...AND THE ’90s
While the E30 had been created in line with rigid Group A rules, its E36 replacement faced no such limitations. Launched in 1992 as a much more road-focused machine, the new M3 got a new 3.0-litre 24-valve twin-cam straightsix engine producing 286bhp. It set the format for every M3 since, and majored on driver engagement, but also comfort and refinement. As well as the coupé, a four-door saloon was briefly offered, plus a convertible – making it a big seller in the USA. A choice of six-speed manual or robotised sequential transmission was brought in from 1996, plus a 3.2-litre engine that knocked power up to 316bhp.
The 1993 name-change came about as the Motorsport department had grown far beyond the scope of racing, so BMW M GmbH it was. Talking of names, it’s fair to say that 1998’s M Coupé – with its memorable ‘clown shoe’ epithet – wasn’t immediately adored by the community. Powered by the M3’s straight-six, by then with 317bhp, it was a tin-top version of 1997’s Z3M, itself a bit of a hot rod. The Coupé body added torsional stiffness and, while it lacked the outright composure and ability of its bigger M3 brother thanks to its somewhat crude rear semi-trailing arm set-up, on the right road it was an absolute riot. Its looks have also definitely mellowed with age. Later versions got the improved engine from the E46 M3…
In 1998 came the E39 M5, for many the best of the breed (regular readers might recall it from Octane 228). Here was M’s first V8, with a headline-grabbing 400PS (394.5bhp for us non-metric Brits), and more than 20,000 built.