1. You said the engine of a 911 is "in the wrong place" ala Clarkson. and "electronic trickery" is the only thing that makes the car work.
Very wrong - modern 911's have a phenomenal amount of mechanical grip - achieved through engineering rather that electronics. GT3 RS (which you purport to having driven) would be a case in point.
2. I owned an E46 M3 in 2005. Kept it for a year - fantastic car. I'm not really bothered whether you consider me a "cock" or not, (classic internet warrior speak) but - to answer your question, I don't own an M3 currently - although one of my closest friends still does; a 20k mile minter - and I consider him to be a true enthusiast of the marque and anything but a "cock" - but I digress.
3. Are you "on the back-foot" with this discussion ?. Resorting to insults is usually the sign of someone with a weak argument - and clearly you have a very limited knowldge of these cars. Your observations concerning "electronic trickery" are misconceived, ill judged and have no basis in fact.
4. What are your reasons for not wanting a modern Porsche/ BMW ?
5. In my opinion you'd look a much larger "cock" driving a modified Renault Clio (like yours) than any of Stuttgart's or Munich's offerings.
Hate to clog this thread up but I really must answer your questions as you deserve an answer.
1: I only say the engine is in the wrong place because quite simply it is.. Its widly known that the perfect position for an engine is mid mounted and not over the rear wheels. Its simple physics really. I'm not discounting that the current 911 GT3 has bags of grip. This chassis has been developed over the past 40/50 years so it should be right but that doesn't discount that the engine is in the wrong place. Hence why no one else has copied this configuration unlike the countless of manufacturers that have copied Ferrari and Lamborghini.
As for there being no electronic trickery in the GT3 I can only presume that the electromechanical rear axle steering, the Porsche torque vectoring steering, the active suspension management and the electronically controlled dynamic engine mounts have nothing whatsoever to do with its phenomenal handling.
2: Never said the M3 wasn't a great car, your friend probably isn't a cock just because he has an M3. As said my on the road experience of M3 drivers has been one that has been mared by bad driving, ill manners and dangerous behaviour. On reflection maybe I shouldn't tar everyone with the same brush so in that respect I do offer an apology if I offended you.
As for being an internet warrior I think my long established membership and 5000+ post count can prove without a shadow of doubt that I am certainly not in that class.
3: Definitely not on the back foot and dealt with in point 1.
4: Simple answer really, I don't like them enough to spend hard earned money on
them.There are countless cars I would rather own. I'm not a fan of BMW's design and I have no passion for a Porsche.
5: I drive a fully stickered up chav wagon so I'm fully aware that some people hate my car and refer to me as a cock but tbh I couldn't care less. They are actually entitled to form their own opinion rightly or wrongly as I do, however, in all fairness someone who comes on to a "Clio" forum where 85% of the cars are modded with the opinion that they are bigger cocks than German cars drivers could be seen as a keyboard warrior themselves.