Power was a secondary concern, although changes to the engine management, cams, headers, intakes, valves and exhaust handily lifted peak power from the regulation M3’s 252 to a healthy 265kW. To achieve this, head of body Hans-Bruno Starke and chassis development engineer Peter Schmidt had four key areas to work on: weight, aerodynamics, suspension and tyres. Its remit was clear: lap the Nurburgring in under eight minutes. Just listen to the thing! The E46 M3 CSL delivers one of the greatest straight-six soundtracks at any price, helped by a carbonfibre airbox for a truly distinctive sound. In there with a podium shot would also be the fantastic E46 M3 CSL and, given that these change hands from around $110,000, it looks a direct rival for the M2 Competition if that’s your budget and you want a charismatic and rewarding rear-drive coupe. That list would have to include the likes of the E39 M5, the seminal E30 M3 and the exotic mid-engined M1. HOW GOOD IS A BMW M2 Competition? Don’t worry, ScoMo hasn’t been offered a road-testing job here at Wheels, we’re just curious to see how Garching’s little monster fits into the hierarchy of all-time great M cars.
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