October 28, 2005 - Patience is a virtue that usually doesn’t come easily to car zealots. For us, it’s all about getting things done, quickly, swiftly and efficiently. No waiting please!

This means that when the grapevine tells you the still-in-the-works E90 M3 will have a honking vee-eight, and, with competitive evolution being what it is in the car business these days, improved handling and performance, what’s an impatient M3 nutter to do?

Well, the folks at BMW know your lack of patience only too well. Heck, they’ve built their whole business on it. So, to tide you over, may I present to you arguably the best driving E46 ever—the M3 Competition Package.



“Best driving E46 ever? Wouldn’t that be the M3 CSL with its lightweight, carbon-fibre roof, stripped out interior, and balls-to-the-walls 360 horsepower straight-six?”, say you, oh Bimmer addict.

Um, you may have me there, mate. Its just BMW never sold that model here. What with the cost of certifying the high-power engine for North America, the expected limited sales, and the fact that the M3 CSL is priced about 50% on top of a cooking M3 coupe in Europe. It may have made sense to the enthusiastic few, but not to BMW’s bottom line.

So, there’s no Santa Claus, and no North American E46 CSL. But BMW does claim that with the Competition package, this is the best handling M3 ever. And what do you get for your $6,900 the Competition Package costs on top of the M3’s base price of $74,400?



The first thing you’ll notice, beyond the new Interlagos Blue exterior paint exclusive to the package, is the as unique Alcantara-covered steering wheel with the deletion of cruise control and steering wheel audio controls. All business. A six-speed manual is standard, but my test car came with the optional Sequential Manual Gearbox ($4,900). The M3 standard eighteen-inch wheel/tire combo is upgraded to nineteen-inch forged-aluminum wheels wearing 225/40 fronts and 255/35 rear Michelin Pilot Sports. Firmer shocks and springs—that all ’05 M3s received—are here as well. A quicker steering ratio, brake pads with a more aggressive compound and larger cross-drilled front brake rotors complete the hardware upgrades.

Software upgrades include one of the more interesting features for those who intend to take their M3 on the track—the less intrusive M Track Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) mode, also found in the out-of-reach CSL. Punch the button on the steering wheel and DSC becomes less intrusive, but doesn’t throw you completely to the wolves.



I recently had the opportunity to take the M3 Competition Package back and forth from Toronto and Ottawa on a preferred backroads route that surprisingly doesn’t involve the dreaded Four-Oh-One. With no upgrades to the regular M3’s 333 horsepower mill, there are no gains in straight-line performance, but what is immediately noticeable is the upgraded braking system.

You can drop these anchors repeatedly from high speeds with very little loss in performance or pedal feel. As the first cross-drilled rotors ever fitted to a production BMW in the North America, they incorporate an aluminum "hat" that reduces unsprung weight and warping under severe conditions, claims BMW.



It’s not like the existing car is a sloth, but the Competition Package only heightens the regular M3's already quick responses. Even with potholed road surfaces and off-camber tarmac, you can get the car’s nose tucked into an apex alot faster with the quicker steering. Recognizing that patience is a virtue, to this point in the drive, I’ve resisted punching the Sport button on the center console. It alters the ratio of throttle opening to pedal movement and recalibrates the engine map to deliver a more forceful response to inputs from your right foot. It’s like the “Loud” button on a stereo—why would you turn it off?

As with the regular M3, and most BMWs for that matter, you really need to be going hard to get the DSC to kick in on public roads. With building confidence, you can move up to M Track mode, and eventually, when road conditions and your driving talent are at equal levels, switch all the electronic nannies off and go have a good time. It’s OK; the M3 Competition Package is your ally, even on less-than-perfect pavement.

Unlike some of the sports cars that the BMW competes with on a performance level, the M3 Compettion Package truly rides quite well—better than the standard M3, despite the thinner sidewalled rubber. Thanks go to the new suspension settings that are actually softer than those of the regular model.



Another eye opener was the Sequential Manual Gearbox (SMG). By definition a manual transmission (there’s no torque converter), the clutch is electronically controlled. Shifting through the six forward gears can be made either via the steering column-mounted paddles or the shift lever. Or just leave it in auto mode. What’s unique is that you can alter the quickness of the shifts from around-town soft, to tracktime sharp. It still doesn’t provide the visceral joy of a well-executed heel-and-toe downshift, but the reality is is that unless you’re Mark Webber, the computer behind SMG will probably make you faster on the road, or the track. It helps that there’s an exciting car attached to this transmission, but in a test car equipped with a conventional manual transmission I had the week following the M3, the first few miles were spent flipping my index fingers, to no avail.

The SMG transmission I’ll leave up to your discretion, but the actual Competition Package itself is without doubt the best $6,900 you can spend on a new M3.

At least until the E90 M3 comes along…

-John LeBlanc, Publisher, www.straight-six.com



Just the facts…

Build quality 
Features 
Performance 
Fun-to-drive 
Overall value 

Vehicle Type: Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 5-passenger coupe
Engine: DOHC, 3.2-litre I6
Transmission: 6-speed auto-clutch manual
Horsepower: 333 @ 7,900 rpm
Torque: 262 lb.-ft.@ 4,900 rpm
Curb Weight: 1,534 kilograms
0 to 100 kms/hr: 4.8 seconds
Wheels/Tires: 19-inch forged alloy/Front: 225/40ZR19, Rear: 255/35ZR19
Base price: $74.400
Price as tested: $86,200
Optional Equipment: Competition Package ($6,900), SMG Drivelogic Package ($4,900)