwy driving/speeds. Just keep adjusting it as your driving conditions change and you will fully get the hang of it after awhile - once you do the experience will be very rewarding. :woot:
 
#123 ·
-The good news is that my wife drive it on long trips
-She can drive it home when I'm drinking

I wish someone come up with a system that would allow you to use 2 pedels in auto mode and when you want to shift a third clutch pedel would deploy and you could use as a traditional manual!
 
#125 ·
Heres's one, nearly identical M3's, my SMG vs my friends Stick shift, starting somewhere around 40/50 mph in 3rd gear using setting S6 . i plan to convert to stick shift in the future though.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr9gXyAR6DU
 
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