Legends aren’t made, they’re born. So when BMW decided to play around with racing in 1986 they also found themselves playing with history. For 2008, the 4th generation M3 is offered as a coupe and a four-door sedan with the convertible to follow shortly. The four-liter naturally aspirated light-alloy powerplant outputs 414 horspower at 8300 rpm and 295 pound-feet of torque at 3900 rpm. It doesn’t redline until 8400 rpm so the high-revving engine is able to hold each gear longer for maximum acceleration. With a power to weight ratio of 8.9 lbs/hp the new V8 is stronger, yet lighter than the 3.2-liter 333 horsepower straight six it replaces from the third gen M3. Expect the coupe to move you from 0 to 60 in 4.7 seconds. Top speed is limited to 155 mph.
