All the BMW M3s Ranked from Worst to Best 

Please do more of these ranking videos!!

The 1st gen M2 is 100% the true successor to the E46 M3. It checked all the same perfect boxes.

The “issues” with the e9x M3s can be easily resolved through preventative maintenance. And while it lacks the low end torque, hearing the v8 scream at 8250 RPM is truly an experience like no other.

E30, E46, E36 are top three in my book. And I think the E36 has a wonderful driving experience. It's such a 90's icon. The coupes are aging so well. In many ways it was better than the E30 it replaced.

In Europe the E36 M3 is totally different car. It is actually the one that is the most powerful compared to the best 3 series at the time in line- 328i made 142kw and M3 236kw of power. My father worked in BMW dealership at that time and I got to ride one on passenger seat when it was new and it was fast as hell for 90s

Scotty Kilmer tomorrow: "Why owning an M3 is a terrible idea!"

Absolutely HILARIOUS that he comes out with this within a week of Jason Cammisa's doting on the E36 M3 on Hagerty. 🤣

Did anyone else get lowkey sad when Doug talked about how the latest m3 is probably the last true m3, and that this special car has reached its end? Made me think a bit :(

Before I even watch this I’m going to say the e46 m3 is best….. now I’ll watch it and see what Doug says. 👍👍

That E90 M3 still the wildest M3 out there

The saddest day of my life is when i had to leave my E46 M3 behind and move on.. it was a right hand drive "UK" model so there was literally no point of taking it with me.. and gutting it on a steering swap was just unthinkable because adored this car! I got it at ~70k miles and when i let it go it was ~310K Miles and believe me when i say that every single mile on this car was the absolute joy of my life, the sole reason i clocked so many miles on it was just because i loved driving it.. every single chore automatically became a joy. This car was my only car meaning that it was my daily driver. I never had an issue with the fact that it was a 2 door car as i never traveled with more than 1 person, maybe twice per year there would be a passenger in the back and the back is actually really comfy FYI. Everything i ever wanted and needed was this car and i can easily say that the best M3 of all time is and always will be the E46! And the best M5 is the E39. You dont have to like/agree those are the facts.

I remember driving a new E30 M3 at a track day in St. Louis, late 80’s. It was amazing! It has the right combination of power, grip, handling and made everyone smile who drove or rode along. A few years later I drove an E36 M3 on the same track and it blew my mind. Did everything the original did only better. At the time it was classed in SSA with SCCA and we all knew it’d be the car to have. Sure enough Randy Pobst proved that so by winning the Runoffs!

"When the F80 came out it was larger (than the E90) and it had more power to compensate for that larger size but it just sort of went away from the M3 ethos". But the F80 was about 200 pounds *lighter* than the E90...

The first time seeing the M3 in the late 80s in Germany was just breathtaking. Especially seeing it go through the Bavarian countryside.

The E9X M3 should've been higher up on the list IMO, not biased at all... But I think the high revving (and relatively low torque) V8 is exactly what sets it apart from your typical torquey big-power V8. The S65 has so much character and the ITB's sound amazing, not many production V8's can rev up to 8400rpm, definitely not your run-of-the-mill V8.

“The M3 is a great car, but if you had like infinite money and you were looking for a sports car you probably wouldn’t buy one” I don’t always agree with Doug, but when he’s on, it’s a bullseye! 🎯

I owned and daily drove an e92 DCT (I couldn’t find a manual at the time but that transmission is phenomenal and feels nothing like a normal automatic like Doug’s comments about the smg) and Doug is spot on about the low end torque, however the torque at the high end was a ton of fun, especially on the highway… it begged you to keep pushing and nothing feels better than revving to almost 9000 rpm. I had zero issues during my 3 years and 35k miles but man was I so scared something catastrophic was going to happen 😂

Doug is the kinda guy who just uploads to whatever channel he’s logged into last

The G80 has really grown on me, I was not a fan of the new front fascia when it came out. But the more time that goes on, I find myself often on the BMW website decking one out. Manual transmission, Isle of Man Green, brown or orange interior. It is my current dream car if I'm completely honest. I will probably end up settling for a base model G20 330i or 330e when the prices come down because I cannot justify $100,000 for a car.

E36 has always been my favorite. E30 & E46 Japan/Eurospec are the top 3 undisputed. Alpina or Ac schnitzer version are unicorn & also more desirable to me.

E46 naturally aspirated straight six is the best sounding of all of them. No contest 🔥

Oh Doug, I remember begging you to review a 4C years ago. I'm glad you finally did!

In the 90's I debated buying the E36 M3 vs a house. Took a drive with a BMW trained driver in one. We both agreed on the lack of power at that time (especially over the Euro model) that 321HP power plant with an additional gear (5 speed manual vs 6 speed) was a game changer. However; it was an incredible handling car. Later, I'd end up in a 2006 M3 ZCP 6MT. I loved that car and the practicality of it all. They even made a perfect rear seat protective cover for dogs that covered the entire rear seat area from the door panels to backs of the seats. Why was the SMG even part of the E46 story?

The thing he missed when speaking about the E46 was the steering. That car hands down has the best steering feel of any car I have ever owned or driven. It has weight that feels natural, it communicates what the front suspension is doing, and it's just extremely satisfying to use.

As a F80 M3 owner I am biased. I don’t think it deserves the top spot, but on looks alone it should be above the G80.

Absolutely nothing wrong with this ranking. 👍🏻 They all have their issues (price, look, reliability etc.), and all have good sides.

Personally, the F80 M3 (that generation of 3 series as a whole) is the most beautiful car in automotive history.

I currently own an e90 M3 with almost 200k miles. Ive been beating on it everyday for the past few years, as long as you change rod bearings and let the car warm up, you can rev it out to damn near 9,000 rpm every drive no problem, don’t be scared of these cars they’re one of the better engines in term of reliability 🤝

The e36 is my dream car, I love how it looks, but I respect what his view on it is, he doesn't talk about the euro e36, but it still makes under 3 hundred horse power. Also, the e36 is often called the m3 that made the whole m3 series popular. I think when it came out the e36 was amazing, but the new m3s just got better and better. In history, the e36 is a great car, but now it just isn't all that. It set the pace for all the future m3s, but the future m3s had a faster pace. I still love the e36, I think the e36 starts to shine when people modify it, and the aftermarket support for the e36 I believe is better compared to all the other 3 series.

The rod bearing issue was just as big (or bigger) problem for the E46 model as it was for the E92. BMW actually recalled the engine for new bearings when I owned one. A big problem is US market customers not knowing how critical it is to heat up the oil before adding any revs above 3K. Both engines were tight tolerance race-based engines that absolutely needed to get up to temp, not just jumped on leaving the driveway as many are prone to do. There are rod bearing upgrade kits for these cars that will take the anxiety out of ownership for not a ton of money.

Having driven the E46 M3 SMG for a few years now it is definitely growing on me too. I think the BMW engineers had a particular use in mind when designing that gear box. In my experience there is a perfectly timed SMG gear change in the same way there is a perfect manual shift between gears. As you go up the gears you pull the shifter whilst keeping the revs on. Wait about half a second, then blip off the throttle and back on again. The 'blip' is about 1/3 of a second. You have to experiment a lot to get it perfect but when you do it is really engaging, faster than a manual shift, and thoroughly satisfying. It is quite a nuanced experience. Clearly designed for when you are driving fast. But with practice it works well driving around town too. I rarely use the auto setting. I prefer to use the 'manual' shift with the SMG.

Love the Talks with Doug!

I love the F80, I’d rank it above the e90 and E36, but below the E46 and tied with the G80 with the E30 at #1

Can't really argue too much about your ranking. I would just flip the e30 for the e46. But I'm a bit biased because I use to own a e46 coupe 6MT and looooved every moment I had with it. Now, you have to follow this video up with a M5 ranking. This might be harder to compile than the M3 one.

Please keep doing these ranking videos. Your content is the best

I remember Doug on the smoking tire podcast and I’d love to know what changed his mind about the e30, from the podcast saying it was simply underpowered, similar to the e36 now holding it at number one on this list, I definitely agree but what changed his mind.

I think though you should have considered the fact that the new M3 will be the first one to come in a wagon form - something the fans have wanted for a looong time. As you mentioned, with Merc going hybrid, the M3 wagon might just be the best all-around car on the market.

The E46 M3 Has been my dream car since i was a child. Im glad to own an E46 coupe but its not exactly what i want...

Doug talking about the SMG is the exact reason why I love the late 00's to early 10's automated manuals.

I have an E36 and an E46 M3. Have driven or been in every gen except the latest gen and I personally prefer the E46 for that rev happy S54. The E36 is great for how nimble and raw feeling it is.

E46 is #1 for me….all have been amazing though

Interesting timing after Jason Cammisa’s E36 M3 video 🤔

Doug. Love your channel. Keep it going!!

Love watching this back to back with Jason camisas take on the E36 M3 lol everyone's entitled to their own opinions and it's giving us all great content

From experience of owning an E90 M3 DCT compared to my friends E46, the E90 is the more reliable car. Every single issue the E90M has the E46 has as well. Except the E46 chassis needs to be reinforced, it's old generation of high pressure vanos is unreliable and constantly has issues compared to low pressure units in the S65 which are much more reliable and it's automatic SMG is extremely unreliable compared to the very durable DCT. Many cars these days have more than 7 gears. But none actually use 7 gears to accelrate. They are all geared long after about 5th or 6th. The E9x DCT has 7 gears and no over drive. Top speed is at the top of 7th at Abit under 300kmh. No saloon car before or since has had such fun, agressive, short gearing let alone pairing it with a race inspired high revving v8.

it is crazy that a car that came out in 2014 is 8 years old. Time flies

Great list Doug, and very brave of you!

Great video!

The E30 was a „widow maker“: Rear wheel drive and no traction control. I owned an E30 316i with only 99hp in the 90s. And Even that was a creepy driving experience on rainy days. Several times I was overtaken by my own trunk. 😅 With special rain tires its got a little better. During wintertimes I remember that I sometimes had to leave the Car (with winter tires of course) on the road side and I had to walk. But: I loved that car and I regret selling it.

Hey Doug ! Thanks for you videos We all noticed you really like the e46 M3 (both from this video and your test). What about the Z4M Coupe ? It combines the analog fun of the e46 and a shorter chassis. I'm surprised you have not tested it yet ! I hope you can find one (in Phoenix Yellow ?) and review it for us all !

I'll stick to what I know, which is E36 and E46. I think you shortchange the driving experience of the E36. Car and Driver called it the best handling car under $100K in 1997. Also, it's widely acknowledged that the market success of the E36 M3 established the M brand in this country. "Best" is subjective but that fact should be considered as well. Happy to see the E46 at #2 and can't question since I've never driven a E30. Entertaining as usual!

Great Video! Really Opened My Eyes to The Newer Gen M3's (OG 3 Series Will Always be My Fav Though)

Hi Doug, great video. You should check out the E30 333i. We did not get the E30 M3 in South Africa, so BMW SA shoehorned a 733i engine into the engine bay. There were actually quite a few cars like this in the 70s and 80s in SA. Ford Sierra XR8, Alfa GTV6 3.0, Chev Firenza V8. You can make a video about this.

I remember the excitement in the motoring press here in the UK when the e36 M3 was about to come out. It was fixing the 2 issues that were seen with the e30, lack of rhd and a 4 cylinder engine. I also remember the disappointment when it arrived, falling short of the expectation, the extra size and weight nullifying a lot of the extra hp and the handling (according to the tests i read compared to the e30). The later Evo version (i remember them being referred to as this rather than lci that has come to be known with later models) seemingly improved these, and were years later considered the one to get.

I understand and love the logic Doug. Please do more of this again

I was honestly waiting to see the E30 pop up on your list, it’s a car that gives euphoria to every enthusiast every time they see it. Great ranking video 👌

Great list. I also think the new M3 deserves to be that high. Especially since I'm one of the 7 people who actually like how it looks.

Remember when Doug thought people would want autographed photos over tshirts??? 😂😂😂

Sorry Doug I missed the video today so I finally watching it now

I've heard this already on TST Podcast from Doug and came to the channel to watch the latest video on luxury cars. And then decided that I'll watch, like and comment this, so it gets a little more interaction and probably Doug would release more of these.

8:16 "Nobody wanted it at the time". Exact number were not revealed yet, but G80 "BMW M3 and M4 were the biggest drivers of growth last year" (13% increase of sales of all "M" models) as said by BMW themselves.

What a good video without me having to watch anything

Really good video! Would be good to see something similar for the M5 as well

I love your GT just chillin in the back

E46… period. I autocrossed one for years and loved it. My only complaint about it was that oversteer came in quick and twitchy. The E90 was a dream on the courses because its oversteer was transitional and smooth.

The E92 M3 is so underrated

Definitely need more videos like this!

Love all of these!!!

After owning an E92 M3 and now an E46 M3, I think the E46 being ahead of the E9X is valid however I think the E36 should not be last. It’s a tossable, analog car that weighs a good bit less than the E46 and sounds much better than the E46. Yes the S54 is much more powerful but only sounds good after 4K rpm whereas the S52 sounds good throughout the entire rev range.

Well, seeing as your website sells a lot of those E46s, I felt like that would have been the best one out of all of them

Doug, you pretty much nailed it.

My 1999 E36 in Dakar Yellow was my first experience of owning a car with different size tires front and back, thus limiting rotation of tires and decreasing their lifespan to about 20,000 miles. That wasn’t the worse part!! The first time I needed tires I called the local tire shop and asked for a quote on my Dunlop tires. I can’t remember the exact sizes or tread pattern, but it was so unique the local tire shop couldn’t find them! After several days of calling tire shops across Pennsylvania, I had one of them call me back and he began the conversation like this… “Let me guess, your car is a 1999 BMW M3 and this is one of the two front tires.” When I heard that I KNEW this was NOT going to be cheap!!! I sold her around 50k miles, just before having to buy all new sneakers again.

My ranking of M3s: 1. E30 - racing car for street 2. E36 - stealth and powerful 3. E92 - german muscle car

I’ve owned every ///M3. The only one I still own is the my 61k mileage E30 ///M3. My daily driver is a 2022 X5///M competition. It’s a fun car. But I still love my E30 ///M3 the most!

im just gonna say it, Doug put out Cars and Bids and the absolute perfect time.

You should definitely make this a series

I think you would appreciate driving BMW's M Coupes, coming from someone who owns a Z4M Coupe. Sports car engine in a sports car ends up being a magical experience. I don't think you will fit in a Z3M Coupe sadly. I don't at 6'4".

That is why the Alfa Romeo Giulia is such a great car. Opposed to the M3, where they first developed the mainstream car and thén the M3, Alfa took the reverse approach. First develop the Quadrafoglio, then the less performance cars

This ranking content is going to be a hit!

3:30 Even though it has a lot less power, the US E36 is actually *MORE* desirable than the Euro spec one, not less. It’s known for being way more reliable and having a much less stressed engine (as a result of the lower power and redline) so it’s more sought after on the used market

The G80/G82 has grown on me, it’s a rather charming and daring design and I like that.

Great vid

Nobody: Doug DeMuro: *releases video at the same time as the Superbowl* Me: *still watching it anyways*

Doug, brilliant analysis, good arguments for all cars. I agree with most but for this caveat - an E-46 with a manual transmission, strengthened subframe and repaired vanos would be my first choice. The auto was a dog, and the smg transmission had issues, however the manual was brilliant.

E46 or E92 for me definitely. Full respect to the f10 and 30 as well.

Great video, how about ranking the best M car next?

this never gets old

Finally you’re doing a 4c review that not ancient haha

I've owned all except the g80. The f80 was the best. Twin turbo with a dual clutch and looked amazing still does.

I absolutely love this idea of ranking popular cars though there generational evolutions. I'm surprised that the comments haven't hit the 10K mark as of yet. Also kudos to you for starting with The M3. While like most I would have a few change in my personal list. I have only had the opportunity to drive the E36 and E46. Yet do agree with most of the list. There are so many opportunities for this to be a continuing segment.

Love how you used a CSL for the pic of the E46 SMG.

I never drove an E36 M3 but I drove an E36 325IS and I thought that was the best clutch I ever felt and I loved the mechanical precision of the car. It was on a whole other level from the American and Japanese cars I had driven to that point. So I can only imagine how good the M3 was.

E36 is the best driving M3 there ever was. It was an improved E30 before it became softer and more sluggish as E46.

Would love to see where you would place the 135M in this list, being as it reminds me of a E46 but with a power curve suitable for daily driving. Yes it's not a 3-series, but I have always felt the 135 was a good successor to the E46, where as the E80/82 and onward tend to be on the bigger side.

More of this video type. Love it

I currently have both an e46 and e36, if I had to choose one to keep it would be the e36. The e46 is a good car but just a bit too large and heavy to be truly enjoyable to drive.

i may be in the minority here but the g80 m3's design has really grown on me and doesn't look as bad as i first thought

Doug is the type of guy to drop a RU-vid video on Super Bowl Sunday

I agree with your ranks 👌🏾

That big front end of the newer BMW’s is actually starting to grow on me. I saw one up close in that yellow yesterday and it was pretty cool. I kinda dig the out there styling.