For years, BMW enthusiasts have been complaining about the auto-rev-match function in all manually-equipped Bimmers. For those of you not in the know, auto-rev-matching allows the car’s brain to automatically blip the throttle for a downshift, to match the engine revs to the coming gear, so the driver doesn’t have to manually. Rev matching is something that many drivers have worked on and practiced for many many years, so it’s something they enjoy doing manually, especially using the famous “Heel-and-Toe” technique. So drivers often like to turn auto-rev-matching off.
However, in every manual BMW for as long as auto-rev-matching has been a thing, the only way to turn the function off was to also turn traction control and stability control all the way off. While that’s fine on a race track, it’s far less safe on the road and can actually be quite dangerous in a powerful M car. So car enthusiasts were often frustrated by this and made their complaints known in just about any way possible; be it through forums, blogs or customer complaints.
It seems as if BMW has heard these complaints and, finally, made a change. In the new G80 BMW M3 and M4, you can now turn off the auto-rev-match function without disabling traction and stability control. So, at long last, drivers can heel-and-toe to their heart’s desire without having to drive with one of the most essentially of modern safety systems.
It’s always baffled most enthusiasts, myself included, that BMW would make you turn off every last safety function to enjoy a car to its fullest. Now, though, that’s not the case. In fact, not only is it not the case but BMW has made a point to mention it. In a recent video, BMW even showed a driver taking a manual BMW M4 out for some hot laps and a camera fixed to the foot-well showed off the driver heel-and-toeing specifically.
This seemingly small feature will actually go a long way to making both the BMW M3 and M4 feel like proper driver’s cars. No longer does it limit your ability to drive the car in its purest form. So not only are the new BMW M3 and M4 available with manual transmissions but they also allow for heel-and-toe fun without any safety concerns. In a segment with cars like the Mercedes-AMG C63, Audi RS5 and Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio, the M3/M4 will truly stand out for those reasons alone.
