BMW M3 Saloon: Test Drive

Date: 25 March 2008   |   Author:

Category: Upper medium Prices: £20,735-£49,415 Key rival: Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG &l

All three are powered by the same 420PS V8 engine capable of sub-5.0-second dashes to 60mph - but the new saloon can do it five-up with a weekend's worth of luggage.

All the M3's character remains - supreme pace, beautiful V8 exhaust note and a cross-country driving experience that will test the driver, but not the car, to the limits. It's a good job the traction control is set to perfection - not too eager to cut in early, but reliable enough that it will prevent unpleasant mishaps.

It behaves exactly how a £50,000 performance saloon should, and with all the practical bits that make the standard 3-series so easy to live with. However, it just doesn't look twice as special as a £20,000 318d with the M-sport package. The interior is pretty much interchangeable, save the great sports seats, while from the rear only a subtle boot spoiler and quad exhaust pipes that almost look like a fake aftermarket bolt-on differentiate the M3. At least the ultra-macho bonnet bulge at the front makes the M stand out.

The only other downside was the returned 12.6mpg average, according to the car's own computer, after an admittedly (very) brisk test drive. Though that was far from an economy run, drive the car in any way as the maker intended and you'll not see 20mpg very often.

The Saloon is priced around £1500 below its Coupe equivalent, mirroring the rest of the 3-series line-up, and BMW reckons around a quarter of buyers will plump for it. They'll be making a wise choice because it's not lost anything in translation from coupe to practical four-door, while proving that one car can cope with being family transport during the week and a plaything at weekends.

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