2007 BMW M3 Reviews

It has never been the biggest, the fastest nor the most expensive, yet during the past 20 years the BMW M3 has become one of the most desirable of the “real world” performance cars.Just what has made the M3 so special is something of a moving feast. What has remained constant is the unwavering insistence that M cars would never be run of the mill. Engineering over marketing.For this, the fourth iteration of the M3, the motorsport engineering division responsible for the sanctity of the M badge has elected to back revolution over evolution, retiring the brilliant straight six, which has won universal praise in the last two generations of the car and in its place shoehorning in a 4.0-litre V8.“Of course there was going to be comment on the move because of the iconic status of the six,” BMW Australia's Toni Andreevski says. “It was the same when we went away from the original four-cylinder engine. People screamed that it was sacrilege but it didn't take too long before the engine was all but forgotten and the straight six was regarded as a classic.“I believe it is going to be similar with the V8.” The engine is a spanker with power output of 309kW at 8300rpm and maximum torque of 400Nm peaking at 3500rpm and hanging around right through to almost 7000rpm.The raw power and readily available urge through a six-speed manual; the seven-speed double-clutch automatic that BMW will not confirm, it is expected around the middle of 2008; giving the M3 a Jekyll and Hyde character.Power is fed to the rear wheels through an M limited-slip differential ensuring the 18-inch light alloys, shod with 265/40 ZR18 rubber, get the maximum opportunity to transfer the power to forward momentum. The single piston calipers working on vented and cross-drilled discs do an outstanding job of dragging speed off the car.The full suite of electronic minders are standard as are leather sports seats; disappointing in the lack of contouring around the upper body, which needs all the help it can get.In raw performance numbers the M3 is impressive. It does the 0-100km/h sprint in 4.8 seconds, can respond to the need of mid-range attack with an 80-120 overtaking run in4.9 seconds in fourth gear, and is only restrained at top rack by the convention of a 250km/h limited. Stroke it gently and the car will play happily in city traffic, burbling along in company with the daily grinders.Stir the pot and hang on tight. The siren song of the engine and exhaust in concert will draw many an enthralled driver beyond the boundaries of Australia's speed limits.In the right environment, a racetrack perhaps, the M3 will allow as much or as little fun as the driver can stand. In full minder mode the car is frighteningly quick in a straight line but the electronic interventions step in to modify areas the driver won't, or can't, take under control.Sharpen the electronic damper control; the first time an M3 has had such technology; and take on the sport mode for sharper steering and more aggressive throttle, the M3 becomes less of a granny and more the wide boy. There are several layers of traction and stability control working feverishly away but, like the duck on the pond, it's going on below the water while the casual observer there is an air of calm control.If your confidence is up, then the M button, with factory settings or self-loaded, may be just the ticket. A press of the steering-wheel mounted button engages the pre-set parameters, mostly having to do with getting the car into a maximum attack frame of mind, which can be all the way to having every electronic minder take a nap.It would be a brave driver who, having tipped in the $157,000 purchase price, took the maximum route; even BMW leave the stability control functioning, if only in a mild form.Pleasingly, BMW has not ignored the less adrenalin-inducing aspects of the new car.Despite representing the peak of 3 Series evolution, the M3 shares a miserly 20 per cent of common parts with its less exotic siblings. Apart from the glass and some lesser body panels the exterior is unique to the M3. It may look similar but isn't and the story is the same under the skin.The differentiation from the previous M3 is dramatic. BMW says the only part shared by the two cars is a single lower trailing arm on the rear suspension. Surely the zenith of trailing arm (lower) engineering.If you are determined to undo the work of the M Division engineers you can specify the no-cost option of a sunroof, replacing the sexy, functional carbon-fibre roof and add 20kg. It is like putting sunglasses on the Mona Lisa; unnecessary.See this car at the Australian International Motor Show   

We could rave on about the new V8 or we could wax lyrical songs about the car's impressive levels of power and grip. Then of course there's the throaty roar from the four tailpipes as the car high tails it down the road.But perhaps the most telling comment about BMW's new 'V8-powered' M3 was the one delivered by a woman last week at Victoria's Phillip Island race track.We had flown down to the Island to put the fabled M car through its paces under the watchful eye of race driver Geoff Brabham and the BMW Driver Training team.That was before hopping across Bass Strait for some quality time the next day on some of the Apple Isle's less frequented roads.The woman, wife of a current and obviously proud M3 owner, had just stepped out of the new car after a hot lap with a restrained Brabham.“Wow!”“That's better than sex?” she exclaimed to all and sundry.“She means, that's better than sex with me,” her husband quipped.The woman turned to her husband.“When can we get one?” she asked.The answer was not as you might guess; right away (although it wasn't a question of money, even at $157,000).The 50-something businessman was more interested in when he could get his hands on a self-changing box, instead of the standard six-speed manual.Their car was the SMG version, sort of a automatic manual that accounted for 60 per cent of sales.The answer to the question is sometime next year, although it won't be an SMG.It's not going to be an auto either, BMW's Toni Andreevski said, but more likely something such as the acclaimed “DSG” double clutch gearbox pioneered by Volkswagen.Still, that's not going to worry BMW too much, because it's already sold all 120 of its first shipment of M3s.The move from a six to a larger, more powerful V8 engine in this the fourth generation M3 has left some owners misty-eyed.The 3.2-litre straight six is regarded as one of the motor world's true masterpieces and one that no doubt will be sorely missed.Then again, the company met with a similar reaction when it moved form a four to a six pack back in the early 90s.Any lingering doubts about the new 4.0-litre V8; however are soon dispelled after a few minutes behind the wheel.With 309kW of power at 8300rpm (up from 252kW) and 400Nm of torque from 3900rpm (up from 365Nm), the new M3 goes hard and stops faster, despite putting on 85kg in weight.It also quicker from 0 to 100km/h, at 4.8 seconds compared to 5.2 for the previous model.The engine itself is 15kg lighter and the block comes from BMW's light-alloy foundry in Landshut that builds the blocks used in Formula One by BMW Sauber.The new M3 introduces some firsts to the segment including brake energy regeneration and a weight-saving carbon fibre roof, to go with the lightweight aluminium bonnet.Despite its obvious girth average fuel consumption remains a respectable 12.4 litres/100km, depending how you drive.On the track the new M3 is just superb.With perfect 50:50 weight distribution, it exhibits poise and balance, easily controlled at the limit with slight corrections by the driver.In fact, one of the hallmarks of this car is just how easy it is to drive, with a raft of electronic aids that 'aid' the enthusiast instead of getting in the way as is so often the case.The V8's extra torque comes into its own pulling out of corners, with the car able to remain in a higher gear and get into its stride more quickly, exiting the corner more rapidly as a result.On the open road the M3 is ridiculously quick.Full power is always available but drivers get to choose how that power is delivered, thanks to the Mdrive button located on the steering wheel, with sharper or softer settings available.The difference between the standard 18 inch and $3800 optional 19 inch wheels is apparent, but more so on the track than on the road.They allow the car to carry a more speed through corners.The car is not fitted with run flats nor is a spare tyre supplied, but a reinflation kit with compressor instead.Only 20 per cent of components are shared with the 3 Series Coupe and only one suspension component.Highlights include the newly developed chassis with special, weight-optimised components, plus Electronic Damper Control (EDC) and the Variable M diff lock.Competitors include Audi RS4, Lexus IS-F and Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG. 

There is always something special about a BMW M3. It has been an extreme excitement machine for every one of its 20 years, thanks to roots sunk deep into BMW's motorsport division. The M machine is fast, focussed and fun. But there is something extra special about the M3 in 2007, it's the V8 engine.Dropping the four-litre V8 into the nose of the very latest M3 has made it a marvel, not just thanks to a powerplant with 309kW and a redline set at 8400 revs, but also because the rest of the car has been lifted to the same level.It is a lion of a car, with the capacity to maraud and maul, to rip the heart out of its rivals, yet also purr like a giant kitty. The choice is entirely up to the driver. And that is the real marvel of the new M3. It is so strong and so sharp, yet also tame and regal and refined. It seems like a contradiction, even in a world where Porsche, Ferrari and even Audi do supercars without real vices, but BMW has done a brilliant job on a car that is still the pinnacle for the brand.You can see it in the aggressive bodywork and carbon fibre roof, feel it in the leather trim and the plastic mudguards, and hear it in an exhaust note, both restrained and threatening, coming from the M car's four signature pipes.But you really feel it when you drop the hammer and the M3 V8 erupts and the car pounces and bounds towards the horizon.The new M3 is not going to be cheap. BMW Australia says somewhere in the $160,000$165,000 range, which is a hefty $20,000 increase. It won't be easy to get one as sporty drivers rush to showrooms in the early months after deliveries begin in October.I also think BMW should have brought the car out with its new-age, seven-speed double-clutch gearbox; not just the six-speed manual, added some cupholders and re-worked the armrest on the console to make gear changes easier. Oh, and a lot of the driver-adjustable electronic systems are silly and unnecessary.They seem more like toys for the Xbox generation in a car with impressive basic engineering and wonderful in-house computer programming. Still, almost everything about the M3 is excellent, even measured against the already-classy 335i twin-turbo coupe and the rampaging M5 with its F1-inspired V10 engine.It's not a Porsche but it's not trying to be, and a Ferrari does not have the boot or back seat of the M3. Eventually, there will be an M3 convertible built into the company's latest folding-roof coupe, but the regular car is more than enough for now. It hits the road after the most intensive and costly development program in M3 history, which means 80 per cent of parts are new or improved.Much work has been devoted to weight reduction, even though it's 80kg heavier than the previous six-pack M3, and higher-tech electronics, noise reduction and more comfort and safety. There is a lot of stiffening around the suspension, the weight balance is an ideal 50:50, the iDrive system includes the latest 'favourite' buttons and an MDrive setting for the driver's sports preferences, and the body is hunkered down and muscled up with a look that says M.“We have a big commitment, an obligation,” says technical director of the BMW M division Gerhard Richter. “We know exactly what our customers want to have.”In the case of the M3, that meant a V8. So the engineers shaved two cylinders from the M5's V10, then went to work to liberate those 309kW and 400Nm of torque with a claimed fuel consumption of 12.4 litres per 100km.“The engine is the smaller brother of the V10,” Richter says. Measured against the outgoing six it has 17 per cent more power, is 15kg and 7 per cent lighter and uses 8 per cent less fuel.It is mated to the six-speed manual transmission and an M limited-slip differential feeding power to the rear wheels, while the car rolls on 18-inch alloys (19s are optional) with single-piston brake calipers gripping vented and cross-drilled discs, with sports-tuned fully independent suspension. The electronics in the car run from the usual anti-lock brakes and stability control to driver-adjustable servotronic steering and throttle response. There are front-side-head airbags, all the electric assists, classy air-con and leather wrapping you expected in a $150,000-plus luxury car.But the M3 is all about driving, right down to the hot laps with Richter on the classic Nurburgring course in Germany. It also comes down to the numbers. So the M3 V8 does the 0-100km/h sprint in 4.8 seconds, will slam through an 80-120 overtaking run in 4.9 seconds in fourth gear, and is only held back to 250 km/h by a corporate agreement and slick electronics. The first 10km in the new M3 are extraordinary.And it's not about the speed. Yes, there is speed and more than enough for any situation, up to and including a full-on racetrack attack.But it's the flexibility and refinement that makes the big impact. The new M3 will pull from just beyond idle in any gear, including sixth, is as quiet and comfy as any other 3-Series coupe, and makes no special demands on the driver.If you want to dribble along it will do the job. But if you prefer a wicked spin to 8400 revs it's just as happy. It tricked in traffic without complaint, when it was easy to appreciate the excellent air-con and the latest supportive M seats.They are not as contoured or as race-shaped as earlier buckets, yet are more comfortable and make for easier access to the back seat. The ride is firm but not sharp, the car is quiet but still announces its presence, and the controls are all firm with a direction connection to the road.And the V8? Incredibly flexible, with a strong surge of torque from 2000 revs, which grows to a roaring power burst that runs from 5500 revs all the way to the redline.And even the rev-limit is new age, with the bap-bap-bap interrupter of previous models replaced by a gradual shutdown, which is easier on the catalysts and kinder to the environment.The M3 mostly does what it is told, with the driver making the decisions on braking distances and cornering balance and exit speeds.It will really get up and go, but it is also swift and sensible with a turn-and-squirt approach to most bends, even at speeds that seem silly.It is a car you can thrash and push and hound, really having fun at the race track. And then you can drive it back to town.I found the electronic adjustments in the car were mostly meaningless with the best result on the basic settings for steering, throttle, stability control and suspension. Although play racers will probably go for heavy steering, sharp throttle and stiff suspension without realising the car works better the way the M engineers set it in the first place.The M3 has always been a car for its time. This time the beast has been tamed just enough to ensure it does not go extinct.