BMW has earned a reputation for making driver-focused cars. Even the brand’s lesser models offer excellent driving dynamics, sometimes sacrificing comfort for sharper handling.
While most of us remember and recognize the standard M3s and M5s, the Bavarians have built several limited editions that only true BMW fanatics can name.
1991 E34 BMW M5 Winkelhock Edition — 51 Units
In 1991, BMW reached out to two of its racing drivers, Johnny Cecotto and Joachim Winkelhock, and asked them to design their ideal E34 M5s. Vintauto says, for his version, Winkelhock decided to put the M5 on a strict diet, stripping it of many standard creature comforts and adding some safety and performance parts to make it a lightweight sports sedan.
Once it rolled off the assembly line, the Winkelhock Edition M5 was a solid 88 lbs lighter than a standard M5. Only 51 cars were made, all of them painted Jet Black with contrasting Sterling Silver Metallic parts, and the interior received half-leather Recaro seats.
2001 E46 BMW M3 GTR Strassenversion — 10 Units
In 2001, BMW built a road-going homologation special known as the E46 M3 GTR Strassenversion. They built 10 of these lightweight monsters in order to compete in the 2002 American Le Mans Series, and lucky customers had to part with €250,000 (about $400,000 today) to get their hands on one.
E46 M3s were famously powered by a straight-six engine, but not the M3 GTR — this was the first M3 with a V8. The 4.0-liter mill let 350 wild stallions loose when the throttle was buried in the carpet.
1936–1940 BMW 328 Roadster — 464 Units
The pre-war BMW 328 is a great-looking sports car, and a very successful racer with multiple prestigious trophies to its name.
In 1936, it won at the Nürburgring. The following year, the 328 took home over 100 class wins. By 1940, the BMW 328 had participated in an astonishing 172 races and racked up an unbelievable 141 victories, including at the RAC Tourist Trophy, the Alpine Rally, the Mille Miglia, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
2012 E92 BMW M3 DTM Champion Edition — 54 Units
The BMW name is practically synonymous with motorsport. According to Top Gear, BMW returned to DTM racing in 2012, after a 19-year hiatus, and won the drivers’, team, and manufacturers’ titles straight out of the gate. Obviously, they had to make something special to celebrate their newly restocked trophy cabinet.
The Bavarians created the aptly-named DTM Champion Edition. It’s based on the E92 M3 Competition Pack and had a reprogrammed ESP system, various carbon fiber parts — including the gurney flap, and roof — and a 10 mm lower suspension with a Sport setting. Only 54 were made.
2011 E90 BMW M3 CRT — 67 Units
At first glance, the E90 BMW M3 CRT sedan may not seem all that special, but it really is! CRT stands for Carbon Racing Technology, which tells us everything we need to know.
It has carbon fiber-reinforced plastic parts both inside and outside, and essentially functions as a rolling advertisement for BMW’s carbon fiber expertise. As expected, all this carbon fiber has made the CRT much lighter — roughly 154 lbs less than a standard M3 to be exact. Its 4.4-liter V8 engine generates 450 hp, and it emits a glorious soundtrack thanks to the titanium exhaust. Zero to 62 mph was also half a second quicker than the regular M3, taking just 4.4 seconds, making it a proper German sleeper.
2003 E52 BMW Z8 Alpina — 555 Units
In the early 2000s, BMW created the very underrated Z8. It only enjoyed a short, three-year production run, and while it was fitted with the E39 M5’s 4.9-liter V8 and a six-speed manual, its reception at the time is best described as lukewarm. In 2003, Alpina took over the Z8 reins, and transformed the hardcore sports car.
Alpina basically turned the Z8 into a grand tourer, and while it seems counterintuitive, it really was an improvement on the standard Z8. Power was lowered from 395 to 375 hp, but the torque was increased from 369 to 384 lb-ft. Alpina also got rid of the manual transmission in favor of an automatic, and they gave the Z8 a softer and more refined suspension setup. Only 555 people got their hands on one of these excellent touring roadsters.
1995 E36 BMW M3 Lightweight — 126 Units
The BMW E36 M3 Lightweight was sold exclusively on the American market, and production was limited to just 126 cars. All of which had big rear wings, carbon parts, and motorsport-inspired decals.
BMW went off the deep end to save weight, and managed to chop off 200 lbs compared to the standard M3. Under the hood, the Lightweight Bimmer had the same inline-six as other M3s, but interestingly, it was slightly down on power, and the top speed limiter was gone.
2016 F13 BMW M6 Competition Limited Edition — 100 Units
In 2016, BMW built 100 M6 Competition Limited Edition units for the US market. According to Bimmerpost, it was only available in two colors, Alpine White and Austin Yellow.
With the Competition Package installed, the twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 engine generated 600+ hp and 515 lb-ft of torque, enough to launch it to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds. BMW also installed firmer springs, dampers, and anti-roll bars than standard. To top it off, it had 20-inch M Double Spoke wheels, a sports exhaust, and plenty of carbon fiber parts.
1978–1982 E12 BMW Alpina B7 Turbo — 209 Units
In 1978, Alpina released its first car based on the E12 BMW 5-Series. In the beginning, it was marketed and sold as the 530 Turbo, but Alpina soon changed the name to B7 Turbo and B7 S Turbo.
Both versions had a turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six engine. In the B7, it delivered 296 hp, and the B7 S had a more substantial 326 hp, and Alpina claims it was the world’s fastest four-door sedan at the time. It was eventually replaced by the E28-based model, and by the time production ended, they’d built a total of 209 units.
1987–1990 E30 BMW 320is — 2,540 Units
According to Car and Driver, Portugal and Italy had considerably higher taxes for cars with engines measuring over 2.0 liters, so BMW worked around that by creating a unique model for those markets. The E30 320is is often said to be the “Italian M3,” and with good reason.
The E30 320is may have the same body as the regular 3-Series, but its engine was truly special. As the name suggests, it was a 2.0-liter unit, but not the regular 6-cylinder version found in the normal 320i. This was a 2.0-liter version of the S14 engine found in the E30 M3. It even had the same Getrag dogleg gearbox as the European E30 M3. Only 2,540 two-door models were built, and the four-door is even rarer, with just 1,206 cars.
2010 E92 BMW M3 GTS — 135 Units
The fourth-gen M3, or E92 in BMW lingo, was the first and only time (except for the very limited E46 GTR) BMW used a V8 in the M3. In 2010, the Bavarians unveiled the hand-built GTS version, and it was a beast!
In short, the GTS was an M3 that spent some time in the gym to shed weight and pack on muscle. The Bavarians were on a mission, and they installed a carbon fiber roof and a titanium exhaust, then went on to rip out the rear seats, sound system, and aircon. Other interior parts were also given the lightweight treatment. Being light is all well and good, but they wanted it to pack a punch as well. Evo Magazine says the V8 engine grew from 4.0 liters to 4.4, and power increased from 415 to 450 hp. Luckily, the brakes and suspension were upgraded to match.
2016 F82 BMW M4 DTM Champion Edition — 23 + 200 Units
In 2014, Marco Wittmann won the DTM driver’s title, so they commemorated the occasion by creating the M4 DTM Champion Edition. Only 23 cars were made. Then, in 2016, he did it again, so BMW built another Champion Edition to celebrate. BMW’s M division says it’s essentially the same car as the GTS, but the divisive orange parts are gone, and the car is now white with the M tricolor stripes.
It has all the GTS goodies, including the carbon fiber hood, roof, and rear diffuser. The engine is a turbocharged inline-six with water injection and 500 horsepower. Only 200 were made, and the owners could enjoy a 0-62 mph time of 3.8 seconds.
1973–1974 BMW 2002 Turbo — 1,672 Units
When the BMW 2002 Turbo was introduced in 1973, the Bavarians became one of the pioneers of turbocharging. The car is the epitome of the ketchup effect: Floor the throttle, watch the revs build, nothing happens, wait for it, wait a bit more, and then, BOOM, all the power arrives at once, sending unaware drivers sideways into a ditch.
While 170 hp and 181 lb-ft of torque don’t sound like much today, in those days, with early 1970s tire and brake technology, it was a handful if the conditions weren’t just right. The 2002 Turbo was a true BMW performance model before the M division was created, and it had an aggressive, wide-arch body kit and BMW’s tricolor decals.
