Press Release
Up to 300 horsepower for the race track.
While the BMW M3 was also conceived as a road-going car suitable for everyday use, it remained first and foremost a racing car. So now it had to prove that its creators had given the M3 the right DNA from the start.
With a World Touring Car Championship being held for the first time in 1987, the BMW M3 was simply perfect for this new challenge, the 2.3-litre power unit being boosted to a maximum of 300 hp at 8,200 rpm compared with the 200 hp of the 2.3-litre road-going version and thus offering the same power as the BMW 635 CSi.
Instead of entering a works team, BMW??????????????????????????????????????s decision in this first season was to support a number of renowned private teams such as Linder, Schnitzer and Zakspeed. And the famous drivers to be admired at the wheel of the BMW M3 included the likes of Christian Danner, Markus Oestreich, Roberto Ravaglia, and Emanuele Pirro. Featuring Anette Meeuvissen and Mercedes Stermitz at the wheel, there was also a ladies?????????????????????????????????????? team driving the new sports car from Munich in the World Touring Car Championship.
The first race in the new series was in Monza, Italy, on 22 March 1987 ??????????????????????????????????????? but it did not come under a good star for BMW, with all M3s being excluded from the final scoreboard after the cars had been scrutinised under partly chaotic conditions and disqualified because of allegedly illegal panel thickness. And although BMW naturally appealed the decision, the Company??????????????????????????????????????s complaint was rejected by the sports officials on the grounds that it had been submitted ???????????????????????????????????too late????????????????????????????????.
Subsequently, however, there were no further claims that the cars were ???????????????????????????????????illegal???????????????????????????????? in any way and the first race did not even have any effect on the result of the championship, with Roberto Ravaglia ending the season as the first World Touring Car Champion.
Even that was not all, with other BMW M3 drivers also ranking right at the top, among them Winfried Vogt who clinched the title of European Champion, and Altfrid Heger, who finished as the runner-up.
Winning the Corsica Rally ??????????????????????????????????????? and thus scoring BMW??????????????????????????????????????s first win in a race for the World Rally Championship in 14 years ??????????????????????????????????????? the BMW M3 impressively proved that its success was not limited to circuit racing or the race track alone.
???????????????????????????????????Most Sporting Saloon of the Year.????????????????????????????????
Clearly, the unique story of success written by the BMW M3 right from the start soon aroused the attention of both the public and the motoring press. Not surprisingly, therefore, the readers of the German car magazine ???????????????????????????????????sport auto???????????????????????????????? immediately chose the new model as the ???????????????????????????????????Most Sporting Saloon of the Year????????????????????????????????.
At the same time the BMW M3 gained growing appeal also in its ???????????????????????????????????civilian???????????????????????????????? version, becoming the first BMW in 1987 to be equipped with electrically adjustable dampers: Turning a knob next to the handbrake lever, the driver was able to choose among the Sports, Normal and Comfort settings, telltales in the dashboard presenting the set-up chosen.
Two very special offers for the private enthusiast followed in 1988: Bearing the additional letters ???????????????????????????????????Evo???????????????????????????????? for evolution, BMW introduced a small special series of even more powerful M3s. Standing out clearly through its opulent spoilers, this very special BMW M3 was powered by a 220 hp engine again also available in catalyst trim with maximum output of 215 hp.
The second new model was addressed to the aficionado of open-air motoring ??????????????????????????????????????? the BMW M3 Convertible based on the ???????????????????????????????????regular???????????????????????????????? BMW 3 Series Convertible. Developing maximum output of 215 hp and offering a top speed of 239 km/h or 148 mph, this was by far the most powerful and fastest open four-seater available in a small production series.
24-hour races: the BMW M3 scores a one-two victory on N??????????????????rburgring.
By this time the BMW M3 had really got going on race tracks almost everywhere, this outstanding two-door model clinching not only the German Touring Car Championship (DTM), but also six other national titles including the championships in France, Britain, and Italy.
A year later BMW??????????????????????????????????????s racing machine remained virtually unbeatable, engine output of 300 horsepower enabling the BMW M3 to easily outperform its touring car competitors in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Finland, Spain, Sweden, and Yugoslavia. Belgian driver Marc Duez entered the Monte Carlo Rally in the same year in his BMW M3, finishing 8th as the fastest driver in a car without all-wheel drive. And the driver teams Emanuele Pirro/Roberto Ravaglia/Fabien Giroix as well as Altfrid Heger/Harald Grohs/ Olaf Manthey added the final touch in this series of success, scoring a one-two victory in the 24 Hours of N??????????????????rburgring.
Special model series: Evo 2 and 320is.
The BMW M3 led the way in international touring car racing in supreme style for no less than five years. Bringing home the European Touring Car Championship several times, winning the German Touring Car Championship (DTM) twice, and scoring a number of victories and championships on an international level, the BMW M3 soon became the most successful touring car of all times.
Depending on current racing rules and regulations, the four-valve power unit had to be modified for the various national events: In Britain, for example, engine capacity was limited to two litres, while starting in 1999 it was increased to 2.5 litres in both Germany and France, giving the four-cylinder maximum output of up to 360 hp.
The engine and fuel management systems also varied from one version and type of race to another, with the engine featuring not only single throttle butterflies, but in some cases also valve slides on the intake side.
Introducing the largest version of the M3??????????????????????????????????????s power unit, the engineers at BMW M GmbH went all the way to the absolute limit: To obtain maximum engine size of 2.5 litres, they not only increased the stroke of the 2.3-litre power unit from 84 to 87 millimetres (3.31 to 3.43???????????????????????????????????????? ), but also enlarged the four cylinder bores from 93.4 to 95.5 millimetres (3.68 to 3.76???????????????????????????????????????? ), reducing the topland gap between the cylinders to just 4.5 millimetres or 0.18 inches.
But supreme success on the race track once again proved that the engineers were right, the engines smoothly taking in all the strain of the toughest touring car events even when pushed to maximum power and performance.
Discerning customers had the option to buy a civilian version of this then most dynamic BMW M3, the Sports Evolution model developing maximum output of 238 hp. Limited to a small production series of just 600 units, this special model was recognisable by its adjustable front air dams and rear wings.
There was also a special version of the 2.0-litre power unit raced in Italy developed specifically for everyday use: This was the BMW 320is with stroke extended to 72.6 millimetres or 2.86????????????????????????????????????????, and with a further increase of the compression ratio to 10.8 : 1. Maximum output of the 2.0-litre power unit with these specifications was 192 hp, making the car very popular in Italy and Portugal, where it remained below the engine displacement limits for luxury cars subject to significantly higher taxation.
By the end of 1991 no less than 17,970 units of the first-generation BMW M3 left the Plant, among them 786 Convertibles.
