e92 M3 Reviews from CAR/Autocar/Edumnds/Top Gear
07-06-07, 12:35 PM
#1
Guest
Posts: n/a
e92 M3 Reviews from CAR/Autocar/Edumnds/Top Gear
http://www.autocarmagazine.co....26432/
BMW M3
Test date 04 July 2007 Price when new £50,625
What is it?
If you’ve never heard of the BMW M3 then, frankly, you’ve clicked on the wrong website. If you have, you’ll know all about the car that’s done as much for BMW’s image over the past 20 years as all the rest of them put together (well, almost). And now there’s a brand-new version, the fourth all-new model since the original of 1986.
The big news in this instance is the engine. The first-ever M3 was left-hand drive and used a high-revving in-line four, the next two versions used increasingly powerful incarnations of BMW M-division’s straight six. This one’s got a 4.0-litre V8. Except this ain’t no ordinary V8.
Without going into too much technical detail (because you can and should read more about car and engine in the magazine on 11 July), this is an engine that has eight individual throttle bodies, revs to an astonishing 8400rpm and develops 414bhp at 8300rpm and 295lb ft at 3900rpm in the process.
Installed in a new M3 that weighs just 78kg more than the previous 339bhp model, the new engine provides BMW’s new icon with what you could describe as ample performance: 0-60mph in 4.8sec and 0-100mph in around 10sec dead.
When it goes on sale in August the new M3 will cost £50,625 and come with sat-nav, Bluetooth connection, part-leather cabin and a six-speed manual as standard. You’ll also get an evolutionary version of BMW’s M-diff as standard, as well as a version of the M6’s M-drive system whereby you can change the settings for the traction control, steering weight, damper stiffness and throttle response at the press of a button on the steering wheel. EDC dampers will be optional.
What’s it like?
On the one hand, it’s amazingly rapid but also surprisingly civilised for a car wearing an M3 badge. The ride is smooth-going-on-luxury with the M-drive set to normal, while the steering, brakes and throttle response are each curiously soft in response to begin with. This car, you think, is more like an old M5 on the road, and not at all how you’d expect a smaller, sharper, nimbler M3 to be.
Then you pres the M-button and - even with all the systems on their most aggressive settings - it’s still not quite what you’d expect from a new M3. It’s fast with a capital F, of course, but the rest of the car seems too refined for its own good on the road.
And the steering never scores more than six out of 10 no matter where or how you drive the car. Nor do the brakes, which suffered from fade on the road and went away badly on the track. Or the fuel consumption, which was regularly down in the mid-teens on roads on which the old car would have hit well over 20mpg.
Should I buy one?
You are not likely to be disappointed by the new M3 because in many ways it is a deeply impressive car, with a huge range of abilities and very few flaws. But if you were expecting a faster, yet more exciting version of the old car, you might want to wait until the CSL version appears which, on this evidence, will need to happen sooner rather than later to truly keep the legend alive. Even so, as an everyday super-coupe the M3 is some motorcar. So long as you can afford the fuel bills.
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________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
BMW M3
Test date 04 July 2007 Price when new £50,625
What is it?
If you’ve never heard of the BMW M3 then, frankly, you’ve clicked on the wrong website. If you have, you’ll know all about the car that’s done as much for BMW’s image over the past 20 years as all the rest of them put together (well, almost). And now there’s a brand-new version, the fourth all-new model since the original of 1986.
The big news in this instance is the engine. The first-ever M3 was left-hand drive and used a high-revving in-line four, the next two versions used increasingly powerful incarnations of BMW M-division’s straight six. This one’s got a 4.0-litre V8. Except this ain’t no ordinary V8.
Without going into too much technical detail (because you can and should read more about car and engine in the magazine on 11 July), this is an engine that has eight individual throttle bodies, revs to an astonishing 8400rpm and develops 414bhp at 8300rpm and 295lb ft at 3900rpm in the process.
Installed in a new M3 that weighs just 78kg more than the previous 339bhp model, the new engine provides BMW’s new icon with what you could describe as ample performance: 0-60mph in 4.8sec and 0-100mph in around 10sec dead.
When it goes on sale in August the new M3 will cost £50,625 and come with sat-nav, Bluetooth connection, part-leather cabin and a six-speed manual as standard. You’ll also get an evolutionary version of BMW’s M-diff as standard, as well as a version of the M6’s M-drive system whereby you can change the settings for the traction control, steering weight, damper stiffness and throttle response at the press of a button on the steering wheel. EDC dampers will be optional.
What’s it like?
On the one hand, it’s amazingly rapid but also surprisingly civilised for a car wearing an M3 badge. The ride is smooth-going-on-luxury with the M-drive set to normal, while the steering, brakes and throttle response are each curiously soft in response to begin with. This car, you think, is more like an old M5 on the road, and not at all how you’d expect a smaller, sharper, nimbler M3 to be.
Then you pres the M-button and - even with all the systems on their most aggressive settings - it’s still not quite what you’d expect from a new M3. It’s fast with a capital F, of course, but the rest of the car seems too refined for its own good on the road.
And the steering never scores more than six out of 10 no matter where or how you drive the car. Nor do the brakes, which suffered from fade on the road and went away badly on the track. Or the fuel consumption, which was regularly down in the mid-teens on roads on which the old car would have hit well over 20mpg.
Should I buy one?
You are not likely to be disappointed by the new M3 because in many ways it is a deeply impressive car, with a huge range of abilities and very few flaws. But if you were expecting a faster, yet more exciting version of the old car, you might want to wait until the CSL version appears which, on this evidence, will need to happen sooner rather than later to truly keep the legend alive. Even so, as an everyday super-coupe the M3 is some motorcar. So long as you can afford the fuel bills.
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________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
07-06-07, 12:35 PM
#2
Guest
Posts: n/a
Another so-so first drive review from CAR magazine
http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/f...age=1
You’ve driven the new BMW M3 then?
Oh yes. The E92 model is the fourth generation of the M3, a car that first arrived in 1986. Back then it had a four-cylinder engine with around 200bhp. The new car doubles that with a V8 and 414bhp, but the basic ingredients remain the same: rear-wheel drive, a limited slip differential and a motorsport-inspired engine that revs to a whopping 8400rpm.
When it goes on sale in the UK in early September, the M3 will cost £50,625 and will, at first, be available only as a two-door coupe. A convertible and four-door saloon are expected to follow next year, while a Touring wagon is under evalution but less likely to make production. All in all, the broadened range will help break (hopes BMW) the 100,000-unit barrier for the first time. The last M3 – 2000’s six-cylinder E46 – is a tough act to follow, however.
So M3 grows up, gets two more cylinders. Didn’t that end in disaster last time around?
Not disaster, no, but the purists weren’t pleased when the second-generation E36 arrived in 1992. But it was a brave move and something that transformed the M3 from a niche motorsport product to the international icon it is today.
The last car’s 3.2-litre six-cylinder wouldn’t meet forthcoming emissions regulations and rivals – including Audi with the RS4 and Mercedes with the C63 AMG – upped the game with V8s, leaving Munich with little option but to match them. The American market has been a big consideration too, 50 percent of all cars expected to go Stateside.
This, then, is the first time the M3 has changed significantly since 1992.
Cut to the chase man! Is it any good?
Yes it is but, just like back in 1992, the E92 will leave the hardcore craving more – there’s definitely room for a hardcore CSL-style edition, more of which later. And the V8 does significantly alter the M3’s character. Where before a creamy straight-six throatiness was followed by the trademark metallic rasp towards peak rpms, now a nice woofly warble under lighter throttle loads precedes a hard-edged – if more muted – charge for the redline. The spine-tingling zinginess of the E46 car is gone, replaced by a more mature, if still exhilarating, progression.
Unsurprisingly, the quest for a high-revving engine has left a hole in the torque low down, so you need to stir that six-speed manual (the only option for now, though SMG will follow) to really get moving. The ’box is carried over from the E46 and obviously shares its characteristics: direct but a little arthritic.
Doesn’t a big V8 ruin the handling?
Impressively, the new larger engine is 15kg lighter than the six-pot in the E46 thanks to clever lightweight tech. But, like the rest of the E92 range, turn-in still feels a bit dumbed down and numb. Understeer was never an issue in the last car – it just dived into a corner with razor-sharp precision. The new M3 has a little more roll on turn-in, and you can feel the loads building on the front tyre as forces increase.
Strangely, the suspension might not be entirely to blame; Michelin developed tyres specially for the M3 that feature a compound to induce mild understeer in more extreme circumstances. Quite why this is necessary we’re not sure. BMW has already fitted stability control, and the steering wheel-activated M mode allows a little oversteer while still retaining a safety net. We’d be intrigued to drive a car on regular rubber.
Tell me about the steering, ride and brakes
I will. As you’d expect, less focused handling does improve the ride quality significantly with the M3 soaking up bumps much better than its predecessor ever did. There are also three (optional) cockpit-adjustable suspension settings, so you can stiffen the dampers and reduce body roll for track work. However, BMW supplied all the test cars on 18in alloys, so we’re unable to report on the lower profile – and doubtless hugely popular – 19in option.
The steering is light and impressively linear but lacks the meaty heft of its big brother, the M5, or the finely detailed feedback of a 911.
Brakes have long been an M3 weakness, but the single caliper items fitted to the test car coped admirably with high-speed runs on the tortuous Spanish mountain roads that formed our road route. They did squeak embarrassingly however, as they did on several test cars. And whether they’ll last on track we’re yet to find out – we were limited to one lap before coming back through the pits to queue for another run, allowing the stoppers to cool.
Is the E92 as easy to powerslide as its predecessors?
How childish of you. Once you’re sideways the E92 is an extremely easy, progressive car to hold in a drift (see p1), but it takes a little more determination to get it there in the first place thanks to that softer, woollier front end.
The M differential once again makes an appearance – a key ingredient in making the last car so easy to slide – offering progressive power transfer from a spinning wheel to one with more grip until, under extreme duress, the diff locks completely and both tyres spin with equal ferocity.
You’ll feel it on the road, making tight hairpins a pleasure to exit on the power rather than the one-wheel bonfire that is the BMW 335i. All that extra power – nearly 80bhp up from last time – does mean the traction control intervenes more frequently, but it’s rarely intrusive and keen drivers can reduce its role with a press of the M button.
What’s the interior like?
With high quality plastics and leather, intuitively laid out controls (iDrive will always have its detractors, but for the most part we like it) and sound ergonomics, the new M3 is a good place to be. In fact, it’s simply an organic evolution of the old model, something that will appeal to those turned off by the M5 and M6’s hyper-tech interiors and illuminated gearknobs.
The seats (leather and cloth as standard, or optional full leather) are geared for comfort and, though perfect in most conditions, would benefit from M5-sytle active bolsters to better grip lunatics on a mission. As before, rear legroom is nothing more than adequate so six footers sitting behind six footers will feel cramped.
Verdict
The M3 has grown up and lost a little of the E46’s edge to the more weight/more power vicious circle. But BMW has no doubt judged the market perfectly. The M3 is now a genuine volume seller and, last time, accounted for 13 percent of all UK 3-series sales. The new car needs to be a brilliant all-round package, capable of pleasing those who like the idea of the badge more than what it first stood for: track-honed thrills. And it is very, very good. This car is fast, practical, well built, comfortable and safe.
But in trying to hit so many targets, the E92 leaves purists wanting. So a CSL – a lightweight, more dynamically focused special edition – is now an absolute must and should form an integral part of the range going forward, filling the niche that the original E30 once satisfied in 1986. The good news is BMW’s top brass dropped some very large hints in the press conference, so the CSL sounds like a dead cert. We’d bet on it arriving in 2010.
If you want a great all-rounder and you don’t drive everywhere at ten tenths, the new M3 won’t disappoint. But if you crave trackday thrills, hold fire for a CSL.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...3D172
http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/f...age=1
You’ve driven the new BMW M3 then?
Oh yes. The E92 model is the fourth generation of the M3, a car that first arrived in 1986. Back then it had a four-cylinder engine with around 200bhp. The new car doubles that with a V8 and 414bhp, but the basic ingredients remain the same: rear-wheel drive, a limited slip differential and a motorsport-inspired engine that revs to a whopping 8400rpm.
When it goes on sale in the UK in early September, the M3 will cost £50,625 and will, at first, be available only as a two-door coupe. A convertible and four-door saloon are expected to follow next year, while a Touring wagon is under evalution but less likely to make production. All in all, the broadened range will help break (hopes BMW) the 100,000-unit barrier for the first time. The last M3 – 2000’s six-cylinder E46 – is a tough act to follow, however.
So M3 grows up, gets two more cylinders. Didn’t that end in disaster last time around?
Not disaster, no, but the purists weren’t pleased when the second-generation E36 arrived in 1992. But it was a brave move and something that transformed the M3 from a niche motorsport product to the international icon it is today.
The last car’s 3.2-litre six-cylinder wouldn’t meet forthcoming emissions regulations and rivals – including Audi with the RS4 and Mercedes with the C63 AMG – upped the game with V8s, leaving Munich with little option but to match them. The American market has been a big consideration too, 50 percent of all cars expected to go Stateside.
This, then, is the first time the M3 has changed significantly since 1992.
Cut to the chase man! Is it any good?
Yes it is but, just like back in 1992, the E92 will leave the hardcore craving more – there’s definitely room for a hardcore CSL-style edition, more of which later. And the V8 does significantly alter the M3’s character. Where before a creamy straight-six throatiness was followed by the trademark metallic rasp towards peak rpms, now a nice woofly warble under lighter throttle loads precedes a hard-edged – if more muted – charge for the redline. The spine-tingling zinginess of the E46 car is gone, replaced by a more mature, if still exhilarating, progression.
Unsurprisingly, the quest for a high-revving engine has left a hole in the torque low down, so you need to stir that six-speed manual (the only option for now, though SMG will follow) to really get moving. The ’box is carried over from the E46 and obviously shares its characteristics: direct but a little arthritic.
Doesn’t a big V8 ruin the handling?
Impressively, the new larger engine is 15kg lighter than the six-pot in the E46 thanks to clever lightweight tech. But, like the rest of the E92 range, turn-in still feels a bit dumbed down and numb. Understeer was never an issue in the last car – it just dived into a corner with razor-sharp precision. The new M3 has a little more roll on turn-in, and you can feel the loads building on the front tyre as forces increase.
Strangely, the suspension might not be entirely to blame; Michelin developed tyres specially for the M3 that feature a compound to induce mild understeer in more extreme circumstances. Quite why this is necessary we’re not sure. BMW has already fitted stability control, and the steering wheel-activated M mode allows a little oversteer while still retaining a safety net. We’d be intrigued to drive a car on regular rubber.
Tell me about the steering, ride and brakes
I will. As you’d expect, less focused handling does improve the ride quality significantly with the M3 soaking up bumps much better than its predecessor ever did. There are also three (optional) cockpit-adjustable suspension settings, so you can stiffen the dampers and reduce body roll for track work. However, BMW supplied all the test cars on 18in alloys, so we’re unable to report on the lower profile – and doubtless hugely popular – 19in option.
The steering is light and impressively linear but lacks the meaty heft of its big brother, the M5, or the finely detailed feedback of a 911.
Brakes have long been an M3 weakness, but the single caliper items fitted to the test car coped admirably with high-speed runs on the tortuous Spanish mountain roads that formed our road route. They did squeak embarrassingly however, as they did on several test cars. And whether they’ll last on track we’re yet to find out – we were limited to one lap before coming back through the pits to queue for another run, allowing the stoppers to cool.
Is the E92 as easy to powerslide as its predecessors?
How childish of you. Once you’re sideways the E92 is an extremely easy, progressive car to hold in a drift (see p1), but it takes a little more determination to get it there in the first place thanks to that softer, woollier front end.
The M differential once again makes an appearance – a key ingredient in making the last car so easy to slide – offering progressive power transfer from a spinning wheel to one with more grip until, under extreme duress, the diff locks completely and both tyres spin with equal ferocity.
You’ll feel it on the road, making tight hairpins a pleasure to exit on the power rather than the one-wheel bonfire that is the BMW 335i. All that extra power – nearly 80bhp up from last time – does mean the traction control intervenes more frequently, but it’s rarely intrusive and keen drivers can reduce its role with a press of the M button.
What’s the interior like?
With high quality plastics and leather, intuitively laid out controls (iDrive will always have its detractors, but for the most part we like it) and sound ergonomics, the new M3 is a good place to be. In fact, it’s simply an organic evolution of the old model, something that will appeal to those turned off by the M5 and M6’s hyper-tech interiors and illuminated gearknobs.
The seats (leather and cloth as standard, or optional full leather) are geared for comfort and, though perfect in most conditions, would benefit from M5-sytle active bolsters to better grip lunatics on a mission. As before, rear legroom is nothing more than adequate so six footers sitting behind six footers will feel cramped.
Verdict
The M3 has grown up and lost a little of the E46’s edge to the more weight/more power vicious circle. But BMW has no doubt judged the market perfectly. The M3 is now a genuine volume seller and, last time, accounted for 13 percent of all UK 3-series sales. The new car needs to be a brilliant all-round package, capable of pleasing those who like the idea of the badge more than what it first stood for: track-honed thrills. And it is very, very good. This car is fast, practical, well built, comfortable and safe.
But in trying to hit so many targets, the E92 leaves purists wanting. So a CSL – a lightweight, more dynamically focused special edition – is now an absolute must and should form an integral part of the range going forward, filling the niche that the original E30 once satisfied in 1986. The good news is BMW’s top brass dropped some very large hints in the press conference, so the CSL sounds like a dead cert. We’d bet on it arriving in 2010.
If you want a great all-rounder and you don’t drive everywhere at ten tenths, the new M3 won’t disappoint. But if you crave trackday thrills, hold fire for a CSL.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...3D172
07-06-07, 02:33 PM
#5
Lexus Fanatic
Video version of the CAR Magazine's M3 review:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqzfPBdX0QI
Man he looks and sounds so disappointed I almost felt sorry for him.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqzfPBdX0QI
Man he looks and sounds so disappointed I almost felt sorry for him.
07-06-07, 03:47 PM
#7
Lexus Fanatic
Autoweek's review of the M3:
http://autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar.../70706014/1065
2008 BMW M3
By GREG KABLE
AutoWeek | Published 07/06/07, 2:21 pm et
Gerhard Richter is reading our mind. How, we’re pondering as we prepare to drive it for the first time, can the new, fourth-generation BMW M3 get close to matching the qualities of the outgoing model? The outspoken head of development at BMW’s M division has lived and breathed this car for three years. He knows it better than anyone else—every last nuance, it would seem. He’s convinced it is a step forward.
“It’s different in a number of areas, but all the intrinsic M3 qualities remain,” he assures us as he walks over to the bright red coupe in which we’re sitting. He draws back on a cigarette and adds, “I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.”
With that, he whips the frameless door shut and guides us up the driveway of the Spanish resort in Marbella where BMW has chosen to launch its new M3, tapping his fingers on the expensive carbon-fiber roof that now comes as standard as a parting gesture. “Let’s talk later,” he says with a smile though the open driver-side window.
The map we’ve been given plots out a familiar route. Rising from sea level, it winds its way uphill over the Sierra Palmitera mountain range toward the ancient town of Ronda. It is as tough a test of a car’s dynamics as you’re likely to find on a public road. Peppered with long straights, fast and open sweepers set into rocky surroundings and all sorts of road surfaces, it is the perfect place to get to know the new M3. Later on, we’ll also get the opportunity to put the new BMW on a racetrack.
The new M3 is a bigger step away from the standard 3 Series coupe than any of its predecessors ever were. Right from the very beginning, it was conceived to be a more unique car than any time in its illustrious 20-year history. The new M3 and 3 Series coupe roll down the same production line at BMW’s Regensburg factory in Germany, but there’s now little that is shared between them. “It is 80 percent new in terms of its components,” says Richter.
The fourth-generation model boasts twice the cylinder count and double the power of the first-generation model. This speaks more about the competition than BMW’s desire to let the M3 slip into a power race. With the Audi RS4 and impressive new Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG in its sights, BMW has been forced to provide it with more firepower than the outgoing model. The question is: Has BMW gone too far? The key to the M3’s appeal has always been its responsiveness, the way its individual components all mesh together to provide fabulous tactility. Now it seems the engine is taking over the primary role. Or is it?
The new M3 was always going to get a V8. “We decided very early in the development process that the only way to move forward was to go with a bigger engine. The inline-six is still great, but it is at its limit from an engineering standpoint. There’s just no way we can wring any more out of it without reliability becoming a big issue,” reveals Richter. And what a phenomenal powerplant it is. Based on the same 90-degree architecture as the V10 found in the M5, it heralds in an exciting new era for BMW’s iconic performance coupe.
Significantly, the 4.0-liter is lighter and shorter than the six it replaces, allowing BMW to mount it farther back in the engine bay for an even more favorable weight distribution. It’s the output that steals the show, though. With a heady 420 hp at 8300 rpm, the new V8 endows the new M3 with 77 hp more than its predecessor while retaining the car’s reputation for delivering more than 100 hp per liter. Torque has also risen by 27 lb-ft to 295 lb-ft at a high 3900 rpm. Yet while the figures are impressive, it’s the deep baritone exhaust note that signals the biggest change in character.
This is one of the most-advanced engines ever to head into a road car: double Vanos variable camshaft control, individual throttle butterflies for each cylinder, equal-length stainless-steel exhaust system, force regulated oil supply and ionic current knock detection governed by the most powerful engine-management system BMW has developed—the so-called MS S60. A power button located down by the driver’s thigh on the center console also offers two different engine maps. Stick it in normal mode, and you think it feels strong until you dial up the more aggressive sport mode and there is a heightening in response. It is how we leave it all day. Topping it all off is BMW’s new brake energy regeneration system. It uses an alternator that is disconnected when the engine is under load, with energy flowing to the battery only under braking to keep efficiency high and power focus on acceleration.
If you’re getting the impression that just about everything about the new engine is dedicated to speed, you’re right. This car is fast. Gun it from a standing start with the ESP system deactivated ,and it will spin its rear wheels in first, second and—when you’re trying hard—third gear. BMW says it will hit 62 mph in 4.8 seconds, given the right surface—down 0.4 second on the old M3 but not quite in the same league as the new Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG, whose claimed 4.5 seconds makes it slightly faster up the strip. And the Audi RS4? Despite boasting four-wheel drive, it is claimed to take the same time.
Still, it is the M3’s in-gear performance that raises eyebrows when we find a deserted stretch of the snaking A-397 and let it rip. A fourth-gear 50-to-75-mph split of just 4.9 seconds is hair-raising in its intensity, shaming many mid-engined supercars in the process. This in a four-seat coupe weighing 3500 pounds. Blimey! Top speed is once again limited to 155 mph but with a high 3.846:1 final drive channeling the drive rearward, the new M3 is claimed to reach all the way up to 200 mph without electronic intervention. Charging hard on wide-open straights, its high-speed stability is impressive.
Then there’s the gearbox. BMW is not saying much at the moment, suggesting the six-speed manual fitted on all the cars at the M3 launch this week is suited to the new engine. It would, of course, and in combination with a new double-plate clutch, it proves to be slick in its actions. However, with plans for a new seven-speed double-clutch gearbox to make its appearance early next year, we’ll reserve judgment until then.
Slot back a couple of gears to send the new M3’s engine soaring. The immediacy is impressive for a production-car powerplant assembled to the same generous tolerances as the rest of the German carmaker’s engine lineup. Tapping the throttle sees it gain revs with rabid enthusiasm. Lift off, and it loses them with the same sort of focused zeal. They’re the kind of friction-free characteristics that BMW touts for its motorsport engines; an association it is keen to cultivate; the engine from the M3 and the BMW-Sauber Formula One car are cast alongside each other in the same light-metal foundry at Landshut in southern Germany. Production of the new M3’s V8 takes place alongside the M5’s V10 at BMW’s specialty-engine plant in Munich.
Although peak torque doesn’t arrive until you’ve used up almost half of the available revs, you’d hardly describe the new M3 as being sluggish low down. No way. There’s genuine shove from 2000 rpm, the advanced electronics altering the intake system, fuel-injection mixture and valve timing to help give it the sort of bottom-end savagery to make the old 3.2-liter six seem ordinary. And neither does the torque show any sign of waning through the midrange. It is so vast, you get 6000 rpm and think there can’t be much more left. But in fact, there is still a large chunk of revs left to conquer.
Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, though. Before we even had a chance to sample its brilliant new V8 racing up to its 8500-rpm redline with all the apparent single-mindedness of a thoroughbred race-car engine, the aggressive good looks of the new M3 had already heightened our senses. Okay, so its shape is shared to a large extent with the latest 3 Series coupe. But the styling changes made by BMW M division’s chief designer, Ulf Weidhase, give the new coupe a menacing appearance that makes some earlier M3 models, most notably the second-generation version from 1991, look almost plain by comparison.
Nowhere is this more evident than up front, where a gaping center flanked by sizeable brake cooling ducts and a new hood sporting a large power dome and a pair of vents help set the M3 apart. Added to this are more flared wheel arches, scalloped vents in the front fenders housing the side repeater lights, funky new mirror housings, widened side sills with a distinctive lip to smooth airflow along the lower flanks, a subtle Gurney-lip-style spoiler atop the trunk and a reprofiled rear bumper incorporating a diffuser-style element to draw hot air away from the rear differential bookended by BMW M division’s now trademarked quad-tailpipe treatment.
Even the most casual fast-car observer will realize this car means business. It has great presence, especially on the optional 19-inch forged aluminum Fuchs wheels on our test car. They are shod with big 245/40 front and 265/40 rear tires that flesh out the wheel arches, giving the M3 a hunkered-down character from every angle. Even on the standard wheels and tires—a combination of 18-inch forged aluminum Speedlines running the same 245/40 front and 265/40 rear rubber—you won’t be disappointed. Together with the initial coupe model, BMW is also planning to introduce the M3 in both convertible and sedan body styles, too.
While its hard-core engine dominates proceedings, the M3’s chassis feels unified in its actions. There’s an inherent athleticism to its movements that you just don’t find in the latest 3 Series coupe—itself a fine car. Although sharing the same basic design, with MacPherson struts up front and a multilink arrangement at the rear, much of the new BMW’s suspension components are unique. The attention to detail makes you appreciate the price premium that BMW applies to the new M3 over its standard 3—the stabilizer bars, for example, are both hollow but the front unit measures 26.5 mm in diameter and gets a wall thickness of 4.0 mm, while the rear is 22.3 mm across and has a wall thickness of 3.5 mm. They are small differences, but Richter insists they are crucial in providing the M3 with its individual dynamic character.
Underneath, aluminum is used throughout in a bid to reduce the unsprung masses—a crucial factor in providing the new car with such rabid response. Many of the rubber bushings also have been replaced by steel units in the interests of greater tactility. The biggest development according to Richter, however, concerns the way the front wheel bearings connect to the damper units. Instead of requiring a heavy, high-strength steel brace, they are now held in place by a patented flange, adding stiffness while lowering weight and cutting down on the number of components. The hydraulic power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering system has also been reworked; the standard 16.0:1 ratio making way for a more direct 12.5:1 setup.
Charging up the road toward Ronda, the M3 feels vice-less—taut body control, a firm but controlled ride and a level of grip matched only by a handful of front-engine cars helping to keep progress strong. You can carry big speeds into open sweepers and rely on the terrific damping, immense purchase and generous traction created by the M-differential to retain your chosen line without needing to feather the throttle. In tighter corners there is a trace of understeer on entry—the nose running wide when you dive in deep, but it is quelled keeping the throttle down for a more neutral stance, a slight flick of opposite lock helping to correct the line upon exit. It is all progressive. As a driver, you feel flattered by the ease of it all.
Confidence builds quickly; we traveled less than 20 miles before we felt assured enough by the quality of the chassis to switch the variable ESP (electronic stability program) to a so-called M-mode, in which the threshold is set higher than the default mode to induce greater levels of oversteer. As you’d expect, the M3 will hang its tail out on command, but you do need to provoke it to see exaggerated slip angles, so effectively does the chassis handle the V8’s power. You’d need to be confident in your ability to disable the ESP on public roads. On the racetrack, though, it is great fun.
For all this, though, the M3 is not quite as tactile in its actions, perhaps, as the car it replaces. The steering, which also offers the choice between normal and sport modes, is very light for a car boasting such explosive performance, giving the impression of being a tad vague as you turn the wheel away from the straight ahead. It is only a small factor in the overall scheme of things, but it does detract from the overall driving experience. The speed-sensitive rack-and-pinion system also fails to weight up sufficiency when you begin to wind on greater amounts of lock. More weight is needed.
You are also aware of the car’s larger dimensions. It never feels quite as wieldy when you are pressing as before. It’s not all that much bigger, but it gives the feeling that the M3 has moved up in size. Call it middle-age flab, if you like.
No such reservations about the brakes, though; they’re as effective at wiping off speed as the engine is generating it. The front discs are a generous 360 mm in diameter, while those at the rear measure 330 mm; they’re grabbed by twin piston sliding aluminum calipers that use electronic sensors to monitor pad wear and vary the M3’s stability control threshold accordingly. The pedal is beautifully weighted and full of feel; you can modulate the brakes right up the point where the ABS antilock begins to cycle with great confidence. And they do this over and again without any sign of fade.
Ride quality? That depends on what damper setting you select. Like the larger M5, the new M3 receives EDC (electronic damper control) with three different options. In comfort mode, it mops up bumps with composure but trades it off with added roll in corners. The sport mode is best reserved for press-on driving where the added tautness gives it a rather unyielding feel but keeps the body flat. The best compromise, then, is normal mode, which introduces firmness without making it too fidgety over broken pavement while keeping things on a nice even keel.
To help you make the most of all its electronic systems, the M3 receives MDrive—a system that first made its appearance on the M5 back in 2004. Easily accessed via a button on the steering wheel, it allows you to program your preferred chassis settings and store them. When you are in the mood, and the conditions allow, you can then retrieve them; the settings appearing on the iDrive monitor, though, where they can also be altered if so required. At start-up, the M3 defaults to standard mode, but with a press of the MDrive button, you can sharpen up the steering, stiffen the damping and set the ESP to function at a higher threshold. You’re not likely to use it every day, but it is a nice touch for those times when the road and weather conditions invite you to play.
Driving the M3 has always been a compelling experience, and that feeling remains with this new one. Arriving back from Ronda after a solid day behind the wheel, we are in awe of its abilities. The new engine is potent, endowing it devastating pace when you call upon it with a heavy right foot. However, it doesn’t dominate proceedings in the same one-dimensional way we suspected it might. That’s because the chassis it is placed in is well up to the job of corralling its reserves. It devours corners with clinical efficiency. In making it do so, however, BMW has been forced to trade off some of the M3’s renowned sensitivity. But never mind, as Richter intimates as we relay our thoughts to him later, there’s still the CSL version to come. That day can’t come soon enough . . .
http://autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar.../70706014/1065
2008 BMW M3
By GREG KABLE
AutoWeek | Published 07/06/07, 2:21 pm et
Gerhard Richter is reading our mind. How, we’re pondering as we prepare to drive it for the first time, can the new, fourth-generation BMW M3 get close to matching the qualities of the outgoing model? The outspoken head of development at BMW’s M division has lived and breathed this car for three years. He knows it better than anyone else—every last nuance, it would seem. He’s convinced it is a step forward.
“It’s different in a number of areas, but all the intrinsic M3 qualities remain,” he assures us as he walks over to the bright red coupe in which we’re sitting. He draws back on a cigarette and adds, “I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.”
With that, he whips the frameless door shut and guides us up the driveway of the Spanish resort in Marbella where BMW has chosen to launch its new M3, tapping his fingers on the expensive carbon-fiber roof that now comes as standard as a parting gesture. “Let’s talk later,” he says with a smile though the open driver-side window.
The map we’ve been given plots out a familiar route. Rising from sea level, it winds its way uphill over the Sierra Palmitera mountain range toward the ancient town of Ronda. It is as tough a test of a car’s dynamics as you’re likely to find on a public road. Peppered with long straights, fast and open sweepers set into rocky surroundings and all sorts of road surfaces, it is the perfect place to get to know the new M3. Later on, we’ll also get the opportunity to put the new BMW on a racetrack.
The new M3 is a bigger step away from the standard 3 Series coupe than any of its predecessors ever were. Right from the very beginning, it was conceived to be a more unique car than any time in its illustrious 20-year history. The new M3 and 3 Series coupe roll down the same production line at BMW’s Regensburg factory in Germany, but there’s now little that is shared between them. “It is 80 percent new in terms of its components,” says Richter.
The fourth-generation model boasts twice the cylinder count and double the power of the first-generation model. This speaks more about the competition than BMW’s desire to let the M3 slip into a power race. With the Audi RS4 and impressive new Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG in its sights, BMW has been forced to provide it with more firepower than the outgoing model. The question is: Has BMW gone too far? The key to the M3’s appeal has always been its responsiveness, the way its individual components all mesh together to provide fabulous tactility. Now it seems the engine is taking over the primary role. Or is it?
The new M3 was always going to get a V8. “We decided very early in the development process that the only way to move forward was to go with a bigger engine. The inline-six is still great, but it is at its limit from an engineering standpoint. There’s just no way we can wring any more out of it without reliability becoming a big issue,” reveals Richter. And what a phenomenal powerplant it is. Based on the same 90-degree architecture as the V10 found in the M5, it heralds in an exciting new era for BMW’s iconic performance coupe.
Significantly, the 4.0-liter is lighter and shorter than the six it replaces, allowing BMW to mount it farther back in the engine bay for an even more favorable weight distribution. It’s the output that steals the show, though. With a heady 420 hp at 8300 rpm, the new V8 endows the new M3 with 77 hp more than its predecessor while retaining the car’s reputation for delivering more than 100 hp per liter. Torque has also risen by 27 lb-ft to 295 lb-ft at a high 3900 rpm. Yet while the figures are impressive, it’s the deep baritone exhaust note that signals the biggest change in character.
This is one of the most-advanced engines ever to head into a road car: double Vanos variable camshaft control, individual throttle butterflies for each cylinder, equal-length stainless-steel exhaust system, force regulated oil supply and ionic current knock detection governed by the most powerful engine-management system BMW has developed—the so-called MS S60. A power button located down by the driver’s thigh on the center console also offers two different engine maps. Stick it in normal mode, and you think it feels strong until you dial up the more aggressive sport mode and there is a heightening in response. It is how we leave it all day. Topping it all off is BMW’s new brake energy regeneration system. It uses an alternator that is disconnected when the engine is under load, with energy flowing to the battery only under braking to keep efficiency high and power focus on acceleration.
If you’re getting the impression that just about everything about the new engine is dedicated to speed, you’re right. This car is fast. Gun it from a standing start with the ESP system deactivated ,and it will spin its rear wheels in first, second and—when you’re trying hard—third gear. BMW says it will hit 62 mph in 4.8 seconds, given the right surface—down 0.4 second on the old M3 but not quite in the same league as the new Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG, whose claimed 4.5 seconds makes it slightly faster up the strip. And the Audi RS4? Despite boasting four-wheel drive, it is claimed to take the same time.
Still, it is the M3’s in-gear performance that raises eyebrows when we find a deserted stretch of the snaking A-397 and let it rip. A fourth-gear 50-to-75-mph split of just 4.9 seconds is hair-raising in its intensity, shaming many mid-engined supercars in the process. This in a four-seat coupe weighing 3500 pounds. Blimey! Top speed is once again limited to 155 mph but with a high 3.846:1 final drive channeling the drive rearward, the new M3 is claimed to reach all the way up to 200 mph without electronic intervention. Charging hard on wide-open straights, its high-speed stability is impressive.
Then there’s the gearbox. BMW is not saying much at the moment, suggesting the six-speed manual fitted on all the cars at the M3 launch this week is suited to the new engine. It would, of course, and in combination with a new double-plate clutch, it proves to be slick in its actions. However, with plans for a new seven-speed double-clutch gearbox to make its appearance early next year, we’ll reserve judgment until then.
Slot back a couple of gears to send the new M3’s engine soaring. The immediacy is impressive for a production-car powerplant assembled to the same generous tolerances as the rest of the German carmaker’s engine lineup. Tapping the throttle sees it gain revs with rabid enthusiasm. Lift off, and it loses them with the same sort of focused zeal. They’re the kind of friction-free characteristics that BMW touts for its motorsport engines; an association it is keen to cultivate; the engine from the M3 and the BMW-Sauber Formula One car are cast alongside each other in the same light-metal foundry at Landshut in southern Germany. Production of the new M3’s V8 takes place alongside the M5’s V10 at BMW’s specialty-engine plant in Munich.
Although peak torque doesn’t arrive until you’ve used up almost half of the available revs, you’d hardly describe the new M3 as being sluggish low down. No way. There’s genuine shove from 2000 rpm, the advanced electronics altering the intake system, fuel-injection mixture and valve timing to help give it the sort of bottom-end savagery to make the old 3.2-liter six seem ordinary. And neither does the torque show any sign of waning through the midrange. It is so vast, you get 6000 rpm and think there can’t be much more left. But in fact, there is still a large chunk of revs left to conquer.
Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, though. Before we even had a chance to sample its brilliant new V8 racing up to its 8500-rpm redline with all the apparent single-mindedness of a thoroughbred race-car engine, the aggressive good looks of the new M3 had already heightened our senses. Okay, so its shape is shared to a large extent with the latest 3 Series coupe. But the styling changes made by BMW M division’s chief designer, Ulf Weidhase, give the new coupe a menacing appearance that makes some earlier M3 models, most notably the second-generation version from 1991, look almost plain by comparison.
Nowhere is this more evident than up front, where a gaping center flanked by sizeable brake cooling ducts and a new hood sporting a large power dome and a pair of vents help set the M3 apart. Added to this are more flared wheel arches, scalloped vents in the front fenders housing the side repeater lights, funky new mirror housings, widened side sills with a distinctive lip to smooth airflow along the lower flanks, a subtle Gurney-lip-style spoiler atop the trunk and a reprofiled rear bumper incorporating a diffuser-style element to draw hot air away from the rear differential bookended by BMW M division’s now trademarked quad-tailpipe treatment.
Even the most casual fast-car observer will realize this car means business. It has great presence, especially on the optional 19-inch forged aluminum Fuchs wheels on our test car. They are shod with big 245/40 front and 265/40 rear tires that flesh out the wheel arches, giving the M3 a hunkered-down character from every angle. Even on the standard wheels and tires—a combination of 18-inch forged aluminum Speedlines running the same 245/40 front and 265/40 rear rubber—you won’t be disappointed. Together with the initial coupe model, BMW is also planning to introduce the M3 in both convertible and sedan body styles, too.
While its hard-core engine dominates proceedings, the M3’s chassis feels unified in its actions. There’s an inherent athleticism to its movements that you just don’t find in the latest 3 Series coupe—itself a fine car. Although sharing the same basic design, with MacPherson struts up front and a multilink arrangement at the rear, much of the new BMW’s suspension components are unique. The attention to detail makes you appreciate the price premium that BMW applies to the new M3 over its standard 3—the stabilizer bars, for example, are both hollow but the front unit measures 26.5 mm in diameter and gets a wall thickness of 4.0 mm, while the rear is 22.3 mm across and has a wall thickness of 3.5 mm. They are small differences, but Richter insists they are crucial in providing the M3 with its individual dynamic character.
Underneath, aluminum is used throughout in a bid to reduce the unsprung masses—a crucial factor in providing the new car with such rabid response. Many of the rubber bushings also have been replaced by steel units in the interests of greater tactility. The biggest development according to Richter, however, concerns the way the front wheel bearings connect to the damper units. Instead of requiring a heavy, high-strength steel brace, they are now held in place by a patented flange, adding stiffness while lowering weight and cutting down on the number of components. The hydraulic power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering system has also been reworked; the standard 16.0:1 ratio making way for a more direct 12.5:1 setup.
Charging up the road toward Ronda, the M3 feels vice-less—taut body control, a firm but controlled ride and a level of grip matched only by a handful of front-engine cars helping to keep progress strong. You can carry big speeds into open sweepers and rely on the terrific damping, immense purchase and generous traction created by the M-differential to retain your chosen line without needing to feather the throttle. In tighter corners there is a trace of understeer on entry—the nose running wide when you dive in deep, but it is quelled keeping the throttle down for a more neutral stance, a slight flick of opposite lock helping to correct the line upon exit. It is all progressive. As a driver, you feel flattered by the ease of it all.
Confidence builds quickly; we traveled less than 20 miles before we felt assured enough by the quality of the chassis to switch the variable ESP (electronic stability program) to a so-called M-mode, in which the threshold is set higher than the default mode to induce greater levels of oversteer. As you’d expect, the M3 will hang its tail out on command, but you do need to provoke it to see exaggerated slip angles, so effectively does the chassis handle the V8’s power. You’d need to be confident in your ability to disable the ESP on public roads. On the racetrack, though, it is great fun.
For all this, though, the M3 is not quite as tactile in its actions, perhaps, as the car it replaces. The steering, which also offers the choice between normal and sport modes, is very light for a car boasting such explosive performance, giving the impression of being a tad vague as you turn the wheel away from the straight ahead. It is only a small factor in the overall scheme of things, but it does detract from the overall driving experience. The speed-sensitive rack-and-pinion system also fails to weight up sufficiency when you begin to wind on greater amounts of lock. More weight is needed.
You are also aware of the car’s larger dimensions. It never feels quite as wieldy when you are pressing as before. It’s not all that much bigger, but it gives the feeling that the M3 has moved up in size. Call it middle-age flab, if you like.
No such reservations about the brakes, though; they’re as effective at wiping off speed as the engine is generating it. The front discs are a generous 360 mm in diameter, while those at the rear measure 330 mm; they’re grabbed by twin piston sliding aluminum calipers that use electronic sensors to monitor pad wear and vary the M3’s stability control threshold accordingly. The pedal is beautifully weighted and full of feel; you can modulate the brakes right up the point where the ABS antilock begins to cycle with great confidence. And they do this over and again without any sign of fade.
Ride quality? That depends on what damper setting you select. Like the larger M5, the new M3 receives EDC (electronic damper control) with three different options. In comfort mode, it mops up bumps with composure but trades it off with added roll in corners. The sport mode is best reserved for press-on driving where the added tautness gives it a rather unyielding feel but keeps the body flat. The best compromise, then, is normal mode, which introduces firmness without making it too fidgety over broken pavement while keeping things on a nice even keel.
To help you make the most of all its electronic systems, the M3 receives MDrive—a system that first made its appearance on the M5 back in 2004. Easily accessed via a button on the steering wheel, it allows you to program your preferred chassis settings and store them. When you are in the mood, and the conditions allow, you can then retrieve them; the settings appearing on the iDrive monitor, though, where they can also be altered if so required. At start-up, the M3 defaults to standard mode, but with a press of the MDrive button, you can sharpen up the steering, stiffen the damping and set the ESP to function at a higher threshold. You’re not likely to use it every day, but it is a nice touch for those times when the road and weather conditions invite you to play.
Driving the M3 has always been a compelling experience, and that feeling remains with this new one. Arriving back from Ronda after a solid day behind the wheel, we are in awe of its abilities. The new engine is potent, endowing it devastating pace when you call upon it with a heavy right foot. However, it doesn’t dominate proceedings in the same one-dimensional way we suspected it might. That’s because the chassis it is placed in is well up to the job of corralling its reserves. It devours corners with clinical efficiency. In making it do so, however, BMW has been forced to trade off some of the M3’s renowned sensitivity. But never mind, as Richter intimates as we relay our thoughts to him later, there’s still the CSL version to come. That day can’t come soon enough . . .
Trending Topics
07-06-07, 04:37 PM
#9
Lexus Test Driver
hmmm so it's sounding like the new M3 is kinda sucky.. kinda soft, doesn't steer or brake all that well. Maybe the IS-F might have a chance afterall! I guess for those who want a BMW and a more raw driving experience they'll have to look at the new 1series 135.
07-06-07, 06:25 PM
#10
Guest
Posts: n/a
Well seems to me BMW's electronics and bigger bigger bigger every gen policy is going to hurt M models. Benz/Audi and Lexus are taking more and more out of their book. So everyone is kinda coming together.
I think the advantage BMW offered is less now than before.
Funny thing is this car is still a beast to most people and to people NEW to BMW or the M3. I think the purists are gonna scream.
The IS-F might have a chance!! lol
I think the advantage BMW offered is less now than before.
Funny thing is this car is still a beast to most people and to people NEW to BMW or the M3. I think the purists are gonna scream.
The IS-F might have a chance!! lol
07-06-07, 08:23 PM
#11
Driver
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: California
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Topgear
http://www.topgear.com/blogs/drives/079-bmw-m3/
There will be criticism of the new BMW M3, but let's just get one thing out of the way right now so that we can all concentrate on the good stuff: this is one of the cars of 2007.
Why? Well, if you've got time, there's a technical list long enough to make you break a considerable sweat just to get your head around some of it. But, for the moment, let's just say that the new M3 feels like the people who made it, created it for themselves. And they like to drive. Not helm, or pilot, or control. Not words that seem to indicate a lack of involvement; drive. And that makes it bloody good fun.
Fun. Slightly scary fun, for sure, but the new M3 manages to be a mixture of the M5 (technically impressive but slightly aloof in its warp-speediness) and the M Coupe (which has been criticised for the exuberant way it handles corners). This is a good thing.
Now we have a mid-sized saloon that is aggressive enough to really put a smile on yer face. If the M5 is too digital and the M Coupe a touch too analogue (and therefore a bit tiring) for some, then the M3 is right slap bang in the middle. A perfect marketing delivery from BMW, if nothing else.
But it really is hard to keep my cynical face on when the M3 does what it does so beautifully. Prejudice against BMW? Fair enough. But if you get out of this car without at least one thing that blows your mind, you have no mind to blow.
Getting on for 420 horses from a 90-degree V8 that revs to 8,400rpm. Six-speed manual, adjustable suspension (boingy to slam-solid at the touch of a button), adjustable throttle mapping, diff, traction control - you name it, you've got it.
It looks fab with that huge bonnet bulge and vents, the flared arches, the subtle but aggressive styling - imagine it in black. That carbon roof is actually carbon-fibre reinforced plastic, but still cool even when you know that.
One thing's for sure, you won't be able to de-badge a 335i, stick some wing mirrors and wheels on and have a faux-M3 - everything but the doors, bonnet lid and glass is different. And you really see it. The 335i Coupe made me think it was a little too cool for school; the M3 is just about right. It looks fast without being all wings and slots.
The engine is the powerplant of the year, no question. And it's an engine that Ferrari would be proud to have made. A loud, razor-sharp unit that seems to rev for ever... and ever... and ever. Individual throttle butterflies that give the kind of response you usually only get in a racing car, coupled with that rev-range, mated to that noise which changes every incremental revolution - it's not a lump of metal, it's an event.
0-62 in under five, limited to 155mph - the numbers are impressive but not startling. The way it drives is the startling bit. It's a driver's car, but one that's easy to drive slowly.
If you're useless, you can drive an M3 fast; if you're brilliant, you'll be able to wring the M3 out and still be impressed. That is a very hard dichotomous trick to pull off, and its one of the few cars that does it successfully.
It will be too hard with the EDC (electronic damper control) set to 'Sport' on British roads, but you can tune each element to your taste. Personally, I seem to get on better with everything at max setting (steering, power, response etc), but the suspension on one of the less firm settings. A bit of body roll helps me communicate with the car. Basically, I can go a bit slower, and feel like I'm really nailing it.
But it does go fast. Very fast. Steering is ultra-precise, the turn-in sharp but not extreme. Grip seemed a bit lacking on certain bits of these dusty Spanish roads we've been testing on, but I was laughing so hard that I didn't really care. Brakes felt great, but we found that BMW had stuck race pads in preparation for a hammering, so I'm going to suspend judgement.
It's not perfect, though. I'm not overly keen on the manual gearbox (SMG comes later, according to the BMW brass) - it could be faster and less wobbly, which is a shame. I think a car with this much performance can justifiably have a more aggressive-feeling gearbox, but the legions of WAGs that buy them might disagree.
The interior is a bit boring, and the fuel consumption is bloody awful (on the mountain roads I managed less than 15mpg - but the engine is just so addictive). It also costs £51,000, which puts a whole lot of other dream-machinery in sight.
It is brilliant, though. And that, for once, is not too strong a word. Roll on the TG Awards, I'm voting BMW.
TopGear=Realtalk
http://www.topgear.com/blogs/drives/079-bmw-m3/
There will be criticism of the new BMW M3, but let's just get one thing out of the way right now so that we can all concentrate on the good stuff: this is one of the cars of 2007.
Why? Well, if you've got time, there's a technical list long enough to make you break a considerable sweat just to get your head around some of it. But, for the moment, let's just say that the new M3 feels like the people who made it, created it for themselves. And they like to drive. Not helm, or pilot, or control. Not words that seem to indicate a lack of involvement; drive. And that makes it bloody good fun.
Fun. Slightly scary fun, for sure, but the new M3 manages to be a mixture of the M5 (technically impressive but slightly aloof in its warp-speediness) and the M Coupe (which has been criticised for the exuberant way it handles corners). This is a good thing.
Now we have a mid-sized saloon that is aggressive enough to really put a smile on yer face. If the M5 is too digital and the M Coupe a touch too analogue (and therefore a bit tiring) for some, then the M3 is right slap bang in the middle. A perfect marketing delivery from BMW, if nothing else.
But it really is hard to keep my cynical face on when the M3 does what it does so beautifully. Prejudice against BMW? Fair enough. But if you get out of this car without at least one thing that blows your mind, you have no mind to blow.
Getting on for 420 horses from a 90-degree V8 that revs to 8,400rpm. Six-speed manual, adjustable suspension (boingy to slam-solid at the touch of a button), adjustable throttle mapping, diff, traction control - you name it, you've got it.
It looks fab with that huge bonnet bulge and vents, the flared arches, the subtle but aggressive styling - imagine it in black. That carbon roof is actually carbon-fibre reinforced plastic, but still cool even when you know that.
One thing's for sure, you won't be able to de-badge a 335i, stick some wing mirrors and wheels on and have a faux-M3 - everything but the doors, bonnet lid and glass is different. And you really see it. The 335i Coupe made me think it was a little too cool for school; the M3 is just about right. It looks fast without being all wings and slots.
The engine is the powerplant of the year, no question. And it's an engine that Ferrari would be proud to have made. A loud, razor-sharp unit that seems to rev for ever... and ever... and ever. Individual throttle butterflies that give the kind of response you usually only get in a racing car, coupled with that rev-range, mated to that noise which changes every incremental revolution - it's not a lump of metal, it's an event.
0-62 in under five, limited to 155mph - the numbers are impressive but not startling. The way it drives is the startling bit. It's a driver's car, but one that's easy to drive slowly.
If you're useless, you can drive an M3 fast; if you're brilliant, you'll be able to wring the M3 out and still be impressed. That is a very hard dichotomous trick to pull off, and its one of the few cars that does it successfully.
It will be too hard with the EDC (electronic damper control) set to 'Sport' on British roads, but you can tune each element to your taste. Personally, I seem to get on better with everything at max setting (steering, power, response etc), but the suspension on one of the less firm settings. A bit of body roll helps me communicate with the car. Basically, I can go a bit slower, and feel like I'm really nailing it.
But it does go fast. Very fast. Steering is ultra-precise, the turn-in sharp but not extreme. Grip seemed a bit lacking on certain bits of these dusty Spanish roads we've been testing on, but I was laughing so hard that I didn't really care. Brakes felt great, but we found that BMW had stuck race pads in preparation for a hammering, so I'm going to suspend judgement.
It's not perfect, though. I'm not overly keen on the manual gearbox (SMG comes later, according to the BMW brass) - it could be faster and less wobbly, which is a shame. I think a car with this much performance can justifiably have a more aggressive-feeling gearbox, but the legions of WAGs that buy them might disagree.
The interior is a bit boring, and the fuel consumption is bloody awful (on the mountain roads I managed less than 15mpg - but the engine is just so addictive). It also costs £51,000, which puts a whole lot of other dream-machinery in sight.
It is brilliant, though. And that, for once, is not too strong a word. Roll on the TG Awards, I'm voting BMW.
TopGear=Realtalk
Last edited by genearch; 07-06-07 at 08:26 PM.
07-07-07, 05:55 AM
#13
Guest
Posts: n/a
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...hotopanel..1.*
First Impressions:
BMW's 4.0-liter V8 gives the M3 a new, more intense personality
A Porsche 911 or Not?
The 2008 BMW M3 confuses us a little. Its aggressive looks point to a hard-edged road racer of the old school, and the engineers certainly have set their goals high by referring to the Porsche 911. Yet the new M3's engine and chassis have been tuned for all-around civility, much like the second- and third-generation M3s.
This is an exceptionally able car that's blessed with a superbly executed engine, but there can be no denying that some of the guttural appeal of the old car has been lost. Or at least the guttural appeal of the fully optioned M3 that enthusiasts remember. The 2008 BMW M3 might have the grunt to challenge the Porsche 911, but it doesn't quite have the finesse or the emotive appeal. Indeed, you end up wondering whether it's worth paying such a premium over the brilliant BMW 335i coupe.
Clearly, some of M Power's engineers are thinking the same thoughts. They let slip that a lighter, harder-edged M3 CSL is already in development.
First Impressions:
BMW's 4.0-liter V8 gives the M3 a new, more intense personality
A Porsche 911 or Not?
The 2008 BMW M3 confuses us a little. Its aggressive looks point to a hard-edged road racer of the old school, and the engineers certainly have set their goals high by referring to the Porsche 911. Yet the new M3's engine and chassis have been tuned for all-around civility, much like the second- and third-generation M3s.
This is an exceptionally able car that's blessed with a superbly executed engine, but there can be no denying that some of the guttural appeal of the old car has been lost. Or at least the guttural appeal of the fully optioned M3 that enthusiasts remember. The 2008 BMW M3 might have the grunt to challenge the Porsche 911, but it doesn't quite have the finesse or the emotive appeal. Indeed, you end up wondering whether it's worth paying such a premium over the brilliant BMW 335i coupe.
Clearly, some of M Power's engineers are thinking the same thoughts. They let slip that a lighter, harder-edged M3 CSL is already in development.
