How the BMW M3 Redefined Sports Cars and Became an Icon
Over the years, the M division of the Bavarian Motor Works has been responsible for a mighty number of vehicles that have played key roles in defining their categories. The M1 paved the way for the supercar; the M5 created the category of the sport sedan; the X5 M helped show just how capable an SUV could be on street and track alike. But for enthusiasts who value driving purity, the M-car that stands above all the rest has always been the BMW M3.
The M3 has been winning hearts and minds for nearly 40 years, spanning six vehicular generations. To this day, it boasts legions of loyal fans, most of whom are more than willing to argue over which generation is best (and which is worst). The M3 is an icon, held up alongside the Porsche 911 and Chevrolet Corvette as one of the archetypal performance machines whose legacies will last as long as people can remember what sports cars are.
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Its latest generation was launched in 2020, and while global production numbers might have peaked with the E46 — produced from 2000 to 2006 — it remains a core part of BMW’s global offerings, as essential to its lineup as the 3 Series, and just as inconceivable that it will ever go away.
This is the history of the BMW M3.
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1986: The first M3 arrives
The BMW 3 Series debuted back in 1975, serving as a replacement for the ‘60s-era 02 Series cars as the entry-level model in the automaker’s lineup — but while that first 3er captured plenty of hearts and minds with its fun-to-drive manner and clean, good looks, it never quite packed a real punch; the most powerful version made just 141 horsepower.
However, by the time the second-generation car — known internally as E30 —arrived in 1981, BMW had upped its performance bona fides with the debut of the M1, a minimalist wedge of a mid-engine sports car that could top out at 165 mph. The blue-and-white roundel stood, more than ever, for speed.
So, hot on the heels of the first M5 that arrived in 1984, BMW rolled out a smaller, lighter, and more accessible little sibling: the M3. Designed at first to satisfy homologation requirements for racing, the E30 M3 that debuted at the 1985 Frankfurt Motor Show before going on sale the following year shared little sheet metal with lesser 3ers. Designers traded in most of the base car’s straight, simple panels for bulging, muscular ones and affixed all sorts of aerodynamically minded pieces — splitter, spoiler, side sills — to slash drag and add confidence at high speed. (The fact that the end result looked as good as it did, well, call that a happy coincidence.)
Under the hood lay a 2.3-liter inline-four cranking out 192 horsepower with a catalytic converter and 197 without — figures that wouldn’t disappoint today from a naturally aspirated four — connected to a five-speed manual gearbox that led to the rear wheels. That was at launch, at least; by 1988, the brand had dialed up power to 217 hp for a limited-run special known as the Evolution version, followed by a 2.5-liter, 238-hp variant in the M3 Sport Evolution of 1990. Those were made in small numbers, however; the vast majority of the 17,970 E30 M3s built (more than three times what was required for racing) were the regular version. Most of them were two-door coupes, but a handful of convertibles also made their way off the line and into buyers’ arms.
1992: The second-generation M3 adds a couple of cylinders
The 3 Series entered its second generation in 1990, kicking off the new decade with a fresher, more modern look featuring squared-off headlight enclosures and larger kidney grilles. By 1991, however, something new to the 3er was under the hood: an inline-six engine. With the regular models now packing six-cylinder power, such a move seemed obvious for the next M3.
Indeed, when the E36 M3 hit the streets in late 1992, it did so with six pounding cylinders under its long hood. Thanks to tricks like variable valve timing and individual throttle bodies 3.0-liter inline-six made 286 horsepower — this in an era when a Ferrari V-8 needed 3.4 liters to squeeze out 296 hp. A five-speed manual continued to route power to the rear wheels.
1994 saw the launch of the first M3 sedan, as well as the return of the convertible variant. In the United States, however, the E36 M3 didn’t show up until 1995, on the verge of the car’s midlife facelift — and when it did, it was in compromised form. The U.S. version lacked the more complex tech of the European car, so while its engine had the same displacement, it put out just 240 hp. (BMW did throw the U.S. a bone with the form of the M3 Lightweight, which stripped out weighty extras like A/C and radio and adjusted the suspension and gearing to make the car more track-worthy for American racers.)
The American version was still producing that even after the life-cycle update brought the European version’s engine up to 3.2 liters and 316 hp. The late-’95 update also brought goodies like a six-speed manual and a new six-cog sequential manual gearbox (SMG) to the European models. The American model at least was able to benefit from the styling updates, but for U.S. buyers, the E36 M3 would always be second fiddle to its foreign twin. That wouldn’t be the case forever, though.
2000: The third-generation M3 levels the playing field
The E46-generation 3 Series entered production at the end of 1997, but it would be two and half years before its M3 version debuted at the 2000 Geneva Motor Show ahead of going on sale that September. It was worth the weight, however — especially for American buyers. The 3.2-liter inline-six made 343 horsepower in Europe and 333 on the U.S. side, and a six-speed manual gearbox was the standard choice for all. (The six-speed SMG would soon return, as well, although complaints about it being poorly suited for around-town driving would also remain.)
The new M3’s looks were once again quite the change from its predecessors. The basic proportions remained, but the sheet metal had grown a little rounder and more exaggerated, adding muscularity to the car’s looks while simultaneously softening it up. The sedan body style didn’t return for the third generation of M3 — the M5 had returned in 1998 after a three-year absence, negating the need for another M sedan — but the coupe and convertible versions both came back.
The E46 M3 chugged along largely unchanged for most of its six-year life — even the midlife refresh of 2003 was mild, to say the least — but it did see one limited-run variant of note in the form of 2004’s M3 CSL. (It translates to “Coupe Sport Lightweight,” if you were wondering.) As with the E36 M3’s Lightweight, BMW shaved weight to improve performance, utilizing carbon fiber and tossing luxury features like the stereo, A/C, and power seats to carve 243 pounds off the coupe’s 3,450-pound curb weight; the CSL also dialed up power to 360 hp, and came only with the sequential gearbox. That in turn was followed in 2005 by a less-extreme variation of the theme known as the M3 CS over in Europe and the M3 Competition Package in America, which used the base powertrain but added the CSL’s steering, a tighter suspension, and bigger brakes.
2007: The fourth-generation M3 goes V8
For its fifth generation, which hit the road in 2004, the 3 Series split its internal model codes in several directions: E90 was used for the mainstream sedan, E91 for the station wagon, E92 for the coupe, and E93 for the ragtop. The M3 variant that entered production roughly three years later would come in three of those body styles; a wagon wasn’t in the cards, but the sedan returned alongside two-door hardtop and soft top variants, with the four-door arriving the year after the coupe and convertible’s 2007 launch.
The biggest change for the E90/E92/E93-gen M3 was found under the hood. Once again, Bimmer’s hot 3er was gaining cylinders, this time going from six to eight. An all-new 4.0-lighter V8 was ginned up for the new M3, and what an engine it was, spitting out 414 horsepower at a screaming 8,400 rpm — once again putting the BMW’s engine nearly on par with Ferrari’s V8 of the day, as the F430 of the era’s 4.3-liter motor spat out 483 hp at 8,500. As a bonus, the new engine was also lighter than its predecessor, even though it had more cylinders. A new power bulge on the hood hinted at the tempestuous engine below.
Once again, a six-speed manual remained the default choice, but by early 2008, BMW M rolled out a new two-pedal alternative: a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox (DSG), which kept the snappy shifts of the SMG but was easier to drive in everyday life. The new gearbox meant that, for the first time, the paddle-shifted M3 was quicker off the line than the stick-shift version.
By 2010, BMW had begun rolling out new special editions to keep the M3 lineup fresh in the face of ever-tougher competition (and a global recession). The Competition Package returned, leaving power the same as stock but enhancing handling through sharper dampers, a lower height, and a less-restrictive stability control system. The bigger news that year, however, was the bright orange M3 GTS coupe: its V8 had been pumped up to 4.4 liters and 444 hp, and came paired with a mandatory DSG and track-oriented aerodynamics and suspension; it also benefited from an extensive weight savings program that shaved about 300 pounds off by swapping in lighter windows and interior components, even stripping out the back seats. A similar technique was applied to the E90 sedan next year with the 444-hp M3 CRT, but that car kept the rear seats and other features.
2014: The fifth-generation M3 has fewer cylinders, more power, and a change in name
The sixth-gen 3 Series that arrived in 2011 came in more body styles than ever before: in addition to the sedan (F30), station wagon (F31), coupe (F32), and convertible (F33), there was an extended-length sedan for the Chinese market (F35), and a wagon/SUV hybrid called “Gran Turismo” (F34). For the first time, the M3 family that entered production three years later received its own internal codes: the sedan was known inside BMW as the F80, the coupe as the F82, and the droptop the F83.
There was a catch, however: the M3 wasn’t just the M3 anymore. As part of a rebranding effort to give coupes and convertibles even-numbered names, the two-door M3 models were now christened M4. It made sense in the broader lineup, but was a little vexing for the M models, as the original body style was forced to adopt new nomenclature …and the four-door car was the one that didn’t have “4” in its name.
For the first time, the M3 lost cylinders as it transitioned between generations. In the face of changing emissions regulations, BMW M switched the car from the naturally-aspirated V8 to a twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six — but while displacement and cylinder count were cut by a quarter, power climbed. The new engine’s horsepower output climbed just 11 ponies to 425 hp, but torque saw a mighty boost, going from 295 lb-ft to 406. (It also delivered that twist lower in the rev range, with max torque arriving at 1,850 rpm versus the previous car’s 3,900.) As before, a choice of six-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox was offered.
Once again, BMW employed techniques pioneered on earlier models to liven up the range as time went on. 2016 saw the return of both the Competition Package for sedan, convertible and coupe, with a splash more power (now up to 444 hp) and a sharper suspension, and the road-course-ready M3 GTS; the latter of course, had been redubbed M4 GTS on account of its two doors, but more notable was its water injection system, a production car first. This setup sprayed H2O into the engine to cool it at places where warm spots could induce premature ignition of the fuel-air mixture. This system helped boost the 3.0-liter turbo six to 493 horsepower, but it also meant drivers needed to fill up a small tank in the trunk with distilled water on a regular basis.
Come 2017, BMW M split the difference between Competition and GTS with a new M3 / M4 CS; the engine was spun up to 453 hp, and a few pounds carved off through interior tweaks such as mandatory sport seats, pull straps in lieu of door handles and a lack of an armrest. By 2018, the M3 was sent out to pasture, but the M4 held on another couple of years.
2020: The sixth-generation M3 (and M4) bring controversial looks
You may have noticed that, after discussing the first model, this story has largely avoided discussing the appearance of the various generations of M3. That’s because, from the E36 on, they’ve generally stuck by a straightforward playbook: take the basic 3 Series, widen the fenders, add slightly more aggressive aerodynamic features, and call it a day. It’s easy to tell the similarity between various M3s, even if they’re from different times.
That changed with the sixth-gen model. When it debuted in 2020, the M3 sedan and M4 coupe (internally called G80 and G82) both came wearing an exaggerated version of the G22-generation 4 Series’s massive front grille, even though the G20-gen 3 Series sedan the new M3 was based on used a more traditional (read: subtle) BMW double-kidney grille. Comparisons to the porcine foes from the Angry Birds video game were not unwarranted.
Look past that (if you can), however, and you’ll find an exceptional performance machine, as always. For the sixth-gen car, the Competition Package became a dedicated trim level: basic M3s and M4s made 473 horsepower from their twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six and came exclusively in rear-wheel-drive, while the M3 Competition and M4 Comp made 503 horsepower from the same engine, with power flowing to the rear wheels — or, for the first time, all four, using an all-wheel-drive system specially adapted for M use by the performance subdivision. Competition-trim cars came exclusively with an M-tuned eight-speed torque converter automatic, while base models offered the option of that gearbox or a six-speed manual.
Come 2021, BMW rolled out the G83 M4 cabriole; then, a year later, the brand began selling a station wagon version for the first time in the form of the M3 Touring, though it would remain verboten for Americans. As before, sharper variants followed, but the names had changed. Instead of a new M4 GTS, BMW M rolled out the M4 CSL coupe in 2022; the brief was the same, however, with the straight-six’s power boosted to 543 hp and roughly 200 pounds carved out of the car to make it more raw. (Later that year came an even wilder, limited-run variant — the M4 3.0 CSL, packing an extra 10 horses and a bespoke body.) 2023 saw the arrival of the sedan alternative, the M3 CS, which used the same combo of 543-hp engine, and eight-speed auto but paired it with all-wheel-drive instead of the CSL’s rear-wheel setup and added a couple of seats in back.
What’s next for the M3? Well, nothing is certain, but BMW M’s boss has said that, as of 2024, the brand has no plans to ditch the potent inline-six, suggesting the internal-combustion M3 should live on as long as buyers want it (and governments let BMW sell it). That said, with BMW planning on introducing a revolutionary new EV version of the 3 Series based on its “Neue Klasse” platform, don’t be surprised to see an all-electric M3 eventually sold alongside the gas-powered one.
