The best BMW M3s ranked

10. BMW E36 M3

The E36 M3 is a fantastic M3 and truthfully, it set the template for the E46 that followed. But it did nothing perfectly. As a follow-up to the pedigree-laden E30, it was a bit of a badge job.

As the ultimate expression of a performance BMW for the road, the best was yet to come. As a car, it’s fantastic – a great chassis, compelling engines, good looks. But as an M3? It’s our starting point. Feel free to argue otherwise.

9. BMW F80 M3

In following up the howling V8 E92, the F80 committed a couple of sins in our mind. It lost some charisma in its (admittedly excellent) 3.0-litre twin-turbo straight-six. With turbo torque however, it also lost some of that quintessential delicacy and control that the previous two generations were so revered for.

Early F80s were considered wayward and aggressive – a Bavarian muscle car. They were good fun, but an example of razor-sharp M-ness at its best, it wasn’t. We do think it was one of the best-looking M3s, mind.

8. BMW E92 M3

Objectively, the E92 is one of the worst M3s. It was bigger and heavier by some margin than any that came before and indeed, it’s far slower day-to-day than those that followed.

But the E92 is the child of arguably M’s greatest era in terms of engines. That screaming 8,000rpm 4.0-litre V8 is a motor worthy of a supercar, that only saw action in the M3. It looked great and had a great chassis (for its weight and size) but that engine is the crown jewel.

7. BMW F80 M3 CS 

While the standard F80 M3 could be a ragged affair with a loose rear axle and an overdose of torque that made it frisky at the limit, the Competition model solved the problem with a series of tweaks, including a stability control system akin to a straitjacket. It took the fight out of the twin-turbocharged M3, but also a good dose of the fun. 

Enter the CS model, which was the pièce de résistance of M3s with a Porsche 911 GTS price tag to match — at the time, it cost almost £25,000 more than a standard M3. Which would have been fine had it been radically different, only it wasn't. Carbon-fibre body parts dropped the weight by a mere 10kg, and you got a paltry 10PS (7kW) over the M3 Competition. The big news was a set of forged alloy wheels shod in Cup 2 tyres and a revised stability control system that reinjected the fun back into the M3 experience. 

6. BMW E30 M3

Quite at the opposite end of the scale, is the original E30. Not since the original Lotus Cortina had a touring car made it to the road quite so authentically. This is a homologation special first and foremost, and a darling of analogue driving feel second.

The looks are no less than iconic, with something of a precedent set of just how racey an M3 can be. Perhaps controversially, we will say the E30’s four-cylinder is probably the least desirable M3 engine of them all, with even some 3 Series variants of the same generation getting silkier sixes. In this case, the original M3 suffers for its motorsport connection.

5. BMW G80 M3

It’s probably controversial to put this both ahead of the E30 and indeed, many of its fabulous ancestors, especially given its face. But in all-wheel-drive form (yes really), these received truly rave reviews. Finally, the 500-plus horsepower the M3 now has, has been tamed, with what is said to be one of the best-judged all-wheel-drive systems yet seen.

M3s are about using great engineering to make a great driving car. In the pantheon of current fast cars, this genuinely is middling in terms of performance, but it’s still bloody fast. Yet it still feels great. M3 fans will always look at the whatever the current M3 is as either one of the best, or one of the worst. We’re in the former camp.

4. BMW E46 M3

The E46 combines everything that the above generations perfect individually, in one cohesive package. It’s the perfect size, the perfect weight, with enough of a bespoke motorsport feel in perfect concert with a very road-focused package.

The engine is delectable, revvy and characterful, like an attainable portion of the McLaren F1 experience, with enough power to make the E46 exciting. Looks-wise, it’s the perfect balance of aggressive but classy. You don’t have to look too closely to know – the four exhausts, prominent arches and more are enough of a clue – but it doesn’t slap you in the face. 

3. BMW E90 M3 GTS 

The E90 M3 GTS is a bridging model between the old analogue M cars and the models we know today. While the current crop of Motorsport division machines call on electrical boosting and turbocharging, adjustable suspension and electric power steering, the GTS has a naturally aspirated V8, passive springs and hydraulic power steering. There isn't even a screen on the dashboard to instantly age the car. 

Driven lazily, the GTS feels slow by modern standards, but use the rev range, get the engine up to its operating speeds and it delivers scintillating performance, which is only amplified by the car's independent throttle bodies and titanium exhaust. Thankfully, the chassis can keep up with the powertrain's energy, with the car's half-roll cage providing the rigidity it needs to get the best out of its KW suspension.

There is one concession to modern times: BMW's DCT twin-clutch gearbox, but unlike the automated manual in the E46 CSL it doesn't ruin the experience; its mechanical shifts somehow match the rest of the car. 

2. G81 BMW M3 CS Touring

BMW teased us with the idea of an M3 estate back in 2016 when it revealed it had built an E46 M3 test mule with a Touring body, but we'd have to wait almost another decade for the idea of an M3 touring to become a reality with the G81 generation. 

In some ways, BMW was right to wait because the G80 M3 suited the Touring concept better than any other. The G80 is by some margin the heaviest M3 ever built, but that matters less in an estate car, and that its larger size is one of the reasons it weighs so much is actually a boon because it means more interior space. The G80 was the first four-wheel-drive M3, making the touring model — a fast, four-wheel-drive performance car with space for the dog — the Swiss Army Knife of performance cars. 

And that's even more true of the CS model. It can cosset you on the long drive to the Nürburgring before transforming into a DTM racer when you get there, with grip, composure, braking power and straight-line performance that are remarkable in any car, let alone a neat two-tone estate. 

1. BMW E46 M3 CSL 

The E46 3 Series comes from a peak in BMW's history. Its handsome styling required no excuses; its twin headlights and Hofmeister kink were clear throwbacks to previous models, but they were housed in a big-body modern design. The interior, meanwhile, was a paragon of clear thinking and superb quality, with clear analogue dials and simple switches, contrasting the screen's attack and tacky lighting effects you'll have to deal with in a modern BMW. 

The CSL, meanwhile, was the ultimate driver's BMW. The regular M46 M3 provided the perfect launch pad with a sparkling six-cylinder engine and sorted chassis. The CSL developed it by shedding 110kg thanks to additions such as a carbon-fibre roof, aluminium bonnet, composite body kit and interior panels and thinner rear window glass. A carbon-fibre air intake gave the car a straight-six shriek that hasn't been matched since, and fiddling with the car's cams and valves liberated an extra 17PS (13kW). 

These may sound like subtle changes, but added together they delivered one of the purest performance cars ever to hail from BMW's motorsport division. There is one fly in the ointment, though, and that's an automated manual gearbox, which immediately ages the car with slow responses and jerky changes. Thankfully, nowadays, there are simple aftermarket solutions to convert it back to manual.