Automotive
In full disclosure, I have been a long-time BMW fan, as I’ve owned a BMW for many years. In the latest generation of BMW Motorsport vehicles, there’s a lot to debate in the realm of enthusiasts and diehard fans on the subject if BMW has retained much of the loved driving machine theme. Having the 2025 BMW M3 in my possession this week has been a joy in partaking in some of that old-school passion and love for the ultimate driving machine, with my test vehicle being a manual transmission-equipped M3 in one of my all-time favorite colors, Laguna Seca Blue, which has returned for the new model year.
The BMW M3, which, as you know, is a 4-door vehicle and, fundamentally, a thrill machine in my view, after spending a week with such a vehicle that touts 473 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque from its 3.0-liter twin-turbo inline 6-cylinder engine. That power is sent through a 6-speed manual transmission and through a limited-slip differential out to the rear wheels.
Again, having a manual transmission elevates the M3 in a way that appeases additional senses for enthusiasts who enjoy rowing their own gears. The somewhat notchy manual shifter continues to be true to the feel that you expect out of a BMW, as is the clutch engagement. There are no big surprises here. Moreover, the M3 remains well planted to the ground where it grips and just goes. In a nutshell, there’s a bit of extra work required to break the rear 285/30 20-inch tires loose and do it in a concerted way that you don’t end up calling your insurance company.
Yes, the M3 remains well-balanced with a near-perfect weight balance from front to back. Even with BMW being on the conservative side of stating its power figure, this thing feels more like 550+ horsepower, and the M3 feels proper for its segment, reigning as a continued benchmark. While the manual transmission M3 may be a bit slower off the line than the snappy-shifting ZF 8-speed automatic transmission vehicle, you can still hit 60 mph in about 3.8 seconds or slightly under – mostly dependent on your driving skills.
Overall, the BMW M3 has some of the best driving dynamics and handling of any vehicle in its class, partly attributed to the staggered wheel setup with 19-inch wheels up front and 20-inch rears. On my test vehicle, those wheels are an optional setup that looks remarkable for the contrast of colors against the eye-popping Laguna Seca Blue vehicle paint, in addition to large red 6-piston brake calipers up front and single-piston rears. The amazing color does a lot for the BMW M3, possibly to downplay the bever-tooth-looking grille that’s been a continued sore spot for many. However, I have to say, the grille has grown on me a little – just a little – as the Laguna Seca Blue paint and dark grille seem to work the best for such a grille thus far.
Fuel consumption is actually predictable in the sense of what you expect out of a compact performance luxury sedan matching and often besting the EPA estimates of 16 mpg city, 23 mpg highway, and 19 mpg combined.
The interior of the M3 is true to BMW’s quality, whereas my test vehicle took things up a notch with its accented blue and yellow colors, which oddly clash with the exterior color. Despite the color clash, the interior is proper to the M3’s theme in being a performance vehicle with supportive sport seats up front with heating but lacks a center armrest for the rear seats. The seating choice is among my favorites over the rather aggressive bucket seat option, which appears to be reserved more for the M3 Competition and M3 CS.
The 2025 BMW M3 now gets the updated iDrive 8.5 setup, which is combined with the redundancy of controls using the large 14.9-inch slightly curved touchscreen and physical iDrive controller just behind the shifter. The wireless Apple CarPlay integration (and Android Auto) works seamlessly, all without any subscription service fees. The wireless smartphone charger is relocated under the center armrest instead of being in front of the cupholders as it was previously.
BMW does well with updated iDrive 8.5 system even though it may be somewhat initially complicated with the number of function icons, but you eventually find some to be redundant leading to the same fundamental controls and settings. The 12.3-inchdigital gauge cluster remains somewhat configurable and can trade out highlighted information readouts with the large color head-up display.
BMW, like most others, remain to provide all the expected active safety features, including BMW’s trick 360-degree camera system with 3D view angles. The one item that’s noticeably missing on my test vehicle is adaptive cruise control and BMW’s Driving Assistance Professional setup.
Starting at the price of $76,700 before any fees or options, the latest BMW M3 is on par with its class offerings that bring enthusiastic performance to compete with the best of them. My test vehicle with its most expensive option being the eye-catching Laguna Seca Blue paint at $4,500, in addition to an M Driver’s Package, Carbon Fiber trim, silver split-spoke wheels, M Shadowline lights, and Adaptive M Suspension, the total comes to $92,225, including a $1,175 destination charge.
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