One BMW fast wagon to rule them all...
Even for someone who has been doing this for a while, discovering you’re not quite so damn clever as you thought happens more often than you might imagine.
In terms of power, the 374hp offered by the M340i seems impressive only until you realise it’s over 100hp shy of even the 495hp B3, let alone the 510hp offered by the M3. But there’s another thing: I have to say I thought the power gap between M3 and B3 would be greater.
Inside you notice what they share far more than what sets them apart. All three have the same basic interior, differentiated by limited use of different materials in certain places, the B3 having, for example, the best steering wheel leather I can remember. All three have option seats, the B3 and M340i the ‘Comfort Plus’ chairs, the M3 the sports items with the rock hard centres beloved of the young and agile, bemoaned by the stiff and middle-aged.
But perhaps what I enjoy most about it is that its engine and chassis feel perfectly matched. As you can see from the figures, the performance is more hot than scalding, but so wide is its torque band and so immediate its throttle response, the car feel scarcely turbocharged at all, and can pile enough torque into its Bridgestones to keep them as busy as they would like to be.
There is no doubting the punch when it comes and the sophisticated, satisfying howl from the engine is entirely in keeping with Alpina values. It’s just a little slower out of the blocks than it should be. Nor is this really a car for hoofing around on the limit.
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