BMW M3 Sedan back in United States
BMW has brought back the BMW M3 Sedan to the United States. Revealed today at the LA Auto Show, the BMW M3 Sedan will arrive in U.S. dealerships… The M3 Sedan was originally offered in 1986 powered by a 2.3 liter four-cylinder engine that produced 192 horsepower. Of course much has changed since then.
The new 2008 BMW M3 Sedan is powered by a 4.0 liter V8 engine that produces a total of 414 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. The four-door BMW M3 Sedan goes from 0-60 in 4.9 seconds while the coupe does it 4.8. Power is delivered to the rear wheels through a close-ratio six-speed manual gearbox.
Woodcliff Lake, NJ - October 6, 2007 - BMW raises the performance benchmark once again with the introduction of the 2008 M3 Sedan. Sharing the M3 Coupe’s high-revving 414-horsepower V8 and balanced chassis that is designed to be “faster than its engine”, the motorsports arm of the German auto maker, BMW M GmbH, is pleased to offer the most powerful, highest-performing M3 ever with four doors.
Originally offered in 1986 as a homologation special to allow BMW’s entry into the German Touring Car Championship, the M3’s popularity and steadily increasing sales for each iteration motivated the company to continue developing this unique combination of driving dynamics, comfort and luxury in a compact machine and offer a new version each time the underlying 3 Series was reborn. Americans were first introduced to the M3 sports sedan concept in 1988. The first M3 produced 192 hp from its 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine during its 1988-1991 model year run. A legend was born and Americans embraced the high-rpm, naturally-aspirated M concept. The next generation arrived in 1995 with a 3.0-liter (and later, 3.2-liter) 240-hp inline-six powerplant. In 1997 the first M3 Sedan joined the family and the first M3 Convertible followed shortly thereafter. The most-recent version, available as either a coupe or convertible from 2001-2006, again was offered with six-cylinder power, this time providing 333 hp from its 3.2 liters. This vehicle was BMW’s first use of SMG (Sequential Manual Gearbox) for the US market.
The all-new 2008 M3 Sedan and M3 Coupe that arrived in spring 2008 will feature the first V8 in a series-production BMW M3. It will also feature driver-adjustable settings for crucial dynamic controls including steering, damping and stability (and an available steering-wheel-mounted “MDrive” button to store the preferences) and a sumptuous interior that can be optimized to a driver’s desires including the comprehensive entertainment/navigation system operated through BMW’s latest iDrive controller.
