what happened to the venting above the exhaust? Take a look at the last picture in this link. - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

well im liking that PS..front side is good..but the rear with the wierd licence plate thingy..is very ugly..
and the bootlid feels naked..and just like a surface..of just well NOTHING..
i hope that this wont be the way the rear turns out

dude, screw the venting...if you look at the pics of the back...the whole diffuser is distorted. I know that weight is important..but messing up the diffuser to save some weight is just retarted. Last time I checked, aerodynamics are much more important at high speeds than weight...may be I'm wrong here?

If they had placed the badge lower down on the boot (ala Phaeton):



it might look better. But like many of you I prefer the standard E92 rear.

The 1 series has something similar.

Ah yes, forgot about that. It would have made a better case for the E92, then:

I was under the impression that venting was for heat dissipation purposes, not weight savings. Aerodynamics on a road car are basically useless with the exception of high performance purpose built sport cars, like the Ferrari Enzo or Carrera GT. While the M3 may be a great car, it's not a purpose built sports car. The M3 is just a 3 series coupe with uprated components, which itself is just designed to be a daily commuter (no matter what BMW tries to tell you). The underbody of this car is far from smooth (look at F1 cars and supercars like the Enzo, SLR and Carrera GT, they have smooth underbodies) so air traveling to the diffuser at the back of the M3 is so disrupted, the diffuser is useless. The diffuser is more for looks than anything else.

If that's a true picture and the license plate is in bumper...it gives a very honda/ toyota appearance to trunk lid.

Venting isn't always for heat dissipation, sometimes it's to direct airflow within without disrupting outer airflow, look at NASCAR. As for the M3 not needing the diffuser like the Enzo, SLR and CGT. You couldn't be dead wrong. Aerodynamics come into effect at as low speeds as 85mph if not lower but they get into prime at 120mph. BMW never said that this was a supercar but it definitely is a performance car. I've worked on my M3 and I the undercarriage was surprisingly smooth. Honestly, you weren't expecting F1 tech in a 50k car were you? F1 is purely designed with performance in mind whilst this is designed with day-to-day functionality and performance in mind. I've done 155 in my m3 quite a bit of times and how many time I've gone over 120 mph I can't even count. Saying that a diffuser is useless is saying that R or ZR rated tires are useless as well. All of this depends on the driver. I for myself am glad that these cars come with ZR/R rated tires as well as the ///M team invests heavily in Aerodynamics. Just because this car isn't a supercar doesn't mean it doesn't need the right amount of aerodynamic downforce and etc, etc.

I'm not debating if aerodynamics exist. They do, no doubt. You said that the venting was for weight saving, not aerodynamics but I appreciate the new info. I know M cars are performance automobiles. I have an E60 M5 and I've been to the BMW driving school and driven the entire current M lineup. I've also gone 155 more than once. So we're in the same club. I'm well aware of the fact that M cars aren't pure performance cars, I said that in my last post. You're kind of repeating me. What I'm trying to say is that BMW is in the business of selling cars and if that require adding some frivolous stuff sell their car, then they're going to do it. Your comment about not expecting F1 tech in a 50k car kind of proves my point. BMW doesn't shut up about the fact that the M5/M6 have F1 inspired tech (engine and transmission). The diffuser is for looks. Tire ratings aren't.