BMW M3
The new BMW M3 is more comfortable than the old one, but has something been lost in the transition from street-legal racer to high-performance everyday coupe?
Andrew Frankel
"But admiring and desiring are not the same thing. I admire the art of nouvelle cuisine but I’d rather have a proper meal, and the truth is that, even after 100 miles on some of the Continent’s most challenging roads, the M3 left me hungry for more. Not more raw power, but something less tangible and easy to define, but no less important for that: I’ll call it driver interaction.
Truth is, the M3’s steering is a touch too numb, the brakes too light. The engine is neither particularly smooth nor fabulous to listen to. The interface between engine and gearbox is not as seamless as it should be. And, for what it’s worth, I think the car looks fussy and inelegant. On every objective measure the M3 is a masterpiece, but subjectively I found it slightly wanting."
"For most people this new M3 will be everything they could want from an everyday, high-performance coupé, and to them I fully recommend it. But for those few as interested in the feel of the steering as the punch of the engine, it is worth pointing out that BMW’s decision to raise the price of the M3 from about £42,000 to £50,625 has brought it within reach of the Porsche 911, which starts at £58,688.
The Porsche may have cramped rear seats and a small boot, but it is more than a quarter of a ton lighter, and will raise your pulse rate more on one good stretch of road than the M3 could on an entire motorway. That may be irrelevant to many, while to some it will be the most important consideration. I am one of them."
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