► Nine months with the BMW M3
► We say goodbye to the twin-turbo six
► But do we understand the M3 now?
To the two perennial dinner conversation taboos of religion and politics, BMW has added a third: the F80 M3. No one seems able to agree on whether it’s a great M3, the best sports saloon currently on sale or even, more fundamentally, whether it’s any good or not.
I’ve sat pinned in the passenger seat, the M3 rampaging around Brands Hatch in a storm of mighty front-end grip, obscene braking performance (thank the carbon-ceramic brakes) and rampant acceleration while a professional racing driver gushed like a wide-eyed kid. Equally I’ve sat at a dinner table while a rival development engineer, wearing an expression of genuine disbelief and sadness, outlined his case for the F80 being a spectacular M Division duffer.
The truth? Somewhere in between, of course, depending on factors as diverse as the weather, your skill and confidence behind the wheel and whether or not you drove the previous-gen V8 E92…
For me the M3 does the ‘two cars in one’ thing very well. When you just want to get home it’s comfortable, roomy, quiet, equipped with the now excellent iDrive interface and blessed with enough visual and aural drama to brighten even a winter’s night on the M1. And when you’re on your own, in the mood, it’s a very quick, very capable car, the engine’s awesome reserves of any-rev power working with the tremendous brakes and meaty front-end grip to blaze down pretty much any stretch of road you care to point it at.
On a circuit it’s equally imperious, particularly with the seven-speed DCT gearbox and carbon-ceramic brakes. Both will make you faster around a racetrack, though I wonder how many owners of immaculate £55k F80s will risk their precious cars in open trackday warfare. Stick to the road and I’d question the need for either (quite expensive) option.
Towards the end of my time with our M3 I drove another with a manual gearbox and steel brakes and preferred both, the former for its increased sense of involvement and the latter for their more predictable, consistent light-pressure responses. Swerving the ceramic brakes and saving £6250 doesn’t take long to think about, though the bulk of the used F80s currently on sale feature the DCT gearbox, suggesting its £2645 is justifiable when you consider the very quick, satisfying shifts in manual mode and the opportunity for languid, fully-auto miles when you’re feeling lazy or stuck in traffic.
Critics return and again and again to the engine and the apparent discord between the precise, feelsome front end and the car’s fairly wayward rear. True, the engine is an odd fish. Its curious noises and ultra-grunty, almost über-diesel delivery don’t encourage the kind of wild proclamations of love inspired by, say, most AMG engines. And there’s no doubt the chassis can scare if you’re careless, lacking in bravery or it’s winter. The better the weather, the more seat time you have in the car and the more fond you are of oversteer, the more you’ll like it.
Which perhaps explains why the likes of Chris Chilton didn’t want to give the M3 back, and why my fingers were clasped less firmly around its keys when the BMW’s last day dawned. The F80 M3 is an easy car to admire but a harder one to love.
Count the cost
Cost new: £66,785 (including £12,010 of options)
Dealer sale price: £51,510
Private sale price: £47,695
Part-exchange price: £45,740
Cost per mile: 23p
Cost per mile including depreciation: £1.73
Logbook BMW M3
Engine: 3.0-litre twin-turbo 6-cyl, 425bhp @ 5500-7300rpm, 406lb ft @ 1850-5500rpm
Gearbox: 7-speed twin-clutch auto, rear-wheel drive
Stats: 4.1sec 0-62mph, 155/175mph, 194g/km CO2
Price: £54,775
As tested: £66,785 (including £12,010 of options)
Miles this month: 627
Total miles: 13,831
Our mpg overall: 23.6
Official mpg: 32.1
Fuel cost overall: £2216.88
Extra costs overall: £293.72 (pheasant repairs)