Following months of speculation, the BMW M3 Touring has been confirmed for South African release in 2024. The first-ever M3 Competition estate will join the current sedan in the line-up, and both will feature refreshed styling, upgraded in-car tech, and a handy power boost.
Alongside the recent round of enhancements to the mainstream BMW 3 Series, BMW South Africa announced that a refreshed M3 Competition is also due to arrive on local shores in the final quarter of 2024, alongside the other upgraded 3 Series models. Unlike the regular 3 Series, hybridisation doesn’t feature in the facelifted M3, but it will bring two improvements to please enthusiasts: more power, and an alternative AWD performance estate car.
Find out more about the enhanced BMW 3 Series, which becomes available in South Africa in Q4 2024.
BMW M3 styling changes
The G80-generation M3 Competition’s gigantic schozz remains unaltered during its facelift, and the bumper design is also unchanged from the current model. That bold gloss-black grille is however flanked by redesigned headlights, which now feature distinctive arrow-shaped DRL/indicator units and integrate the low- and high-beam functions into a single module.
BMW’s exceptional adaptive matrix LED headlights are standard in SA-bound examples, with blue trim inserts in the clusters to indicate the presence of this technology. Finally, a new split-spoke design graces the staggered-sized Jetblack base alloy wheels (19-inch in front and 20-inch at the rear); and buyers can select different wheel designs, including some finished in bright silver for the first time, from the revised option sheet.
Get more details about the regular BMW 3 Series and its 2023 facelift here.
Latest BMW M3 Competition power increase
The go-faster brigade will be more excited about the power bump in the upgraded G80 BMW M3. As with the outgoing model, only the high-output “Competition” specification will be offered in South Africa, which uses an 8-speed torque-converter automatic gearbox and AWD as its only available drivetrain.
A retune of the S58 3.0-litre twin-turbo inline six-cylinder engine keeps the torque pegged at 650 Nm but extends the upper reach of its torque plateau from 5 500 r/min to 5 750 r/min. This translates into greater top-end stamina and realises a jump in peak power from 375 kW to 390 kW, both achieved at 6 200 r/min. While the claimed 0 - 100 km/h sprint time remains around 3.5 seconds, on-road performance should show a greater rush of acceleration when the engine is wound out to its red line.
The first-ever M3 estate
Audi’s RS 4 Avant won’t have the local mid-size performance estate market to itself much longer, because BMW SA confirmed that the M3 Competition Touring (codename G81) is indeed destined for South Africa. There has never been an M3 with an estate body over this nameplate’s first five generations, but BMW believes that the added versatility afforded by the long-roof body should broaden the range-topping 3 Series’ appeal to a small market niche.
Practicality receives a handy boost, with cargo space growing from 480 litres in the sedan to 500 litres in the Touring, while folding away the wagon’s rear backrests takes this to an SUV-rivalling 1 510 litres. The X3 M Competition will probably outsell the M3 Touring, sadly, but this will only make the first (and likely only) M3 estate even more special and collectable in future.
Updated user interface and detail interior differences
As with the regular 3 Series, the latest M3 will also receive an in-car tech upgrade. BMW Operating System 8 in the current car is replaced by version 8.5, which brings improved connectivity, more native apps, and a more intuitive menu structure to the latest iDrive with Quick Select.
The steering wheel also came in for a redesign. Its rim now has a flat bottom and a discreet red “12 o’clock” marker at the top, and carbon-fibre inserts feature in its reshaped spokes. It would take an expert eye to tell the outgoing M3’s interior apart from the new one, however, especially since they share the same huge curved dashboard/infotainment screen assembly and general design.
Martin Pretorius
- Proudly CHANGECARS
