Preaching to the Converted

Source: Exec Digital Canada

Date :6/16/2008 2:07:51 AM

BMW M3 Convertible

By Paul Pearce-Couch

GRATUITOUS fun is what BMW’s M cars are all about, and none more so than the M3 Convertible. First available as a Coupe, then a four-door saloon and now with a folding hard-top, all three body styles boast the same unapologetically powerful V8 engine.

The 420bhp unit is not only considerably more powerful than the straight-six unit found in the last generation M3 models but is lighter, too. Add to that a rev limit more akin to a race-spec engine that that of a fast road car, and you’ve all the ammunition you’ll ever need for a night of boring your bar buddies.

The Convertible variant has pushed the car nerd boundaries even further. It’s the first model to be available with BMW’s new M Double Clutch transmission. It will cost an additional US$2,700 over a manual transmission, but many will doubtless feel it’s worth it for the showing off potential alone.

For those of a less showy disposition (although you have to ask what they’re doing in an M3 Convertible in the first place if they don’t like to draw attention to themselves) there’s as much fun to be had from using the M DCT unit as there is in bragging about it.

As with the previous generation SMG cog-swapper, the M DCT can have its shift ferocity manually adjusted at the push of a button. A paddle shift operated SMG was dream, but in auto mode its lethargic and hesitant changes quickly became a nuisance. The new system can be used as a full automatic without the hassle; the twin clutches changing gears at lightning speed in automatic or sequential manual mode.

With the Drivelogic function tuned to a softer setting, the unit delivers effortless changes that would go unnoticed if not for the engine note. However, dialed up to max, the M DCT bites so quickly that the back of the car can squirm on throttle, giving the occupants a real kick in the back and the driver a race car-like experience. In comparison to the responsiveness of the drive train, the steering and brakes feel lacking in feedback. How much of that is deliberately engineered to avoid making the model too snappy for the road at full belt is debatable.

Of course, customers can still opt for the manual without being disappointed thanks to the M3 Convertible’s excellent driving characteristics. The folding hard top, the first in four generations of M3, allows the high performance car to retain much of its structural rigidity and refinement with the roof up.

But even with the top stashed in the trunk, the M3 Convertible still boasts plenty of confidence inspiring stiffness.

Big bumps can occasionally be felt to reverb through the chassis but scuttle shake has been pared to a minimum, meaning the Convertible can be thrown about with the top down without degenerating into a quivering wreck.

That’s a real bonus because, despite being perfectly happy to perform duty around town, the M3 Cabriolet is at its best when driven hard. The vocal and rev-happy engine, tall gearing and shift lights above the speedometer all conspire to egg you on in the driver seat.

The car won’t bail out on you as the scenery starts to flash by; it’s supremely stable at speed and, with the top down, it’s refined enough to hold - albeit forced - conversation far in excess of American speed limits.

And that could be a four-way conversation. As long as the rear passengers don’t have any extraordinary legroom requirements, the rear of the M3 will seat two adults in snug comfort.

The trunk space is better suited to two, or one heavy traveler, with the top down but the rear seats fold to uncover a hatch for carrying longer items. Specification is on a par with the coupe and saloon models, meaning the Convertible is brimming with standard equipment and features a luxurious leather interior.

The model’s piece de resistance is every bit as impressive as the performance and specification. Folding ceremoniously into the trunk in three sections, the mechanism is impressive to watch in action. With the top down the model has a sleek, rising profile that’s both pretty and purposeful. With the roof in place it carries the same menacing presence as the fixed roof models thanks to bulging arches and large alloys.

What the M3 Convertible loses in practicality it more than makes up for in curbside appeal. Exhibitionists with a taste for performance will find the model occupies a disproportionate amount of space on the brief list of suitable choices.

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