No love for ZHP coupes?

[Bird-Dog]

^ It would be interesting to know how the decision to offer the ZHP package on coupes and convertibles came about.

It could be that they planned it from the start, phasing in the 2-doors, in typical fashion, a year after the sedans. Or, it may be that it was in reaction to customer demand. If their salespeople heard "But, why can't I order it on a 2-door?" often enough, that input is bound to eventually make its way up the chain.

[sillieidiot]

MY term was M3-lite, not theirs. Theirs was the reasoning behind the ZHP is what I was focusing on... which was they wanted a performance sedan.

i know that. i was saying that they didn't say anything like that explicit or implied. it was merely an upgrade to the 330. otherwise they would have slotted a whole new model between the two. besides, with their mentality during the e46 generation, there's no way they would have even considered that. we'd have an //m in front of our 330 otherwise, just like the //m235 if that was the case.

with barely any performance increase i don't even know how you can still consider it an m3-lite. 330+ is more like it. that is more acceptable, there is way too much of a difference in performance for it to even be considered an M3- lol

^ It would be interesting to know how the decision to offer the ZHP package on coupes and convertibles came about.

It could be that they planned it from the start, phasing in the 2-doors, in typical fashion, a year after the sedans. Or, it may be that it was in reaction to customer demand. If their salespeople heard "But, why can't I order it on a 2-door?" often enough, that input is bound to eventually make its way up the chain.

it was planned from the start for facelifts. otherwise the zhp package wouldn't have started on the first year for coupes and delayed to 05-06. besides, if anything they made it for the coupe first. any one remember the club sport package?

[az3579]

it was planned from the start for facelifts. otherwise the zhp package wouldn't have started on the first year for coupes and delayed to 05-06. besides, if anything they made it for the coupe first. any one remember the club sport package?

The Club Sport package was purely aesthetic over a sport package car, like of like the difference between a Sport and an M-Sport.

[sillieidiot]

The Club Sport package was purely aesthetic over a sport package car, like of like the difference between a Sport and an M-Sport.

Yes, but I'm talking about the stuff on it. The ZHP was merely a package taken from off the shelf parts in other BMW packages then put together for ours. Then they added some performance stuff there after. it's just like the M3 ZCP. That thing was in no way the M3 CSL lite in any sense. They merely took off the shelf CSL stuff and put it on the M3 and bam, package.

The mt2 aero kit/interior bits was already made for the prefacelift coupes in the clubsport package. They didn't make that package from the ground up and start with the sedan like what you guys are implying they did.

[jsfbmw]

There is definitely coupe love. It has the "more sporty" or sexier body. I've also posted this in other threads, the coupe trumps the sedan in this area: wind buffeting. I have a coupe and it is pure pleasure to open the driver window and not get buffeted by wind. In a sedan, the wind whips you in the face. I can even open the passenger window and there is just a glorious wind-flow behind my head. Can't do that in a sedan. Today, the weather was a bit warmer (NJ) and I also had the sunroof open. The wind came in but did not attack my face; it was behind me. Even in the winter, I often open the driver window and blast the heat, and enjoy an open-air experience.

One curious point, for autocrossing, the Boston Chapter of the BMW CCA ranks the sedan a couple of points higher than the coupe. Wonder why that is. Nonetheless, both body styles serve their purposes. No denying the convenience of 4 doors. However, I absolutely love my coupe.

[LivesNearCostco]

I have heard the sedan has a stiffer chassis and is more stable at high speeds while the coupe turns faster because it has a shorter wheelbase. Does it have a shorter wheelbase?

[KevinC]

The coupe is actually slightly wider than the sedan, if memory serves correctly...

[3ZHPGUY]

It's all about the lines. The bodies between the saloon and the coup/vert are significantly different. After looking at them side by side, the saloon is far more refined and better looking. Quick observations are the front bumper is much closer to the grill on the saloon. The hood lines are softer and run out in a "V" shape to the windshield corners and not straight back. The side lines that run through the door handles are much shorter on the saloon and blend nicer.

You do have to get them next to each other to notice that thar are not the same, at all.


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[johnrando]

There is a post somewhere on here with a side by side comparison with pictures.

[ranger]

I thoroughly enjoyed my ZHP coupe until it was rear-ended and totaled. It was the perfect Atlanta commuter. I had other cars available - Audi A4 wagon and wife's E350 if I needed more doors.