[am3r1ka]

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[Mani59]

Thanks for the link, M850i looks miles better than the Bentley in my opinion.

[DRA]

Damn, that driver is fast. 1:39 on a M850!

[Need more practice] ...

[RJC-1]

The M850 did exceptionally well indeed.

[bloozemanAZ]

The irony is one factor the truly helped seal the deal for me on a M850i was Car and Driver's review of a 2019 last March (https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...y-the-numbers/). This was long before I saw one in person nor did the test drives against it and the Lexus LC500.

Being a long time Car and Driver reader I've come to appreciate their consistency of reviews over the years as at least in my opinion they are always fair and will point out the highs and lows of any car reviewed. So quotes such as "The M850i's rack actually feels connected to the steering wheel, and it reports back what's going on with something approaching arrogance; it seems BMW's steering crisis is over" struck a chord as they have been knocking the steering aspect for the past several years. Also they confirmed the underrated 0-60 of the M850i as for 2019 BMW claimed 3.6 for the Coupe (lowered it to 3.5 for the 2020s) with a 3.3 via launch control.

The C&D comparison was against a 2019 Continental GT with a V12. No surprise MotorTrend chose the 2020 V8 for the shootout as it sets things at a more apples to apples comparison. Running the 2020 V12 may have had a different outcome as Bentley claims 0-60 at 3.6 for the V12 vs 3.9 for the V8.

[Wolfman64]

Originally Posted by bloozemanAZ

The irony is one factor the truly helped seal the deal for me on a M850i was Car and Driver's review of a 2019 last March (https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...y-the-numbers/). This was long before I saw one in person nor did the test drives against it and the Lexus LC500.

Being a long time Car and Driver reader I've come to appreciate their consistency of reviews over the years as at least in my opinion they are always fair and will point out the highs and lows of any car reviewed. So quotes such as "The M850i's rack actually feels connected to the steering wheel, and it reports back what's going on with something approaching arrogance; it seems BMW's steering crisis is over" struck a chord as they have been knocking the steering aspect for the past several years. Also they confirmed the underrated 0-60 of the M850i as for 2019 BMW claimed 3.6 for the Coupe (lowered it to 3.5 for the 2020s) with a 3.3 via launch control.

The C&D comparison was against a 2019 Continental GT with a V12. No surprise MotorTrend chose the 2020 V8 for the shootout as it sets things at a more apples to apples comparison. Running the 2020 V12 may have had a different outcome as Bentley claims 0-60 at 3.6 for the V12 vs 3.9 for the V8.

The W12 would have done significantly worse on the track. They picked the V8 or a reason...

[bloozemanAZ]

Originally Posted by Wolfman64

The W12 would have done significantly worse on the track. They picked the V8 or a reason...

I thought the same but when I was checking the Bentley site the curb weight between the V12 (4947 lbs) and the V8 (4773 lbs) is only ~175 lbs. Granted my total ignorance regarding driving on a track but figured that wouldn't be much extra to influence body roll assuming everything else on the car (suspension, etc. is the same between the models).

[bloozemanAZ]

Originally Posted by Drunken_Russian_American

Damn, that driver is fast. 1:39 on a M850!

[Need more practice] ...

Judging by your pictures you are well younger than I (53) and unless the driver in the shootout just doesn't age well he looks to have an easy 5 if not 10 years on me. So beyond the fact he does it for a living he's got an easy over a decade of experience on you. Looking forward to as we wind the clock forward and you're crushing Laguna Seca in your latest drive and making his 1:39 look like an old man.

[WCH]

The driver is Randy Probst, who is an outstanding race driver and very experienced at Laguna Seca. He often tests cars there so no surprise he is faster than most.

[bloozemanAZ]

Originally Posted by WCH

The driver is Randy Probst, who is an outstanding race driver and very experienced at Laguna Seca. He often tests cars there so no surprise he is faster than most.

Thanks for the extra insight and now I can appreciate some of his positive comments on the M850i on a track even more. Not saying I'm going to gear up to start tracking but knowing if I do and fail it's me not the car.

[brad850csi]

This list probably sums up his experience at the track fairly well

https://fastestlaps.com/tracks/laguna-seca-post-1988

[Taheemr]

For me this a useless test, who will buy anyone of these based on their track ability, track times will be last on the any buyers mind. The Bentley is superior on all levels for obvious reasons in my view

[jh_f30]

Originally Posted by Taheemr

For me this a useless test, who will buy anyone of these based on their track ability, track times will be last on the any buyers mind. The Bentley is superior on all levels for obvious reasons in my view

But also more than double the MSRP.

[jh_f30]

Originally Posted by bloozemanAZ

I thought the same but when I was checking the Bentley site the curb weight between the V12 (4947 lbs) and the V8 (4773 lbs) is only ~175 lbs. Granted my total ignorance regarding driving on a track but figured that wouldn't be much extra to influence body roll assuming everything else on the car (suspension, etc. is the same between the models).

If you add the 175 to the 300lb weight difference indicated in the video, that's 475 extra pounds to be lugging around. If you ever drive with 3 other adults in your car, you'll notice a difference in all aspects; acceleration, braking, handling, and ride.

[Saphirschwarz]

At the same price i would obviously choose the continental GT but at 80.000€ more .... i would think again !

[Germanauto]

Originally Posted by bloozemanAZ

The irony is one factor the truly helped seal the deal for me on a M850i was Car and Driver's review of a 2019 last March (https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...y-the-numbers/). This was long before I saw one in person nor did the test drives against it and the Lexus LC500.

Being a long time Car and Driver reader I've come to appreciate their consistency of reviews over the years as at least in my opinion they are always fair and will point out the highs and lows of any car reviewed. So quotes such as "The M850i's rack actually feels connected to the steering wheel, and it reports back what's going on with something approaching arrogance; it seems BMW's steering crisis is over" struck a chord as they have been knocking the steering aspect for the past several years.

I also like C&D overall as their assessments of cars generally aligns with my own. However I found those comments surprising because personally I found the 850’s steering to be the usual fare from BMW. Edmunds did a comparison between the 850 and 992 and basically shat all over the Bimmer’s performance on the track relative to the Porsche, steering including.

[RJC-1]

In all honesty, comparing 911's to 850's makes little sense, they are two completely different kinds of cars.

[jh_f30]

Originally Posted by RJC-1

In all honesty, comparing 911's to 850's makes little sense, they are two completely different kinds of cars.

I recently drove a new Subaru Outback, steering felt like it was completely disconnected from the front wheels. Could literally steer with 2 fingers.

[DRA]

This review is valid, it is just meant for a different audience. There are plenty of other reviewers that would walk around the car for 40 minutes and talk about the color and exhaust sound and cool tech features. Petrolheads like me are always like "drive the damn thing already".

And, you can occasionally track M850i and have a lot of fun. Bimmers are anyway driver- and performance- oriented, if you are in for luxury comfort, it might be wiser to go for a Merc, Maserati (or Bentley for extra $$$).

[Wolfman64]

I think one can appreciate that the M850i beat the F90 M5 on this track; also driven by Probst

[DRA]

Haven't noticed that and that's pretty amazing.

[Wolfman64]

Originally Posted by jh_f30

If you add the 175 to the 300lb weight difference indicated in the video, that's 475 extra pounds to be lugging around. If you ever drive with 3 other adults in your car, you'll notice a difference in all aspects; acceleration, braking, handling, and ride.

More important, the 175 lbs are sitting directly on the front axle. Weight is one thing, weight distribution another.