M3s that make you go Mmm

In October 2002, the third generation M3 finally appeared. The E46's 3.2-litre straight-six makes an impressive 343bhp - the highest specific output of any normally aspirated engine at that time. The high revving S54 straight-six was a gem of an engine and still can be found till recently in the Z4 M Coupe/Roadster. Another new feature on the E46 was the much improved SMG II robotized manual gearbox, the first generation which appeared on the E36.

In the interests of homologation for racing in sports cars series like the ALMS (American Le Mans Series), BMW announced the introduction of a very special E46 M3 in 2001. The M3 GTR adopts the 4-litre V8 from the E39 M5, making this the first M3 ever to be powered by a bent eight.

By using carbon fibre body parts and by completely foregoing any comfort equipment, the two-seater M3 GTR weighs in at only 1350kg. the V8 makes up to 450bhp in race trim but road going models had ‘only' 350bhp.

The M3 GTR road version is kept technically as close as possible to the racing version. Apart from the extremely light V8 engine the features includes dry sump lubrication, a 6-speed gearbox, a two-disc clutch and the variable M differential lock.
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BMW built only ten examples of the road going GTR, making it the rarest M3 model of all. At that time the M3 GTR costs a quarter of a million Euros.

After the GTR's short spell in the ALMS, BMW returned to conquer the Nurburgring 24 hours with the M3 in 2003. In both 2004 and 2005, the factory backed, Schnitzer run M#3 GTRs finish 1-2 in the grueling endurance classic. After the retirement of the GTR, BMW made the Z4 Coupe sports racer. This model was sold to privateers and was never officially raced by the factory.

In 2003, the CSL moniker finally makes a comeback to a road going BMW. The E46 M3 CSL was a limited production, stripped down hard core version of the standard M3. It also had more power - 360bhp. The CSL is differentiated by the brake cooling ducts on the bumper, 19-inch wheels and the exposed carbon fibre weave on the roof. The latter feature can also be found on the M6 and the E92 M3.

A new M3 GTR race car, based on the E92 coupe was born at the beginning of the 2008 season. BMW Motorsport that the new M3 GTR was to compete in the ALMS (American Le Mans Series) from 2009. The following year, BMW Motorsport upped racing activities with the M3 GTR after the brand pulled out from F1. Charly Lamm's crack Schnitzer team ran the cars for BMW Motorsport at the Nurburgring 24 hours, taking an overall win at the grueling endurance race at the famous circuit. The team also entered two GTRs in the highly competitive GT2 class at the Le Mans 24 hours. The two car suffert a raft of mechanical problems but BMW managed to pull the PR coup of the year at Le Mans with one car running a unique race livery painted by American artist Jeff Koons, making the Le Mans entered GTR BMW's 17th art car.

Instead of a CSL model, the E92 M3 spawned a limited production GTS model, the car that was recently showcased at BMW World here in Singapore. The GTS is a stripped out, lightened and more powerful version, the GT3 RS of the M3 range so to speak. The regular M3's V8 is bored out to 4.4-litres from 4-litre to make 450bhp instead of 400bhp in the standard car while weight has been reduced by almost 200 kilos to under 1,500kg, making the GTS perfect for club racing or track day events. M3 GTS production will be limited to 250 units and the five cars earmarked for Singapore have all been spoken for.

Credits: Story by Raymond Lai Photos by BMW Press Club