If you own a BMW M3, then you are already moving around in one of the best street-legal sports car in the world. But if you do feel let down by its ‘not too classy’ interiors and wish to add that extra bit of oomph to your speedster, then Zwickenpflug have got the perfect tuning kit for your BMW M3. The special M3 Leather edition tuned up by the German firm, sports stylish all-leather interiors and custom Alcantra inserts on the door panels, steering wheel, dashboard and unique sport seats. They also tweaked the BMW engine under the hood with by adding an extra 25 hp for a total of 445 hp and removing the speed limiter. The revamped M3 hits a top speed of 202 mph and races around on the custom 19-inch BBS alloy wheels. – via 4wheelsnews

Two new BMW models have surfaced at the New York International Auto Show in Manhattan, NYC. The first one is BMW Concept CS we’ve told you during the Shanghai Auto Expo last year in April. It sure looks like a sports coupe GT, is bigger than the 7-series and looks just about stunning. Rumors say that the car will get over the concept phase some time soon, but we don’t have a confirmation for that yet.Until the new Concept CS becomes the real thing, a new BMW M3 Convertible was presented. Aside the usual M3 lines, the specs are making it a hit: 414 bhp from the 4.0L V8 natural aspired engine, double clutch gearbox or the seven-speed transmission.

via WCF

Where are my pills? I definitely need to take some hear pills right away after seeing the new BMW M3 Race Edition. This Le Mans series eight cylinder baby (can’t call it BMW or car) looks great and I’m drooling already. Built with the help of BMW’s racing division and Rahal Letterman Racing, the M3 Race Editions was presented yesterday in Chicago during the Auto Show.

If the picture is not enough, and if you really wanna cry how about some specs. It’s much more powerful, adding 65 hp getting to a total of 485 hp from the 4 liter aluminum DOHC V8 engine with four valves per cylinder and 368 lb-ft/500 Nm torque.

Here is a full list of the new BMW M3 Race Edition specs, but before that, see the two other images above.

BMW P65 Engine

Type: Eight cylinder, V-configuration
Capacity: 3999 cc
Bore x stroke: 92 x 75.2 mm/3.62 x 2.96 in.
Max. output: approx. 485 bhp
Max. torque: approx. 368 lb-ft/500 Nm
Cylinder block: Aluminum cylinder block construction with bed plate lower section
Crankshaft: Steel crankshaft
Pistons: Forged skirt pistons
Conrods: High-performance steel
Cylinder head: Aluminum DOHC (Double Over Head Camshaft); four valves per cylinder
Valve train: Four overhead chain-driven camshafts, valve actuation via rocker arms
Intake system: Eight throttle valves, made of CRP with load-charge optimized ram tubes
Exhaust system: Headers, mufflers
Fuel system: Single cylinder multi-point injection
Lubrication: Dry sump lubrication
Cooling: Water/air cooler and oil/water heat exchanger

Electrics/Electronics

Engine management: BMW Motorsport ECU 408 with two high-performance micro-processors; Individual cylinder injection and ignition; BMW Motorsport Lambda Controller Pit speed limiter, Quick Shift function; Engine data memory system
Energy management: Electric energy management and monitoring with BMW Motorsport POWER400 control unit, networking of all sensors and actuators through bus system
Wiring harness: Weight optimized
Ignition coil: Eight high-performance pencil coils with integrated ignition drivers
Spark plugs: High-performance spark plugs
Cockpit: Free programmable LCD Display with integrated shift indicators
Steering wheel: Quick release multi-function steering wheel w/ integrated display unit

With the Detroit Auto Show bringing a lot of things to blog about, the guys from Autoblog.nl published a few pictures of the new BMW M3 Cabrio. Of course you get all excited but when you check it up with BMW it may not be that reassuring. Apparently the new M3 Cabrio is not yet official (yes I know the pictures say different) but may be presented during the Auto Show in March at Geneva.

It’s going to be the first to use BMW’s 7-speed double clutch M DKG transmission (a lot like VW’s DSG transmission) and does 0-60mph in 5.4 seconds. It’s 0.4 seconds slower but it’s heavier, with all the extra weight on the retractable roof.

It’s looking great and the user feedback is great so far. Come on BMW, make your moves.