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      03-09-2014, 05:43 AM   #51
MeganeTrophyGuy
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Drives: M135i & Cayenne V6
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Tokyo

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kamazzi View Post
Since the accident, I have another F20, but now I have a 50kg bag of cement in the boot putting some downforce on the rear axle. The car handles much better now.
Is the M135i really that dangerous that it needs sandbags in the trunk? Now I am getting really worried since I have one on order. As I said, I have had 7 BMWs over the years and though I test drove the M135i 3-4 times, I never felt anything but VERY impressed with how it stacked up against my previous E36 M3 and E46 Alpina B3S as well as my wife's various bimmers.

The last car I ever felt I needed to put sandbags in the trunk for was a 1968 Cougar XR7, but my first race instructor told me that was absolutely the wrong thing to do (putting sandbags behind the rear axle). It may be different for the M135i but for the Cougar I was told that while piling sandbags in the trunk does help to prevent a spin somewhat (a major problem with late 60s Mustangs and Cougars), as soon as the rear end does start to break loose, it supposedly becomes significantly more difficult to recover because of the added inertia of the extra weight. What I was told was that the safe and useful thing to do, while inconvenient, was to put the sandbags in the back seat ahead of the rear axle. This keeps the car more balanced and doesn't add nearly as much rotational interia that you need to stop during a spin, yet it provides almost the identical benefits (without the drawbacks) of sandbags in the trunk. I wasn't about to put a sandbag in the back seat and instead just drove slower in the rain until I got my next car, a Datsun 240Z.

Very sad to hear that the BMW would knowingly sell such a dangerous car...
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