What made you choose a Blackwing and what else did you consider?

[eddyjoe]

I have two kids now. My cars have always been manuals and on the small side. My two cars are currently a 2017 Grand Sport and a 2013 MINI Cooper S. I drove the M3 and really did not like the gearbox. The Integra A-spec isn't anything special for what ends up being $40k. The Civic Type R and Integra Type S seem to be a bit too much cash for me for the market prices at the moment. Test drove the CTS5 BW and LOVED IT.

 

[Roadhawk]

The beautiful parts of the Evos are the steering, chassis, and easy 4 wheel drifts! Yes, guys boost them to 700+hp but even with stock power, you can destroy pretty much every other car made on a bumpy, twisty backroad. The confidence they give you to push harder through corners is pretty much unparalled.

Except in my old S4 - lol. I miss that car so much....particularly in the snow. I always had supreme confidence in snow/wet and it never let me down.

 

[Champale]

I drove an S4 Avant when they were new . . . great car but not even in the same zip code as an Evo in terms of driver involvement and pace on a backroad. Sorry but it's true!

 

[Roadhawk]

I drove an S4 Avant when they were new . . . great car but not even in the same zip code as an Evo in terms of driver involvement and pace on a backroad. Sorry but it's true!

I get it...but mine was never stock (huge difference)...many handling mods as well as Stage 3 power. Certainly not as nimble as the EVO but I could do (and did) amazing things with that car. It may not ever have had the driver involvement but I'm sure I could match any pace. I ran down Killboy on the dragon once in the wet when he had his STI....(I have that on video somewhere...man was he shocked...lol)

Once I passed a cop who was pulled over on the side of the road - It was in unplowed snow on an empty highway - I was around 70mph doing side to side (vertical to the road) drifts all the while shooting straight down the road.....he was outside of his car and just stood up and watched me and shook his head...never even bothered to try to come after me...

 

[Champale]

I bet that car was a lot of fun!

 

[Roadhawk]

I bet that car was a lot of fun!

It certainly was....and practical. I love wagons!

 

[Ergoc5]

Except in my old S4 - lol. I miss that car so much....particularly in the snow. I always had supreme confidence in snow/wet and it never let me down.

That's the best gen S4 IMO (B5)....I had it's big sister C5 A6 6 speed manual EPL stage 3 with water/meth injection 427 whp. Thing was a blast and totally stealth and caught a lot of cars by surprise. It was lowered on coilovers and had Stoptech calipers and rotors.....still miss it.

 

[Roadhawk]

My 3 babys

 

[jbawden]

I've never been a spreadsheet buyer. If I was I would only own Japanese motorcycles and a white Camry's with sunroofs. You can over-analyze yourself right out of a good time doing that.

 

[Roadhawk]

My other baby (un-restored - all original)

 

[Jim2000]

I drove an S4 Avant when they were new . . . great car but not even in the same zip code as an Evo in terms of driver involvement and pace on a backroad. Sorry but it's true!

So true. The Evo was an exceptional machine and could beat any BMW E36 M3 or S4.

 

[Deneed4spd]

You guys are funny stating you can wail on a 4BW on the street and not get arrested. Where I live most roads are 45 mph and hwy 60. Those numbers come very quickly in a 4BW. Heck top of 3rd gear on a 4 BW, your at speeds where u can get arrested. Both 4 and 5 BWs and most M cars will easily get you in a lot of trouble on street. Probably need to get into cars that do 0-60 in 5 secs to play it safe on street and be able to wind out gears.

 

[dinkman]

Nice list! My recent analysis was much easier. I'd scratch off half the cars because they don't have manual transmissions. I'd scratch off any BMWs because of the rubbery transmissions, perceived low quality (I owned one, stuff just broke--little stuff and big stuff, all the time--yes, just one sample but still), and I don't like the interior design or the exterior looks anymore (they had both dialed in 10 years ago or so). I'd scratch off the VWs because of excessive reliance on bad touchscreens and rubbery shifters.

3rd place would have been the 4BW ... but I already have a 5BW so it's too similar.

Integra Type S is fantastic, but it's too refined for what I want. At this point I'm only buying impractical cars.

Ended up buying a GR Corolla just before 2023 ended, when a local dealer was motivated to sell. I'm in love with the way it drives. But the interior is awful, and the programming in the car is also awful. Toyota spent all their time and money on the drivetrain, everything else in that car is an afterthought. And yet it's exactly what I wanted.

yea i really wanted to love the GR but I'm replacing a v8 TT audi luxury car daily driver and I just could go from that to the interior of the corolla. it was so bad when i sat in it.

 

[dinkman]

I realized you asked about the E90, not the G80, sorry!

Sold that back in 2016 due to work. Wanted a vehicle I didn’t mind beating up (military utilizing range roads).

Since then, complete regret. If I knew what they would fetch today, I would have never sold it. It was AW over Fox Red, 6MT, slick roof, Comp, with 30k miles. Just perfect.

these were just some of mine I still have pics of. that car was just so good but they just become maintenance nightmares over time. i wouldnt want to own one any more

 

[dinkman]

dinkman - you will LOVE your 4BW I promise. I recently test drove a 4BW 6sp shortly after taking delivery of my 5BW 6sp and was blown away by the driving sharpness of the 4 vs the 5 and posted my thoughts in another thread.

CT4-V Blackwing...kind of slow

Anybody else feel like these cars are kind of slow? On youtube it gets smoked by everything comparable to it (Camaro SS, BMW M-cars and even the M340i). When I give it gas on the streets it feels heavy and I can't really feel the power. I feel like there needs to be some sort of factory revision...

www.cadillacvnet.com

I will add that I am loving my 5 more and more as I get some miles under my belt. It's such an animal! But the 4BW is simply incredible to drive - it's hard to believe it's a 3800lb sedan when you drive it because it drives like a much smaller, lighter car. And I say this as someone who owns a Lotus Evora 400 and has owned all manner of light-ish rally style cars (WRX, 3 Mitsubishi Evos, Focus RS, Civic Type R).

i dont know if you're helping me feel better about the 4bw or convincing me to go the other way haha
i had a 400 too. was great little track toy. sold it last year

 

[dinkman]

Sure the 5 is an absolute monster and unless you tune the 4 it will never quite be that. I think the 4 will be generally more fun and easier to push without getting very illegal. I get the appeal of the 5 - in many ways...but to me the 4 is the better option for most IMO.

i hear you but a lot of the same was said of the shelby cobra or f type r as high hp v8's but i never thought that owning them. both were enjoyable on the street. you didnt have to go 100mph+ for that

 

[dinkman]

That's the best gen S4 IMO (B5)....I had it's big sister C5 A6 6 speed manual EPL stage 3 with water/meth injection 427 whp. Thing was a blast and totally stealth and caught a lot of cars by surprise. It was lowered on coilovers and had Stoptech calipers and rotors.....still miss it.

the b8.5 was a really good one too with the supercharger. mine was stage 2, brembo bbk

 

[dinkman]

I've never been a spreadsheet buyer. If I was I would only own Japanese motorcycles and a white Camry's with sunroofs. You can over-analyze yourself right out of a good time doing that.

i hear you and agree but with older age i've lost spontaneity and resorted to spreadsheet analysis paralysis haha

 

[Ergoc5]

the b8.5 was a really good one too with the supercharger. mine was stage 2, brembo bbk
View attachment 23520

Yeah forgot about the supercharged one ...I almost bought one back in 2012 but ended up with a V2. I really liked the early aughts Audis though ....had that C5 A6 and a C5 RS6.

 

[Champale]

i dont know if you're helping me feel better about the 4bw or convincing me to go the other way haha
i had a 400 too. was great little track toy. sold it last year

Beautiful 400!

I would say that my 4 vs 5 decision would have been different if the 4 had a usable back seat: I would have gladly saved 25-30k and gotten a 4BW. And now that I have driven the 4, I know that it would satisfy my needs as a performance car. But I need a good back seat for passengers and the bonus of the monstrous LT4 is nice.