And the V8 does significantly alter the M3’s character. Where before a creamy straight-six throatiness was followed by the trademark metallic rasp towards peak rpms, now a nice woofly warble under lighter throttle loads precedes a hard-edged – if more muted – charge for the redline. The spine-tingling zinginess of the E46 car is gone, replaced by a more mature, if still exhilarating, progression.
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Tell me about the steering, ride and brakes
I will. As you’d expect, less focused handling does improve the ride quality significantly with the M3 soaking up bumps much better than its predecessor ever did. There are also three (optional) cockpit-adjustable suspension settings, so you can stiffen the dampers and reduce body roll for track work.
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Is the E92 as easy to powerslide as its predecessors?
How childish of you. Once you’re sideways the E92 is an extremely easy, progressive car to hold in a drift (see p1), but it takes a little more determination to get it there in the first place thanks to that softer, woollier front end.
....Verdict
The M3 has grown up and lost a little of the E46’s edge to the more weight/more power vicious circle. But BMW has no doubt judged the market perfectly. The M3 is now a genuine volume seller and, last time, accounted for 13 percent of all UK 3-series sales. The new car needs to be a brilliant all-round package, capable of pleasing those who like the idea of the badge more than what it first stood for: track-honed thrills. And it is very, very good. This car is fast, practical, well built, comfortable and safe.

But in trying to hit so many targets, the E92 leaves purists wanting. So a CSL – a lightweight, more dynamically focused special edition – is now an absolute must and should form an integral part of the range going forward, filling the niche that the original E30 once satisfied in 1986. The good news is BMW’s top brass dropped some very large hints in the press conference, so the CSL sounds like a dead cert. We’d bet on it arriving in 2010.

If you want a great all-rounder and you don’t drive everywhere at ten tenths, the new M3 won’t disappoint. But if you crave trackday thrills, hold fire for a CSL.