The Best BMWs Ever Made: M Legends That Defined the Brand Before Neue Klasse

BMW's going through some changes right now. The electric era is here, hybrids are everywhere, and Munich's trying to pull off this massive shift in both design and tech at the same time. They're leaving behind aggressive gas-powered cars like the 8-Series and XM and jumping into the new Neue Klasse era with cleaner, more efficient stuff. The new iX3 looks like they might actually nail it.

But BMW's built plenty of legendary cars before this moment. Here's a look at some of the best.

E28 M5 (1984-1985)

The original M5 wasn't actually the first at anything. First super sedan? Nope. First four-door from BMW M? Arguably not. But there's something about it that just hits different, even almost 40 years later. It's still the car people point to when talking about where performance sedans started.

It was quick for its time. A four-door that looked like someone's boring old 518 but could almost keep up with a Porsche 911 or Ferrari 308. That was pretty wild. But it wasn't just about speed. The Mercedes 450 SEL 6.9 could outrun sports cars a decade earlier, but that was a massive luxury barge with side hustle. The M5 gave equal weight to both roles.

Unlike the Merc, the M5 had a manual. It had motorsport touches throughout. Three-spoke M Sport wheel, sport seats, 16-inch BBS wheels, boot spoiler. You could get the ugly bodykit from the cheaper M535i, but the smart move was skipping it and going with the Shadowline option to black out the chrome trim.

Only 2,241 got built, just 187 in right-hand drive. Drive one now and the soft suspension feels weird, same with the incredible visibility from the tall roof and skinny pillars. But they're fun on sweeping roads. The manual feels better than the contemporary M3's dogleg shifter. Six throttle bodies, no turbos, so throttle response is instant and the straight-six revs clean to 6,900 rpm. A modern M5 would destroy it, but every performance sedan and SUV today exists because of this car.

M1 (1979-1981)

BMW's plan in the '70s was genius. Build a supercar, get Giorgetto Giugiaro to design it, have Giampaolo Dallara develop it. Get Lamborghini to build it. What could go wrong?

Turns out, a lot. Lambo hit money problems with a few prototypes done. BMW moved production to Giugiaro's Italdesign. By 1979 when it finally launched, the price had skyrocketed and sales were slow. The car itself was quick but not supercar-fast by modern standards. 274 hp pushing around 2,860 pounds was brisk, not blistering.

Enter the marketing genius. BMW M convinced Bernie Ecclestone and Max Mosley that F1 needed a one-make supercar support series, and the BMW Procar championship was born. Top five F1 drivers from Friday practice joined series regulars in widened, winged racers making around 460 hp. Some Group 5 cars hit nearly 1,000 hp. Fantastic liveries too. Marlboro, Denim, BASF. Ran for two seasons. Niki Lauda won the first title, Nelson Piquet took the second.

The M1 was a great road car and an iconic racer, but a commercial disaster. When production ended in 1981, only 399 road cars existed. Got M off to a legendary start but there's still no successor. Former design chief Domagoj Dukec said they've worked on a new M1 five or six times but always hit the same wall. Invest $500 million knowing you'll never make money? Hard sell.

Brabham BT52 (1983)

Okay, this is just an engine, not a whole BMW, but stick with it. The motor BMW M built for Gordon Murray's BT52 Formula 1 car is basically all myth and legend at this point.

Two big myths float around about how M toughened up the engine for F1. The M12/13 was based on the humble M10 road car engine from the '60s that originally made 70 hp. Getting it to 1,400 hp on qualifying boost (the dyno maxed out at 1,200) took work.

One legend says cast-iron blocks were left on the factory roof to age in the weather. Another adds that BMW workers with full bladders relieved themselves on the blocks to fortify the metal with their urine. The science almost checks out since urea breaks down into ammonia, which contains nitrogen used in metal hardening.

Neither's true, according to BMW Group archivist Rainer Wenleder. The real story's weirder. New blocks kept cracking from stress and heat. Used blocks didn't. So initially they bought used cars like the 2002, stripped out the blocks that had been through heat cycles, and used those for F1 engines. Eventually they figured out how to heat-treat new blocks properly.

No miracle pee, just innocent BMWs getting bought second-hand and weeks later their engines were pushing 1,400 hp at Monaco.

The dart-shaped BT52 used the BMW four-cylinder because it had fewer moving parts than rivals, which meant less friction and heat. That allowed for tiny radiators and sidepods, giving the car insanely low drag.

Gamble paid off. Nelson Piquet and the BT52 won three races and the 1983 title, stealing the first turbo championship from Renault with an engine that couldn't be more M division if it tried.

M Coupe (1998-2002)

The M Coupe doesn't really fit with the others here. No motorsport history, short production run, not even a huge success at the time. But it's here because it shows what M division can do when they're feeling creative.

Started with the Z3 M Roadster, which got the E36 M3's 3.2-liter straight-six shoved in. The Coupe needed more rigidity to fix the floppy convertible dynamics, so they stiffened the chassis and stretched the roof all the way back to meet these stubby rear haunches and a weird puckered tail. Got nicknamed "Clownshoe" immediately.

With 317 hp initially, a short wheelbase, and almost no driver aids, it drove like an old-school British sports car. Meaty, memorable, not forgiving. Launched at the 1997 Frankfurt show where it got totally overshadowed by BMW's F1 return announcement. Pretty much set the tone for its whole life.

But there's so much to love. Gorgeous interior that wraps around you, driving position right behind the engine, visceral experience. Post-2000 models with the S54 engine from the E46 M3 are brilliant. Only problem is fewer than 1,000 right-hand drive cars got made, and values have shot up as survivors dwindle.

1M Coupe (2011-2012)

For a car that nails the M brief perfectly (rear-drive, locking diff, manual), the 1-series M Coupe is surprisingly off-script. Feels like M division pulled an A-Team, locked themselves in the shop overnight with angle grinders and welders, then blasted out the next morning in something built from gut feel and whatever was lying around.

Suspension wasn't evolved from the 135i below it and wasn't bespoke either. They grabbed it from the E90 M3. Born from pragmatism but became crucial to the appeal, making the tracks way wider. Wider tracks beefed up dynamics and meant the chunky 19-inch rubber needed monster arches like the 2002 Turbo.

Real spiritual predecessor is the 2002 Turbo because the drive's so defined by turbocharged punch. Used the 135i's 3.0-liter straight-six bi-turbo boosted to 335 hp. First rear-drive turbo M car and first to skip a fancy S-coded engine. The N54 kept costs down and kicked hard.

Maybe there was a masterplan after all. BMW M had just put turbo engines in their controversial SUVs, and proper M cars were supposed to be high-revving, naturally-aspirated thrills. Maybe the 1M was a distraction from SUV-loads and softening people up for the incoming turbocharged M5 and M3.

Worked either way because the 1M's a riot. N54 engine is smooth, surfs on 369 lb-ft of torque from 1,500 rpm, revs to 7,000. Shorter wheelbase than the M3, fixed-rate dampers so it rides rough on B-roads. Meaty steering, tons of front bite, Michelin Pilot Sports that grip hard and let go fast.

The feistiness makes it compelling. That raw spontaneity shines through. Flawed maybe, but that's why it's an all-time great.

E30 M3 (1986-1991)

When combustion engines finally fade out, the '80s will probably go down as their golden age. Highly evolved mechanically but not corrupted digitally. Cars from the '80s stand out more every year.

The first M3 drives like the best '80s car anyone ever owned. Everything that made whatever car you loved back then wonderful is here, just amplified and weaponized. Smooth, rev-hungry naturally-aspirated engine. Confidence from panoramic visibility, modest size, intuitive mechanical controls. Feedback loop so clear that within a couple roundabouts you completely understand this car.

None of that mattered when the love affair started though. Began with magazines, model kits, finally an R/C Tamiya so perfectly painted that racing it risked damaging the body. Got real in college when a friend blew student loans on a high-mileage E30 M3. Never drove it but the experience of just riding along was mind-blowing.

Years later at a BMW heritage event in the Alps, one showed up on the itinerary. Half a day swapping with another journalist, then he had to leave early and the car was all mine. Can only remember snapshots now. Grainy mountain tarmac texture in the hands. Engine gruff and boisterous working the rear tires just past their limits on every hairpin. Perfect dogleg Getrag. Watery sunshine on sparkling lakes. Euphoria. Twenty minutes outside a remote gas station just looking at it.

3.0 CSL (1972-1975)

The 3.0 CSL and the 2002 Turbo laid the groundwork for BMW's "ultimate driving machine" thing. Mixed Italian sports car excitement with German reliability and quality. Been paying off ever since.

The CSL was the ultimate E9 CS coupe. Homologation racing special (L for leicht, light) built to pump up BMW's sporting rep. Got upgraded in 1973 with the Batmobile aero. Big air dam, fins along the front fenders, massive rear wing. Power from a 3.2-liter making 206 hp, the new M30 straight-six that became BMW's mechanical signature.

Greatest BMW of its day. Thin elegant pillars give a stunning view, cabin bathed in light. Engine revs smooth and energetically, roars distinctly. Handling's excellent. Dances on its toes with agility but digs in hard accelerating out of corners. Most successful BMW track car and perfectly illustrated Munich's sporting flair.

E46 M3 CSL (2003-2004)

Greatest car BMW's ever built showed up 30 years after the 3.0 CSL. The E46 M3 CSL remains the finest M3, best car M division ever made, arguably the greatest BMW period.

Finest version of the E46 M3, which was a return to form after the disappointing E36. CSL got a more powerful 355 hp 3.2-liter engine, carbon fiber roof to cut weight, sportier chassis, fewer comforts (air con was optional), and Michelin Pilot semi-slicks, one of the first uses of quasi-track tires on a road car.

Sublime driver's car. Beautifully balanced, superbly throttle-responsive, fast. Engine's the highlight like all great sports cars. Zings to 8,200 rpm and sings like no turbo ever could. Last M3 with a naturally-aspirated straight-six too. Reason enough for worship right there.