BMW will launch the next-generation 3-series in early 2012, but the M3—the ultimate 3er, and historically one of our very favorite cars—will arrive a little more than a year after that. Look for the next-generation M3 at dealers in late 2013 as a 2014 model.
Back in the present, though, the car is still testing, and our spies have caught the next M3 sedan wearing rather light disguise. As with the redesigned 3-series on which it’s based, the M3’s overall proportions won’t change much from the current model’s. The car will continue to be characterized by a short front overhang, muscular fenders, and a purposeful stance. The head- and taillamps will be updated with more contemporary elements, and the LED daytime running lights (a.k.a. “angel eyes”) will adopt the current BMW cue of being flat on the top and bottom.
Note that the prominent bulge from the hood of the current M3 has disappeared—at least on this prototype. Whether that change carries over to the final production model remains to be seen, but we wouldn’t be surprised if it does. The current M3 is bristling with aggressive bodywork, and there is a faction within BMW that would like the car to be subtler, more in the spirit of the E36 M3. Subtler doesn’t mean invisible, however, as the next M3 will still stand out with its wider body, 19-inch wheels, and quad exhaust finishers. It’s also possible that the conservative philosophy is reserved for the four-door M3, while the coupe would get a brasher treatment. Whether that two-door car will continue to be called M3 is another open question: BMW is again toying with the idea of applying a 4-series designator to the 3-series coupe and convertible, which means the M versions of those cars could be badged as M4s. (Even if the 4-series plan comes to fruition, though, we believe the M3 name has too much equity to abandon.)
But even if the M3’s name changes, the biggest news will still be under the hood, where a twin-turbocharged inline-six will replace the current 4.0-liter V-8. The eight-pot, which was derived from the last-gen M5’s 5.0-liter V-10, is flexible, sonorous, and powerful, but it also has a bad drinking habit—not good in an era of legislated efficiency. The blown six will indeed use less fuel, but it also should be more powerful. Figure on 430 horsepower or so, up from the current car’s 414-hp figure. We hear the new six is based on the single-turbo, 3.0-liter N55 engine found in several current BMWs, including the 335i, the 5-series, and the X5. A seven-speed dual-clutch transmission will be offered, as it is now, and we also expect BMW to continue to offer a six-speed manual, as well as adjustable dampers and dynamic M chassis settings.
A turbocharged M3 might be a difficult pill to swallow for M purists, but the reversion to an inline-six shouldn’t be: The E36 and E46 generations utilized naturally aspirated inline-sixes, and stuffing a V-8 into the current M3 was as much a marketing exercise as anything. While the disappointingly numb, fully electric steering found in the most recent crop of non-M BMWs has us a bit worried about the fate of the regular 3-series, the company installed a hydraulic setup in the latest M5, and that should hold true here, too. Whether that change will deliver the fantastic steering we’ve come to expect of M cars remains to be seen—we have yet to pilot the M5—but we can’t wait to find out.
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