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BMW hasn't sold a four-door M3 in the US since the E36 version in the second half of the 1990s. Back then, purists whined that they'd sold out on the original M3 racing concept, not only by adding two extra doors, but two extra cylinders-going from the E30's legendary 2.3-liter four-cylinder to a new 3.0-liter inline-six.
As you know by now, the all-new 2008 M3 has apparently "sold out" once again, annoying purists with not only a return to the sedan (and convertible) but by adding another two cylinders. To the cognoscenti, though, the M3 remains the leader of the pack, the example by which all other sport sedans are judged even if it throbs with a 4.0-liter V-8 heart.
Not quite double the displacement of the original E30 M3, this new engine is definitely double the cylinders and more than double the power. Under the power-domed hood, the E90-series V-8 makes 414 horses and 295 lb-ft of torque. With an 8400-rpm redline and 103.5 horses per liter, this is one of the highest-revving and most powerful naturally aspirated V-8s on the planet.
Feels like it, too.
With the power button on, the M3 can buck like a bull on the streets and demands full attention for smooth shifting. Unlike the M-button on the M5, the discreet button on the M3's center console doesn't give you full power-you have that all the time-it just dramatically sharpens the throttle response. And it doesn't matter where you are; push it at steady throttle on the freeway, and you can feel the car tighten up-clench its glutes, if you will, as though poised to sprint. Ease off and switch off, and the M3 becomes a pretty good city car. In the base model, without the three-mode Electronic Damping Control (EDC) suspension system, the ride is touch tight and jouncy, but in no way of endangering a case of Trader Joe's 2 Buck Chuck and bags of blue corn tortilla chips stashed in the trunk.
Different story if you start whomping the M3 on the twisties as we did on Monterey's famously winding Carmel Valley Road. In three turns, any wine and chips in the trunk rapidly become a purple slurry, the M3's monstrous grip launching airborne anything not tied down. This includes Blackberries and iPhones stashed in the M3's inconveniently shallow cubbies.
Secure articles before taking off and the M3 is a scream, particularly fully loaded versions with EDC and the M-dynamic system. Double tapping the EDC button so that two lights come on puts the M3 in its stiffest, sportiest suspension mode: perfect for smooth country roads or racetracks, brutal on anything less than well-maintained pavement. I found myself accelerating through a flat squiggly section of three smooth left-rights in a row, so immersed in the experience that only when the road straightened again did I exhale, finally remembering to breathe.
Base M3s come with a Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), a nanny that reels you in when you start to get naughty. The optional M Drive system, with M Dynamic Mode (MDM), activates your own personal combination of all of the M3s complicated subsystems at the push of the M button, including the throttle response (power button), EDC, active steering system, and a sportier level of DSC, MDM. BMW claims MDM is perfect for the track, since it allows for a more wheelslip and yaw angle.
And to a certain degree, this is true. We got a chance to hammer various M3 sedans and coupes, with and without M Drive, for 10 laps around Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, and it was a real eye opener. Before hitting the track, I was certain all I needed was a base M3, sans the optional EDC and M-Drive systems. But after fiddling with the various button combinations, I began to see the light.
Without MDM, the base M3 is either a hairy-chested track rat or a milquetoast pansywagon, all thanks to DSC. With DSC on, there's little joy to be had in corners. Too hot, a little yaw, and suddenly you're throttled back and understeering. Click it off, however, and you better know what you're doing because the M3 will rotate as commanded, if not by you, then by the laws of physics.
With M Drive's MDM system, there's that in-between setting. We didn't have enough time to figure out exactly what the limits were, but they seemed pretty high. You can exit corners fast and tail out, and the system seems to avoid defaulting to massive fun-sucking understeer whenever possible. So would I take it? Grudgingly yes, and I'll tell you why later.
Beyond the M Drive epiphanies, the track drive offered only a few insights we didn't already pick up from Carmel Valley Road. It bears repeating that the M3 is damned impressive and clearly the product of guys who got only As in physics and math. The power-dome hood can sometimes make track placement an issue, particularly trying to hit Laguna's corkscrew apex, when you're flying down a right/left and trying to see over the hood bump. Brakes also pulled unevenly under some of the harder stops, but I'd chalk that up to how hard we drove these cars.
Other surprises and complaints from my first run through of an M3:I thought I'd like the gearbox more. The throws are longish and clutch uptake is a bit high. Positives are that the engagement is solid and reassuring; feels like the trans would last through more than it's fair share of drag launches.
I also understand what boss man MacKenzie meant about the slightly vague feeling from the active steering system. This is not the feel-every-asphalt-pebble steering system you may be expecting. It's a tad numb just off center, with less effort and precision than I remember from previous M3s. It's still very good, just a tad less direct, precise, involving than it used to be.
The thick leather-wrapped wheel is nice, but I do miss the Alcantara-wrapped steering wheel of the E46 M3.
Rear-seat room is a surprise, not at all compromised by the M3 sport seats. I sat behind six-foot, two-inch Gleason as he took our sedan for a spin and found inches of legroom at my knees-and I'm a short-torso, long-limbed freak. That is packaging genius and gives this car some serious everyday practicality.
As for the one I'd take home: I'm an enthusiast and I'd take the M3 with M-dynamic mode and EDC. Yes they are expensive options, but my philosophy is, if you can afford them, better to have than have not. If you get to the point where you don't need them, just turn them off. Along your way there, these systems provide a margin of safety and fun.
If I could, I'd opt for the iDrive delete option and wouldn't upgrade the leather to fancy Novillo stuff. I think the cloth and leather option is handsome and practical; the cloth-covered lower-seat areas hold you better and, hey, they spare at least a few Bessies.
Oh, and as for the paint, make mine white or black, or even Interlagos blue. Just don't give me red. I don't need all the tickets, I mean attention, an M3 would bring.
Base Price: $54,575
Vehicle Layout: Front engine, RWD, 5-pass, 4-door sedan
Engine: 4.0L/414-hp/295-lb-ft DOHC 32-valve V-8
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Curb Weight: 3726
Wheelbase: 108.7 in
Length x Width x Height: 181.7 x 71.0 x 56.1 in
0-60 mph: 4.6 sec (MT est)
EPA City/Hwy Econ: 14/20 (est)
CO2 Emissions: N/A
On Sale In U.S.: March 2008
2008 BMW M3 Sedan - Road Test - Motor Trend
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