BMW’s M range used to be a straightforward concept to get your head around. There was the small, racy one: the M3. There was the bigger, more relaxed one: the M5. And that was pretty much it. But that was also 30‑plus years ago and it really is time we moved on, isn’t it? After all, BMW M has.

This new M3 doesn’t just shut down its critics, but fights back with perhaps the most capable and superbly engineered package in decades.