2003 BMW M3 SMG Convertible - Perfect, But It Will Have To Do
Every now and again I get to drive a perfect car. Granted what is perfect for one person may be a pain in the back to another, but I happen to like punishing suspension systems as long as they produce a little magic when the road starts to wind.
Magic is the only word capable of describing the M3. Yes the harsh suspension isn't for everyone. I felt every pebble, perfectly communicated through its race-tuned suspension and close to 'drive-by-thought' rack-and-pinion steering system. Medium size ruts and irregular road surfaces, all too common no matter how much we pay in fuel taxes, produce spine numbing, brain shaking gyrations. Perfect?
Ah, but let it loose on the highway, especially serpentine two-way stretches, and very few sports cars, let alone supercars can keep up. It just so happened that the week that corresponded with my M3 convertible test had the worst rain spell on record, so I kept an initially frustrated right foot at bay. When courage, or stupidity, overcame common sense, I was astonished at its complete control. The road surfaces were more akin to shallow ponds than solid tarmac but nevertheless the M3's DSC III traction and stability control bit the P255/35ZR19 rear tires (P255/40ZR18 rear tires are standard) into the road surface like all was dry, launching me to speed without commotion and with hardly any slip at all. I felt like Juan Pablo Montoya, negotiating my Williams/BMW F1 car through a torrential downpour, kept in check by rare and sophisticated electronics.