1998 BMW M Coupe (E36) 3.2L 5MT (321 HP)

Vehicle Overview

The Z3 M-Coupe was one of a kind sports-car built by BMW. It was their only shooting-brake body style for more than half of the century.

Two years and a half after the Z3 roadster stormed the roadster arena, the BMW dared to do something even more outrageous: a shooting-brake based on the Z3. It was a car built by BMW engineers after the working hours. Their project impressed the management in such a manner that the car received a green light.

The front of the car was similar to the roadster, with different air exhausts than those found on the lesser version fitted with the 2.8-liter engine. From the A-pillars to the back it was a different story. A fixed roof was stretched from the top of the windshield to the back of the car. Since there was no room to make it sloped, it was straight and, right behind the rear wheels, it was dropped with a raked C-pillar. In the back, four exhaust pipes were installed under the rear apron.

Inside, the manufacturer didn’t try to install unusable tiny rear seats for lower taxes. It just installed a bigger trunk. The front bucket seats were placed lower. Since the car was based on the E36 platform, it shared some components with the 3-Series. It was the same instrument cluster and the same layout for the center stack.

Under the hood, the Z3 M-Coupe was fitted with the 3.2-liter engine and offered 321 hp for the European market and just 240 hp for the U.S. market due to gasoline quality and pollution restrictions. It was mated exclusively with a 5-speed manual.