My 360 has lost its parking spot

LOL!
Very nice comercial!

 

Not true, the old Gallardo engine was a 5.0 liter, the new lp560 is a 5.2.

 

Yea, I should have said it was a commercial.

Here is another commercial with one like the one I got. These are great commercials.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6rj5jisB7g

 

True. They are the EXACT same engine. Only difference is the V-10 R8 engine has been de-tuned/restricted to only putting out 525hp vs the LP560 at 552hp. Different ECU map as well. R8 is "supposed" to be smoother while the Gallardo still has that "grunt and jump". It is said that only a minor ecu de-restrict is needed and it will run like the LP560.

 

Having driven both, I confirm that this is true. The R8 is a lot smoother, which to me, for a true sports car, is not necessarily a good thing.

 

Ok. Here are some pictures.
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

I think I will put some carbon fiber in the engine.
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

And here are a couple pics of the new R8 V10 Roadster that I took at the SD Auto Show.
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Here is a picture I had of my S54 M Roadster, with the hardtop on it.
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Thank you for those amazing pictures! The garage backdrop is a very nice touch. especially for the R8. I also really like how the interior is spec'd out on your M coupe.

 

Awesome garage you have there and a great fleet of cars! I have a 360 spider and R8 aswell, it's a perfect combo...

 

I had one of the first M roadsters in 98 before they figured out how to put traction control in the car. It was a blast. I should have kept it.

 

Nice garage. Seems, because of the climate, ONLY in California can one have a garage like that. Here, in FL, things would rust from the humidity and there'd be bugs everywhere!!

RMX

 

I dont think that m Z3 uses a S54. Is the new MZ that uses the 333hp S54 mpower engine.
That chasis belongs to the e36 series which uses a S52 mpower engine.

Did you swap engines?

 

No, the OP is right; the e36 Z3 chassis had two different powerplants from the factory. For '98-'00, it was an S52 (240 bhp), and in '01 and '02, it was the S54 (315 bhp). The S54 in the M Roadster was rated a few less bhp than the same engine in the e46 M3, supposedly due to a different exhaust manifold. Owners reported that the S52 was closer in performance to the S54 than you would think, because the torque curve on the S52 was fatter at lower RPM, but there is no doubt that wrung out, the S54 was faster. If you want a Z3 based M, the '01-'02s are the ones most desired. Love the red/black interior!

 

Carnut. Of all my cars, based on what I know about you, I think you would like the M Roadster the best. The engine is too much for the chassis and it is easy to get it to kick out. It takes a lot of skill to drive it at the limit. Skills I don't have, but you do.

My first Z3 was a '98 2.8 in Boston Green. Even though I sold the car to an excellent buyer, a Navy officer, I regretted it the following day. My wife had a '99 2.8 auto in Atlantic Blue and she regretted selling hers. So the third time we were not going to make that mistake. This one is a keeper. The other cars will come and go, but not this one.

 

That is not correct. The 240hp S52 engine was used on M Roadsters until the 2000 model year. The Z3 chassis was mated with the S54 engine for all 2001-2002 M Roadster models. Same engine as the E46 M3, but in the M Roadster, due to shorter exhaust routing, it makes 315HP. 1,500 S54 M Roadsters were built for those two years during a 15 month production run.

 

well the 98 I had was very easy (I did a 360 in front of BMW of the Main Line, they still talk about that over there), to kick out, and I think I drove the car sideways as much as I did in a straight line LOL. I have owned about 20 BMW's over the years and have a soft spot for them.

 

It is amazing the following the 1st gen M Roadsters have. I sold mine and still regret it. It wasn't the fastest or best handling car but it was a blast to drive.

 

My bad!
I thought that the last Z3 Mpower was launched on the 00 with the e36 MS52 engine. I didn’t know that it came with the S54 engine. I know the S54 very well since I built my 02 M3 to the limit!
Supercharged it and put a progressive nitrous system on it.
Here are some pictures;
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Here is how the S54 Engine looks stuffed into my M Roadster
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Love that garage!!!

 

Again, nice garage. I also have V8 R8 and 430 spider. Although some may disagree, I prefer to drive car with a bit of character. Like many of us, I went through various high end sports cars and there is nothing like Ferrari. R8 is nice but too tame and polished. I prefer my 430's "watch out you fools, I'm gonna kick your XXX if you don't get out of my way" attitude than my R8's "pardon me, can you please move so I can pass you." When I got my R8, the V10 wasn't available. If it was me, I would gotten the V10. You can never have enough horsepower.

 

Well the reason you prefer the 430 over the R8 is the reason I prefer the V8 R8 over the V10. The V10 was just to tame and civilized and not as much fun as the V8. Of course I could lap faster on the V10 no doubt as you correctly point out, you can never have enough HP. But then again, I know that a C63 AMG has more HP than my RS4 did and one out gunned me to a corner once whilst I was in that lower powered RS4, but once in the corner, he had more power (really more torque) than his wheels could handle and I easly passed him into the corner as his traction control went into spasims. My AMG cars always had more HP, but finese always won out in corners. Wait, I am describing a Ferrari, like the 430.

Well I kept my 360, cuz, my R8 is no substitute for it, even if I can drive the R8 faster. Can't wait for it to get back from the shop!

Personally, I think nobody has any business comparing any R8 to a 430. Different leagues. Just my 2 cent. I bought the R8 cuz I love it, not cuz I think it is better than a 430 or one of the new Ferraris.

For that matter, too much torque or not, lousy mid corner traction or not, and fish out of water in rain compared to an RS4 shark in rain, my favorite car of all time is a 2001 W208 AMG CLK55.

 

Congrats on the R8...time to extend for a bigger garage.