HIGHS
An engine that sings, excellent shifter, GT-style sports cars don’t get much better. |
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LOWS
The price is now quite steep, purists will lament that this is the heaviest M3 ever. |
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WHAT'S NEW
Redesigned for 2008. |
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BEHIND THE WHEEL
Based on the 3-series, the M3 has unique parts like a carbon-fiber roof. It hits the sweet spot between hard-core performance and ease of use. It excels on the track, highway, or your favorite curvy two-lane. |
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CAPSULE REVIEW
BMW’s iconic coupe returns for 2008 and, for the first time, comes with a V-8. The 414-horsepower, 4.0-liter engine revs to an astonishing 8400 rpm. A six-speed manual is the only gearbox for now. The performance is matched only by the driving thrills, and it seats four with luggage. |
Editorial by: Car and Driver |
BMW’s product strategy might be predictable, but it’s undeniably effective. As sure as night follows day, a new 3-series sedan is followed by a coupe, then a convertible, then a high-performance variation. You could even argue that the inevitability of an M3 version following the introduction of all the new 3-series models adds eager anticipation among the cognoscenti.
And now, like the next mortar round in an incoming barrage, news of the M3 sedan has arrived with a bang, prior to its official world debut in October at the Tokyo auto show. The sedan version, of course, is for those drivers who simply must have four doors and space for five in their warp-drive suburban supercars. Why impress just one passenger when you can seat an audience of four?
To nobody’s surprise, the M3 sedan uses exactly the same powertrain as the M3 coupe—the splendid 414-horsepower four-cam V-8 with its eight throttle bodies, fly-by-wire throttle control, and double-VANOS variable valve timing system. Thus we can expect the same flexible torque spread and ease of operation along with the sizzling 8400-rpm rev ceiling and blazing acceleration.
BMW quotes 0-to-62 mph in 4.9 seconds, but since we have tested the coupe (in less than optimal conditions) at 4.4 seconds, and the sedan doesn’t differ much from that car in size and weight, we’d imagine sub 4.5-second sprints are extremely likely.
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