M3

Every time BMW redesigns the M3 the car becomes heavier and more powerful. And with the unveiling of each new generation, a loud faction moans that BMW has ruined the car. Hard-core M3 fans inevitably complain that the new model is too heavy, too complicated and not as much of a driver’s car. They invariably conclude that the last version was better.

This latest M3 weighs a minimum of 3,704 pounds — the heaviest yet — and, when equipped with the navigation system comes saddled with the reviled iDrive interface. So it’s heavy and it has iDrive and must therefore be inferior to the silkily perfect old car, right?

Not quite. The new M3 ditches the raspy iron-block in-line 6 of its predecessor for a sonorous aluminum V-8. The 4-liter engine makes 414 horsepower at a wild 8,300 r.p.m. This is not the type of car that will slam you back in the seat at any engine speed — in fact, BMW’s turbocharged 335i probably feels faster around town much of the time.

But the M3 isn’t designed for the dragstrip, it’s optimized for the racetrack, where its screaming high-end power, electronically controlled limited-slip differential and smooth torque delivery allow it to make the most of its prodigious output.

This really is a car you can commute in every day and then use on a track on weekends, and thoroughly enjoy in either milieu.

For maximum stealth and surprising value, the sedan is the sneaky star of the M3 lineup. It weighs only 22 pounds more than the coupe, so the performance is essentially identical. For reasons known only to BMW marketers, the sedan’s sticker — $55,625 — is a full $3,000 less than its two-door counterpart. And that’s as close as the word “bargain” will ever come to describing an M3.

There’s also a hardtop convertible and a new dual-clutch transmission that is likely to prove quite popular, especially for the sun seekers who use their race-bred 8,000-r.p.m. V-8s to troll along Collins Avenue in South Beach.

That is one drawback of the M3 — the number of people who buy it for the badge rather than the excellence that lies beneath the skin.



So the new M3 is as fine as ever, and still the target that everyone else is trying to hit. Yet despite the crowd of performance sedans now available, the biggest competitor for the M3 may be its own sibling, the 335i. Viewed rationally, that car looks similar, costs much less and has 95 percent of the performance.

Rationality aside, I know which motor I’d rather listen to for the life of a car loan. If you’re inclined toward the M3, just make sure you get one in the next few years.

Before they ruin it.

Gallery: 2009 BMW M3 Sedan