BMW M3 Competition Pack

 

What‘s it? The high degree of bespoke content and also the low production amount of BMW M3 Competition Pack cars means they do not get altered loads during their heart cycle. So exactly what we have got here -­ forthcoming £100k GTS notwithstanding ­- can be as altered like the regular BMW M3 will certainly get. The new Competition Pack is really a £3315 option that comprises many subtlety. So subtle, actually, that perhaps one of the biggest changes is that the introduction of stop-start included in an Efficient Dynamics rollout. Actually, it is a bigger deal than it first sounds. The M3, with or without Competition Pack, is that the first six-cylinder-plus BMW inside the UK to obtain stop-start, and it also has other ED gubbins for example brake energy regeneration (which activates the alternator to charge the battery upon the overrun ).

Which means the BMW M3 sips six per cent less fuel than before (upon the dual-clutch version, which happens to be the first non-manual BMW to obtain stop-start too ), with CO2 emissions down from 285g / km to 263g / km. But yes, I do know, it is called Competition Pack, right? Therefore the 'competition' bit? Which comes as a 10mm lower ride height and CSL-style 19in alloy wheels. There is also a special setting upon the electronically controlled dampers when in Sport mode and also a tweak towards the stability control system. What is it like? Those Competition pack mods do not sound like plenty but, even so, rather risks overstating its case. In case you have not driven an M3 for a good length of time, you will notice precisely no difference.

When you have driven one recently, you will notice virtually no difference. The wheels look great. Perhaps I am kidding myself, because it is been a while since I last drove an M3, but I wondered in the event that they, coupled towards the lower ride height, kept body control a wee bit tighter. You'd need to be going pretty ballistic inside a back-to-back test to see the difference inside the DSC settings. I wasn't, so I did not, but on the track day it ought to result in the M3 more exploitable, although in truth on the track day the button that turns it off is typically the preferred one. And also the different Sport mode damper calibration? Again, you'd enjoy being on the track before you decide to selected Sport, because it is so firm. That it can be tightly controlled is in little question, but it is also pretty darned hard for an open road. Perhaps one of the dynamic things supposedly entirely unchanged is that the steering.

I assumed there was slightly more weight and feel than I remembered, which could be right all the way down to the lower height and big wheels, but it is a pity it remains upon the mute side but still includes a steering wheel rim that is thicker than it must be. Shame, because what is really happening under the wheels is typically pretty darned impressive. The BMW M3 Competition Pack is just one of those cars that does not instantly blow your socks off, but its unchanged 4. 0-litre V8's performance is vivid (0-62mph stays at 4. 6sec using the optional seven-speed, dual-clutch 'box ), and few cars can match the M3's all-round capcapacity to both cast aside long distances with ease, yet entertain to some decent degree upon the right road. I believe I adore it more now than I did at its 2007 launch. Ever since that day, the dynamically superior Audi RS4 has come and gone and also the RS5 will rock up any moment. M3 Competition Pack versus RS5 on British roads and somewhere with a little bit of sliding space will make for the interesting comparison. Me? I would not be in the least surprised when the M3 greater than held its own. See all the newest BMW M3 reviews, news and video.