BMW 2002 turbo, E30 M3, Z3 M Coupé and 1M: small wonders

By Simon Hucknall

| 28 Jan 2026

BMW 2002 turbo, E30 M3, Z3 M Coupé and 1M: small wonders

There’s a palpable sense of enthusiasm as we gather amid today’s quartet of test cars.

Colleague Aaron and snapper Jayson are both well versed in Munich performance-saloon lore and are bouncing E-numbers (the BMW type) around like engineers at a press conference.

Their fervour is warranted, too: the lineage of BMW’s compact M-cars is laid bare here, from the 2002 turbo – Europe’s first turbocharged production car – via the iconic E30 M3 and quirky Z3 M Coupé, to the 21st-century 1M.

But unlike the more predictable evolution of, say, the M3, this group’s wild cards offer up tantalising contrasts along the path BMW’s Motorsport division took towards road-car production across more than four decades.

Classic & Sports Car – BMW 2002 turbo, E30 M3, Z3 M Coupé and 1M: small wonders

The BMW 2002 turbo (furthest) and 1 Series M Coupé are separated by nearly 40 years; the 2002’s spiritual successor adds two cylinders and an extra turbocharger

M Sport’s earliest offering – the 2002 turbo – never wore the Motorsport division’s badges, simply relying on its distinctive red, purple and blue graphics to mark ownership of the car’s development prior to the turbo’s launch at Frankfurt in October 1973.

By then, BMW Motorsport had already been cultivating the 2002’s performance for five years, after the ’02 series replaced the Neue Klasse in 1966.

When the 2002 derivative appeared two years later, the Motorsport team equipped its works cars with Kugelfischer fuel injection, boosting power to 200bhp, allowing it to clinch sub-2-litre class honours from Porsche in the 1968 European Touring Car Championship.

But the ante was well and truly upped the following year when the works racer was renamed the tiK – ‘K’ for kompressor – and fitted with a KKK turbocharger.

The BMW Z3 M Coupé (closest) has an aggressive, muscular stance that makes its M3 ancestor look tall and narrow in comparison

Victorious in four races, it proved the 2002 slant-four’s durability, as well as the capability of the ’02 chassis – even when boosted to 280bhp – and laid the groundwork for a future roadgoing model.

Those go-faster foundations had already spawned a production version of the fuel-injected ’68 season winner, the 128bhp 2002tii. But under the skin, the new model was an altogether more serious proposition.

For a start, the 2002 M10 engine’s compression ratio was dropped from 9.5:1 to 6.9:1 to cater for the up to 7psi of inlet-manifold pressure generated by the single Kühnle, Kopp & Kausch turbocharger.

The BMW 2002 turbo’s blown 2-litre makes 170bhp

This, combined with the Schäfer mechanical fuel injection and high-pressure Kugelfischer fuel pump, increased power and torque by 40bhp and 47lb ft respectively over that of the tii, to a peak of 170bhp at 5800rpm and 173lb ft at 4000rpm.

According to Autocar, that was good enough for 0-60mph in 7.3 secs and a top speed of 130mph – bang in Porsche 911 territory.

Power was sent to the rear axle through a four-speed Getrag gearbox (a five-speed Getrag was optional) to a ZF disc-type limited-slip diff with a slightly lower final drive versus the tii’s.

The BMW 2002 turbo’s steel wheels were standard fit

The turbo’s MacPherson strut front and semi-trailing-arm rear suspension employed stiffer springs and thicker anti-roll bars all round, plus ventilated front discs with four-pot calipers and larger rear drums.

But it was the ’02 turbo’s exterior treatment that, like the tii, bestowed it with unabashed racer-for-the-road presence.

With nearly all painted Polaris Silver or Chamonix White, the body sported a deep front spoiler, accentuated by its lack of a front bumper (the reversed ‘turbo’ graphic was apparently only used for the press launch, although it is now a popular owner enhancement) and the aforementioned tricolour M Sport colours along its flanks.

The BMW 2002 turbo doesn’t wear the Motorsport division’s badges, but it’s an ‘M’ car through and through

As before, Mahle 5.5Jx13in steel rims necessitated the addition of the turbo’s signature bolted-on glassfibre wheelarch extensions, which brought a brutishness to the 2002’s original and dainty Wilhelm Hofmeister-led design.

Sitting in Munich Legends’ immaculate 1974 example, all you would need is a full rollcage to complete its pared-back, competition-ready vibe.

The deeply bolstered Rentrop seat clasps your backside, positioning you low in the car, with the three-spoke wheel (on the left, as with all turbos) relatively high before you.

The BMW 2002 turbo’s sombre cabin is lifted by the quirky red dashboard insert

The BMW 2002’s regular three-dial instrument binnacle is supplemented by a secondary pod incorporating a clock and the all-important boost-pressure gauge located to the right, atop the dashboard’s ledge.

Other than the heater’s slide controls (marked in German) and push/pull knobs for the headlights, there really is very little else to distract occupants.

‘Our’ car is fitted with the standard four-speed Getrag gearbox, which shifts through a slightly rubbery, short-travel gate, but is otherwise light and user-friendly.

This being my first ’02 turbo drive, I was expecting power to be meted out on an all-or-nothing basis, but until you earnestly rouse the turbo, its delivery is quite linear and smooth, if a little tepid – which you’d expect, off-boost.

The BMW 1M’s (right) muscular flared wheelarches appear as a modern interpretation of the 2002 turbo’s bolt-on glassfibre extensions

The steering is notably heavy while manoeuvring, but lightens with speed, and while there’s some play around the straight-ahead, the worm-and-roller set-up provides more than enough feedback to be engaging.

You then find space – and you really do need it – to light up the KKK.

You can hear the blower chuntering and whistling away at lower speeds, but nail the throttle at around 4000rpm and it assumes a very different timbre, accompanied by a frenzied leap in acceleration beyond 4500rpm.

It feels strange to be piloting a 51-year-old saloon on the road – narrow pillars, upright windscreen and all – at such a ferocious whack, but while this part of its performance envelope is relatively small, and needs plenty of anticipation in terms of corner entry/exit and during overtaking, it’s genuinely thrilling when you get its measure.

The BMW 2002 turbo isn’t subtle

It’s not so much that the BMW 2002 turbo is searingly quick – by today’s standards, it is not – but more that the meat of its performance is condensed into a 1000rpm window.

And while its chassis is competent – pliant, with good control and grip – even in the dry you sense that a poorly timed dose of throttle could overwhelm those 185-section rears.

Back in the day, though, few had the chance to explore the turbo’s outer limits.

Just 1672 cars left the factory over a 10-month period before production ceased in 1975, thanks to the effects of the OPEC Fuel Crisis and – particularly in Germany – a decisive turn against any remotely profligate new car.

The BMW E30 M3’s near-perfect stance was augmented on the Evo II by a deeper front airdam with ducts replacing the foglights

Fortunately, though, the effects were short-lived and by the following decade BMW had rediscovered its performance-car chutzpah with the first of a series of compact models whose nomenclature is now probably better known than the car it adorns in the current range.

The first BMW M3, based on the E30 3 Series platform, was launched at Frankfurt in 1985, initially just as a two-door saloon, with a convertible joining the range from 1988.

Unlike the turbo, which was never born from an M Sport homologation plan, the M3 most definitely was.

In order to compete in high-profile competition, particularly Germany’s DTM series, Group A homologation rules mandated that at least 5000 road cars be built in the first year.

The BMW M3 Evo II got a revised rear spoiler

With BMW keen to take the fight to Mercedes-Benz, which was campaigning its own 190 racer, the M3 was the direct result.

BMW Motorsport’s technical director, Paul Rosche, drove the project from the start and determined that a four- rather than six-cylinder engine should be used to save weight and improve chassis dynamics.

As a result, M Sport used the 2-litre M10’s iron block (as seen in the ’02), bored and stroked to 2302cc.

A shortened aluminium cylinder head from the six-pot M88/3 engine used in the M635CSi was also employed, bringing the benefit of double overhead cams and four valves per cylinder.

The BMW M3 Evo II got the most powerful S14 engine before a stretch to 2467cc for the Sport Evo

Initially producing 195bhp at 6750rpm, power was deployed through a close-ratio Getrag five-speed gearbox to the car’s LSD-equipped rear axle.

The standard E30 chassis was modified with uprated springs and thicker anti-roll bars, along with fitment of Boge dampers, Bosch ABS and bigger brake discs (ventilated at the front).

Externally, the new M3’s bodywork was a significant departure from the cooking E30, with only the doors and bonnet common to both.

Wings were flared to cater for the M3’s larger wheels, while reducing the angle of the rear ’screen and raising the bootlid’s height improved airflow over the rear spoiler.

The homologation-special BMW M3 Evo II was left-hand-drive only

While more than 17,000 E30 M3s were sold before production ended in 1991, the model’s cachet in the range always attracted a sizeable premium (when UK sales commenced in 1987, it was listed at £22,750 – £6000 more than the two-door 325i SE).

However, ‘our’ M3 is a far rarer Evo II, one of only 50 such cars officially supplied to the UK from a production run of 501, with a revised specification representing the technical changes made to M Sport’s works racers.

As such, it has a higher compression ratio, revised engine management, larger wheels (225/45x16s all round) and a shorter final drive.

Weight-saving measures, including thinner glass and ditching the front foglights, slashed 10kg.

The BMW M3 Evo II’s classic cross-spoke alloy wheels

In this trim, the S14 engine’s output increased by 25bhp to 220bhp, giving 0-60mph in 6.7 secs and a top speed of 152mph.

Plonk yourself into the M3’s chequered fabric/leather chair and it feels remarkably modern and salubrious after the austerity of the turbo’s cabin.

Ergonomics are first class, as is the material quality of the controls and fittings.

Engage the dog-leg first gear in the sweet-shifting Getrag ’box and accelerate away, and you immediately note the smoothness and refinement of this M3’s 2.3-litre ‘four’, combined with its eagerness to rev.

The BMW M3 Evo II has superb sports seats

You get a crisper and more characterful rasp through the twin exhausts as you close in on its 7000rpm redline, with the unit feeling most potent beyond 3000rpm, though the overall delivery remains exceptionally linear.

The power-assisted rack is revelatory, with a well-chosen ratio for road use, ample feel through the thin-rimmed leather wheel and near-perfect weighting.

Nothing seems to catch the car out dynamically: it feels light on its feet, corners flat and grips tenaciously, while retaining a vice-like control over its body movements at higher speeds across typically poor British roads.

Given that this is a 105,000-mile car – albeit a beautifully maintained example – I must admit to being slightly in awe.

The BMW Z3 M Coupé’s distinctive shape was penned by Chris Bangle

Can the two six-cylinder BMWs even hope to engage in the same way?

Arriving in 1997, with production starting in ’98, the Z3 M Coupé shared a majority of its components with the more common M Roadster, and the platform of both cars was based on the contemporary E36 3 Series.

Only the rear-axle arrangement – by E30-derived trailing arms, as opposed to the E36’s multiple links – differed significantly, a result of being packaged into the Coupé and Roadster’s shorter bodies.

Commonly nicknamed the ‘clownshoe’ due to its taut and tucked rear and expansive front end, the Coupé today cuts a distinctive swathe among modern traffic, its shape like a caricature of the more subdued 2.8 Coupé design (that was never sold here in the UK).

The BMW Z3 M Coupé’s S54 ‘six’ makes 321bhp

BMW’s then design chief, Chris Bangle, claimed that the Coupé’s roofline was inspired by the 1940s 328 Mille Miglia, and that its side grilles referenced those of the 507 roadster.

Either way, the car’s 410-litre luggage space, accessible through a lifting tailgate, made the Coupé a respectably practical device for two occupants.

It was a gutsy performer, too. Lead engineer for the Coupé programme Burkhard Göschel had argued for a fixed-head version of the M Roadster to better contain the increased torsional and structural stresses brought about by the prodigious 316bhp output of its 3.2-litre ‘six’.

The car we’re in today – a 2002 model – benefitted from the later and slightly larger S54 ‘six’ from the E46 M3 (replacing the E36’s S50 unit), which added a further 5bhp. And it’s certainly no slouch.

The M Coupé’s snug cabin gives the Z3 a baby-GT ambience

You immediately feel ensconced in the Z3 M’s cabin. It exudes more of a grand-touring ambience compared with the other cars here, and its centre console’s impressive switch- and dial-count alone puts you in mind of that from a mid-’90s Bentley.

That GT aura is reinforced when you take to the road. Yes, it’s very fast, but what you feel more than anything is the deep well of torque, which launches the Z3 like a howling projectile down any given straight; it’s Herculean in its mid-range, and all the time accompanied by that spine-tingling multi-cylinder soundtrack.

While you’d never call the Z3 a precision handler, it has by far the most supple ride in our set, and – setting aside the notchy, short-throw gearchange – it’s the only car here in which I’d be happy to motor down to the Côte d’Azure in a single sitting.

Huge wheels fill the BMW 1M’s widened arches

Which just leaves the sole offering launched this century.

The 1 Series M Coupé – or ‘1M’ for short – was produced for just one year: 2011.

The owner of ‘our’ pristine Valencia Orange example, Matt Webb, refers to it as a “parts-bin special”, which is apt, since the skunkworks group at BMW responsible for its creation really did pick and mix its componentry.

Being light, compact and rear-wheel drive, the existing M135i was a prime base car on which M Sport could work its magic.

Into that shell was shoehorned the twin-turbo 3-litre ‘six’ from the Z4 35si, pumping out 335bhp, making the 1M technically the first turbocharged M-car (or, at least, the first to be badged as such).

Classic & Sports Car – BMW 2002 turbo, E30 M3, Z3 M Coupé and 1M: small wondersClassic & Sports Car – BMW 2002 turbo, E30 M3, Z3 M Coupé and 1M: small wonders

The BMW 1M continued the German marque’s long tradition of high-performance compacts

Rear suspension, brakes and wheels were plucked from the E92 M3, as well as the LSD-equipped, wider rear axle, necessitating the addition of the pronounced flared arches that give this car its bullish stance.

It’s a look and specification that has augured well for this rogue M: while it was born out of straitened times for BMW and other manufacturers in the wake of the global financial meltdown, its cult status is now cemented with M-car cognoscenti.

Only 6309 were built, of which just 450 right-hookers hit the UK, priced at £40,020, but you’d now be hard-pushed to find one for less than that.

Like so many modern performance cars – even those launched 15 years ago – the ease with which you can hit three-figure speeds in the 1M is concerning and impressive in equal measure.

The BMW 1M’s straight-six makes 335bhp

The upper reaches of its envelope are so effortlessly accessible that it requires a fair bit of discipline to keep your driving below the radar.

Find a deserted stretch, downchange through the slick manual ’box, plant your right foot and 40 years of turbocharged development are made manifest: the 1M is brutally quick, but also wonderfully tractable from almost any revs.

Handling and ride? While the 1M’s steering has by far the highest ratio in this set, and is the quickest to respond, it’s not nearly as sweet and organic as the M3’s system.

And while 335bhp demands tight control of the car’s near-1500kg kerbweight, its springing and damping are punishingly firm; fine on a track, but I’d quickly tire of it anywhere else.

The 1M’s manual gearbox is a welcome sight in a modern BMW M-car

You could argue that the 1M is the pinnacle of this group, and objectively you wouldn’t be wrong: it’s ballistically fast and ever so slightly unhinged, in a good way.

But how fast do you really need to travel in a car on the road to gain maximum driving pleasure?

For that reason, the E30 M3 would be my go-to all-rounder for road or track, with the turbo as an occasional wild card when the fancy took me.

Images: Jayson Fong

Thanks to: Munich Legends for the 2002, M3 and Z3; Matt Webb

Factfiles

BMW 2002 turbo

Sold/number built 1973-’74/1672
Construction steel monocoque
Engine iron-block, alloy-head, sohc 1990cc ‘four’, Schäfer PL04 mechanical fuel injection and KKK turbocharger
Max power 170bhp @ 5800rpm
Max torque 173lb ft @ 4000rpm
Transmission four/five-speed manual, RWD
Suspension independent, at front by MacPherson struts rear semi-trailing arms, coil springs, telescopic dampers; anti-roll bar f/r
Steering worm and roller
Brakes discs front, drums rear, with servo
Length 13ft 10in (4219mm)
Width 5ft 6¾in (1621mm)
Height 4ft 7½in (1410mm)
Wheelbase 8ft 2½in (2499mm)
Weight 2380lb (1034kg)
0-60mph 7.3 secs
Top speed 130mph
Mpg 19.5
Price new £4221
Price now £75-95,000*

BMW M3 (E30) Evo II

Sold/number built 1988/501
Construction steel monocoque
Engine iron-block, alloy-head, dohc 2302cc ‘four’, Bosch Motronic fuel injection
Max power 220bhp @ 6750rpm
Max torque 181lb ft @ 4750rpm
Transmission five-speed manual, RWD
Suspension independent, at front by MacPherson struts rear semi-trailing arms, coil springs, telescopic dampers; anti-roll bar f/r
Steering power-assisted rack and pinion
Brakes ventilated front, solid rear discs, with servo and ABS
Length 14ft 3in (4345mm)
Width 5ft 6in (1680mm)
Height 4ft 6in (1370mm)
Wheelbase 8ft 5in (2565mm)
Weight 2646lb (1200kg)
0-60mph 6.2 secs
Top speed 152mph
Mpg 25
Price new £22,750 (non-Evo)
Price now £100,000*

BMW Z3 M Coupé

Sold/number built 1998-2002/1112
Construction steel monocoque
Engine iron-block, alloy-head, dohc 3201cc 24v straight-six, electronic fuel injection
Max power 321bhp @ 7400rpm
Max torque 261lb ft @ 4900rpm
Transmission five-speed manual, RWD
Suspension independent, at front by MacPherson struts rear semi-trailing arms, coil springs, telescopic dampers; anti-roll bar f/r
Steering power-assisted rack and pinion
Brakes ventilated discs, with servo and ABS
Length 13ft 2½in (1306mm)
Width 5ft 8½in (1575mm)
Height 4ft 3½in (1308mm)
Wheelbase 8ft 2¾in (2459mm)
Weight 3130lb (1420kg)
0-60mph 4.9 secs
Top speed 162mph
Mpg 25.4
Price new £41,000
Price now £45-55,000*

BMW 1 Series M Coupé

Sold/number built 2011/6309
Construction steel monocoque
Engine iron-block, alloy-head, dohc 2972cc 24v straight-six, electronic fuel injection and twin turbochargers
Max power 335bhp @ 5900rpm
Max torque 331lb ft @ 1500-4500rpm
Transmission six-speed manual, RWD
Suspension independent, at front by MacPherson struts rear multi-link, coil springs, telescopic dampers; anti-roll bar f/r
Steering power-assisted rack and pinion
Brakes ventilated discs, with servo and ABS
Length 14ft 4¼in (4373mm)
Width 5ft 11in (1803mm)
Height 4ft 8in (1420mm)
Wheelbase 8ft 8in (2660mm)
Weight 3296lb (1495kg)
0-62mph 4.9 secs
Top speed 155mph (limited)
Mpg 24.9
Price new £40,020
Price now £40-55,000*