The M3 Is the Most Desirable BMW Ever

A couple of months ago, we were inviting you to vote for the Most Desirable BMW Ever, on the New Zealand Automobile Association (NZAA) website. All those who entered and played, placed their votes for their favorite BMW of all times.

Now, the NZAA drew the line, summed up and declared the E46 BMW M3 CSL as the overall winner. The CSL (Coupe Sport Lightweight) was introduced by BMW in 2003 as a special edition M3 model.

The model, which was assembled in about 1,400 units, featured a redesigned front bumper, a revised rear spoiler and aluminium, carbon-fibre and thin glass component. Its 3.2L engine developed 360 horsepower, and the powerplant was mated to a standard SMG II sequential manual gearbox.

At the beginning of the voting session, the first place seemed to be destined for the E30 M3, but it was soon overtaken by the eventual winner. The E46 was followed by M1 on second and the 507 on third, while the last place was occupied by the X3 model.

Other data based on the votes announced by NZAA were:

• Most desirable BMW M3 was the BMW E46 M3 CSL (overall winner)
• Most desirable BMW M5 was the current E60 (6th place)
• Most desirable BMW M6 was the current E62 (8th place)
• Most desirable open-top BMW was the 507 (3rd place)
• Most desirable BMW available in a Touring version is the current E60 M5 (6th place)
• Most desirable 4 wheel drive BMW was the current X6 (20th place)

The voters, New Zealand residents only, were also given the chance to win a place on a BMW Driver Training day (valued at more than $600), which will be announced by June 30, 2009. Other prizes were BMW Sauber F1 Team T-shirts and BMW caps.