BMW M3 (E46)

The BMW M3 (E46) was the M3 of the E46 3 Series, built in coupe and convertible form from September 2000 to August 2006 at the Regensburg plant, 85,766 cars in all, made up of 56,133 coupes and 29,633 convertibles. Concept design began in 1997, the car was previewed as a concept at the 1999 International Motor Show Germany and the production version was introduced in March 2000 at the Geneva Motor Show. It used the 3.2 litre S54 straight-six, the final evolution of the naturally aspirated S50, rated at 252 kW with an 8,000 rpm redline and individual throttle bodies for each cylinder. Buyers chose a Getrag six-speed manual or the SMG-II automated manual gearbox, the coupe reached 100 km/h in 5.2 seconds, top speed was electronically limited to 250 km/h and the kerb weight was 1,565 kg. Special editions included the lightweight CSL, and an M3 Touring prototype never reached production.