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2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000
 
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BMW M3 |
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BMW’s iconic M3 sports coupe has once again muscled its way to the top of a tightly packed field representing the very best of the prestige sports car market. German manufacturers continue to dominate this category with the likes of Porsche, Audi, Mercedes and BMW seemingly more skilled at building high performance machines that are equally comfortable for an elegant night out or unfazed by a quiet run to the shops. While Alf Romeo, Lexus and Nissan’s-GTR have struggled for that prized overall score, the latter clearly holds a fist full of aces when it comes to on road dynamics. It is important to note that while the M3 can take its place at any club track day it also possesses a highly refined and technically advanced driveline allowing it to be used without question or compromise as a cosseted luxury coupe when the need arises. And when it comes to performance the advantage of the M3 is the spread of flexibility that can be dialed into the car via the M-Drive, so that steering forces, damper settings and traction or stability control can be adjusted. There are three different settings allowing a sports or track day set up, a highly controlled but more forgiving ride for tarmac style rallies and a normal setting for the daily drive. Power in the M3 comes from an award winning, over square, and high revving 4.0 litre V8 engine, machined from the very best materials. It bristles with advanced technologies including variable valve timing on both inlet and exhaust along with individual electronically controlled throttle butterflies. The result is an engine that gives its best across a wide rev range and delivers it with the glorious backing of a grand prix sound track. A peak of 309kW is released at 8,300 rpm while 400Nm of torque comes in at 3,900 rpm and when fed through the six speed manual transmission the performance delivery is not only breathtaking, but is as easy to achieve as driving your average Japanese sedan. Just don’t expect comparable fuel economy. In an effort to hone the very best from this machine BMW engineers have gone to such lengths as fitting a carbon fiber roof panel and alloy bonnet into the coupe for the simple yet deadly effective result of lowering the cars centre of gravity and thus its poise and cornering balance. The M3 cabin possesses all the elegance and style of other prestige BMW offerings, with durable leather trim, fine instrumentation and switches but with just the slightest edge in seat bolstering for additional lateral support and a little more tactile feel on the controls. In addition to all the primary safety features under the sun the M3 also sports a full complement of occupant protection devices and scores a full five stat ANCAP rating. The M3 is arguably one of the better 2 plus 2 coupes in this segment if you need to carry extra people, although it’s not brilliant and while the standard specification ticks all the big ticket items, be prepared for a shock if you start down the options list.
Finalists
Previous Results
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