Road Test of the Year 2018: BMW M3 CS

A comfortable interior, efficient hybrid powertrain and the possibility of 148.7mpg. When we asked BMW to send us an M3 CS, we certainly weren’t expecting all this. I’d anticipated
something a bit smaller, considerably shoutier and far less hybriddy.

That said, once the error had been rectified and the 530e iPerformance we had mistakenly been sent had been swapped with a bona fide M3 CS, an mpg figure in the teens and the bark of a turbocharged straight-six assured me that I was now in the right car.

The M3 CS is sort of a ‘greatest hits’ of the latest F80-generation BMW M3. The model is now dead – BMW thought it uneconomical to prepare the M3 for WLTP regulations when an all-new 3 Series is on its way next year – so this represents the last of the line for one of the most impressive compact super-saloons money can buy. And that’s why it’s here with us on our Road Test of the Year.

Of course, being a product of BMW’s M Division, the CS is far more than just a badge and a paint finish (though what a paint finish it is – matt dark blue has never looked so good).
The first thing you’ll notice are the stunning wheels – lightweight forged-alloy units, 19 inches at the front, 20 at the rear and shod in Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres. They sit in front of giant carbon-ceramic brakes with eye-catching gold callipers.

Step closer and the M3 CS’s lightweight tweaks are plain to see. There are frankly obscene levels of carbon fibre on this car, including the obvious stuff on the front splitter, rear spoiler and rear diffuser, but look carefully and you’ll notice that the roof and bonnet are both crafted from the stuff too.

The overall effect, when combined with the usual M-car features of enormous wheel arches and copious application of badges, is pretty spectacular. If one of these things comes up behind you on the autobahn, I’d suggest moving out of the way sharpish. And if one comes up behind you on a damp, twisting Welsh mountain road? Well, unless there’s a racing driver behind the wheel, you can probably chill out. Driving the M3 fast in these conditions is only a few steps short of terrifying, for a few reasons.

First, there’s the power. I’ve just stepped out of the Up! GTI, whose 113bhp is fantastic fun – you can absolutely rag it without ever hitting the limits on the road. The M3’s 454bhp requires a gentler touch.

Then there’s the width of the thing. It’s no M5, but those blistered rear arches make the M3 a fairly girthy beast. Meet another vehicle on one of these super-narrow roads and you risk scraping the side on a conveniently-placed drystone wall or falling into one of many valleys.

The final pieces of the puzzle are the tyres. They’re incredible in dry conditions but virtually gripless on damp Welsh surfaces, so the back end steps out with frighteningly little throttle application. Of course, we’ve taken the car far out of its comfort zone here, and as the road dries a little it’s clear that in the right conditions it’s a fabulous bit of kit. This is the most hard-core and focused M3 you can buy, and if you were to turn up to a track day in one, you’d certainly run rings round most of the competition.

Performance is of course ferocious – 0-60mph comes in well below four seconds, and its top speed is limited to 173mph rather than the 155mph of the standard car. Perhaps more impressive is the composure and feedback from the chassis – grip is superb in the dry, and the thick-rimmed steering wheel bristles with feedback.

The interior, too, is pleasingly pared back. There are the essentials – iDrive,air con, Alcantara – but nothing’s unnecessarily overstyled. Just a pair of brilliant sports seats, a wonderful ‘M’ stripe on the seatbelts and a CS logo sunk into the dashboard.

Though its price tag puts this car dangerously close to supercar territory, it really does get dangerously close to the supercar experience.