Now is the time to buy an M3. But not just any M3. The last generations of the dying breed of manual, rear-wheel drive sportscars are coming out now, and the 2025 edition is sure to be snapped up by eager lovers of three-pedal driving.
The manufacturer has made it known that the days of manual transmissions are waning in its vehicles, turning these last model years into a hot ticket. Marketing magic, perhaps, but the manual M3 being produced for 2025 is a purebred driver’s car, nonetheless.
This four-door sedan has been lightly brushed up for 2025, with new headlights, a new steering wheel and interior trims, some fresh wheel choices and the Operating System 8.5. The top-of-the-line M3 Competition has bigger news, with 20 additional horsepower in the all-wheel drive version.
The cars are being manufactured in Munich. In Canada the base price for the M3 is $92,250. The M3 Competition starts at $99,250. Good news: there’s no upcharge for the manual.
Powertrain: This M3 boogies off the line with rubber-burning power thanks to its 473 horsepower, three-litre, twin turbo flat six. The limitation is in the driver’s feet and right hand, but the six-speed transmission is one of the best in the business, with a compliant clutch and super smooth shifter that make you feel invincible.
BMW has tricked this engine out with track-ready tech like oil pumps that prevent starvation in high-G turns or braking, high compression injection, and super stiff engine components that help it produce more torque.
In practical terms, the M3 driver has access to more acceleration, speed, and handling than they can use…unless they take it to the track. This car belongs there, and makes it clear that is where it wants to be. Drive modes are labelled Road, Track and Race. Lap timer and drift analyzer apps are at the ready to help you hone your performance behind the wheel. Traction control is not a toggle in this beast, it’s on a slider.
Drive: Other than the heritage, this car has little in common with the 1994 M3 I race, aside from some similarities in their balance and handling. The new car is clearly a product of vast technological advancement over the last 31 years.
In many ways it is far superior, with gobs of horsepower at the ready and sophisticated electronic engine management, suspension, smart differential and braking systems working together to deliver a track-ready machine. The car responds almost intuitively to driver inputs, with incredibly nimble handling and powerful acceleration and braking.
But there’s a certain remoteness to it all. Maybe it’s just that this driver is adapted to the analog oldie, but the 2025 M3 feels too computerized and too technical to offer the pure fun of piloting the old ’94 on the track. The sport steering has an almost resistant feel to it, and on our tester fitted with performance winters, it made the car quite darty on the highway.
There’s also zero chance that you’d be able to pop the hood and make adjustments while you’re at a track day. On the other hand, the built-in settings allow such detailed customization of drive modes, including steering, braking, engine behaviour and traction control, that the only thing you might have to do at a track day is refuel and maybe swap tires.
Interior: The most commanding feature in the M3 cockpit is the new three-spoke steering wheel. It’s huge and grippy, and includes two red paddles that allow the driver to engage custom drive modes with a single press.
Otherwise, the cabin in our tester was black on black, with low-key accents and lighting. Light up BMW logos in the front seat headrests are borderline tacky, but at least you don’t have to see them once you’re in the car. There’s nothing to distract from the road or track, except the massive infotainment screen, which can be completely shut off.
The standard sport seats offer decent bolstering, and excellent comfort on a long drive. Without a test on track, however, it’s not clear whether they would provide the kind of critical connection with the car that contributes so much to performance driving.
Exterior: Variously labelled “hideous”, “eye-catching” and “ugly”, by various observers over the week-long test drive, it’s evident that the M3’s appearance is polarizing. From any angle but the front, it’s quite unassuming, with the proportions and shape of many a mid-size sedan on the road. It does have a good solid stance, and broad hips that signal it means business.
But the face shocks some purists. The giant, squashed grille is an acquired taste, and in Ontario, where the front license plate is a must, it sits right in the centre, marring any sense of symmetry or proportion you might have imagined there. It detracts from the car’s all- business demeanor.
In Dakar Yellow II (a $5,000 option) with a black carbon fire roof, the car turned heads, and not just because people thought it had a funny face. Lemony Dakar Yellow II pairs well with black, especially combined with black wheels and accents.
Infotainment: The 2025 M3 is equipped with BMW’s latest digital technology, Operating System 8.5, along with the expansive curved display screen made up of a 12.3-inch (30-cm) information display and a 14.9-inch (38-cm) control display. The system incorporates improved voice controls, and a simplified control system that almost eliminates the need for digging through menus to access controls and information.
Our tester was equipped with the optional head-up display that projects information differently depending on the drive mode selected, including a tachometer, shift indicator lights and navigation information.
This particular M3 made an attractive package, and is not an ugly duckling, in spite of the bright yellow hue. Whether it turns heads for the right or wrong reasons, there’s no arguing with its pedigree or the superb driver’s package that BMW has put together. You get a lot of power, performance and technology for the $100k price tag, with a beautiful manual transmission to unlock the exhilaration. If you have the need for speed get one – before they become extinct.
2025 BMW M3 Manual
Price as tested: $102,750.00
Freight: Per dealership
Configuration: Front engine, rear-wheel drive
Engine/transmission: Inline 6 cylinder, 3.0 litre twin turbo, six-speed manual
Fuel capacity: 59 litres
Fuel economy ratings (L/100 km): 14.7 city; 10.1 highway; 12.8 combined
Warranties: 4 years/80,000 km
Competitors: Audi RS5 Sportback, Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing (manual)
Website: BMW Canada