SMG or Manual.

[Joyriide1113]

I was looking at an M5 the other day and admiring it a bit. Noticed it had SMG transmission.

I know how to drive manual, granted I am NOT quick shifter as my experience is very limited.

How easy/hard is SMG to learn?

Would it be safe to assume that even someone with NO experience with manual clutch transmissions can operate an SMG.

Joy.

[pdstreeter]

Joy, I have an M3 with SMG - this is my second one of these and believe me, I would not want to be without it. Gear changes are much faster than any manual. It takes a little getting used to, but it is absolutely fabulous! Paul

[Joyriide1113]

Can u over rev or stall with an SMG tranny?

[mrkbbd]

thats up for interpretation, supposedly no, but I testdrove a M3 vert SMG and it stalled, but then again it hadnt been turned on in over a month.

[JCL]

First, the M5 SMG is more sophisticated than my Z4.

It is easy to learn the basics, but practice makes perfect. Anyone can drive it immediately, but it is driver practice that makes it very smooth. It simply isn't a manual or an automatic, it is a different animal.

IMO, that is the reason that the magazines are so down on the SMG, they have a series of new drivers, unfamiliar with it, and usually in a new car that hasn't been broken in yet. After 5000 km mine became much smoother, and in that time I learned how to best take advantage of it.

You can't stall it like you can a manual with a clutch. Having said that, there are times when mine has stalled, usually when cold, coming into my steep driveway, downshifting, and braking. Take any one of those out of the equation, and it wouldn't stall. I think mine has stalled three times in three years.

Theoretically you can't over rev with it, it protects you, but I wouldn't want to guarantee that. I am sure it is possible to do something silly enough to cost $$$.

I would buy another, but I also like my automatic and our 5 speed manual. I think certain transmissions fit certain cars and styles of driving.

[Wagner]

I would just hate to have a SMG when the warranty expires...can't imagine something that complex doesn't cost serious cash to work on.

[DINANM3]

Originally Posted by WagnerX5

I would just hate to have a SMG when the warranty expires...can't imagine something that complex doesn't cost serious cash to work on.

I would defiantely go with SMG unless BMW ever comes out with a DSG type tranny like audi

[SANguru]

fairly easy to learn. My wife was able to drive both my E46 m3 SMG and E60 M5 straight off the lot with no problems. You cannot stall an SMG and you do have to shift it in Sequential mode. SMG will not let you overrev any downshifts. You do have to practice to be smooth since there is a clutch so throttle tip in on start up etc will require to feather the gas just like a normal manual. Be aware though that you will be filling up quite a lot. The cruising range is pretty sad. ~150miles a tank.

[hayaku]

for street, without a doubt SMG. rush hour traffic, ease of driving, ability to pass it over to a newbie driver, etc... things you just complain about or can't do when you have a stick...

for race/track, stick.. i've been able to get smg to goof and had to recover while at speed... same complaint from the instructors at spartanburg as well as racers who have tried the m3 smg car at race events... extremely hard to do in a street environment tho so no real worries if you never reach the limit, but for those that think about a race conversion later on, think twice about smg...

cost to work on aint that crazy. its the SAME tranny as the stick except it has extra parts. the extra parts are the actuator and smg pumps... so its not that much more. the e60m5's tranny is a true sequential and will be absolutely different then any h pattern shifter...