Wednesday
Previous experience of the E92 M3 brought to mind two key elements of the car. One, that engine is truly, truly magical and once you've heard it spin up to 8,000rpm and beyond, shift lights blazing, you'll be truly hooked. And, two, unfortunately if you do that on the road you'll be well on the way to a three-figure speed and/or serious trouble.
That V8 is both the E92's blessing and curse. I remember when first driving it that little thrill of pressing the starter button and thinking, 'wow, road car engines just don't sound like that!' How sad am I, I even filmed the cold start-up this morning for just that reason. It's got a grittiness and sense of purpose truly unique in V8 road cars. Flat-plane Ferrari V8s are pretty special too but there's something mad about such a hardcore motor in an ostensibly normal looking saloon that appeals hugely. And it's poignant to think we'll never see its like again. Given how much fuel I've chucked in it in just the last 24 hours it's not hard to see why; I think I saw double figures starting with a '2' for a short while but that didn't last long.
It's not just the thirst though. The V8's curse is that it's frankly near impossible to really appreciate on the road. For just this reason I just talked a mate out of buying an M3 and into a C63 AMG and having driven the M3 wondered if I'd done the right thing. But you can appreciate the AMG V8 without winding it out to the redline, making it more fun more of the time. So I stand by that.
But I wanted to get a real feel for the M3. So I went to Bedford Autodrome. And let rip.
Video evidence above should tell you all you need to know about how that went but having started out jerky and a bit tense I relaxed into the car and realised slides could be commenced long before the apex and the M3 would happily hold the angle as long as talent and bottle permitted. I was conspicuously lacking in both but even so managed to string together several massively enjoyable laps. And I stand by saying the DCT gearbox is the best match for this car, the ability to use that massive rev range to hold a massive skid all the way up to the 8,300rpm redline and drop it right back into the heart of the power band with a flick of the right paddle as it begins to straighten itself is just one of the best feelings ever. There's an SMG style aggression to the downshifts too and a much more interactive feel than most similar transmissions. As ever though it's the brakes that are the weak link in the M3 package, even in these conditions starting to go a bit long in the pedal after a few laps.
Speaking of the brakes once I'd had my fun I had a quick chat with Palmersport's Steve Page, fleet manager at Bedford and something of a BMW M fan it turns out. He kindly got one of their M3s out from the amazing hangar full of cars so we could shoot it with 'our' M3. These are seriously hard working vehicles, racking up 25,000 miles apiece in a typical year. All DCT equipped, unsurprisingly they run bigger brakes than the chocolate standard ones and are stripped and caged for a junior DTM car feel. Oh, and they all run on LPG too!
Punters like them for the noise and excitement, the instructors for their ability to cater to and entertain beginners and experts alike. A big wing and custom exhaust - freeing up nearly 50hp and repackable to keep within the Bedford noise limits - complete the package. I'll have to come back for a go some time...
M4, you've got some big boots to fill.
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