We haven’t come across such a potentially contentious review in quite some time, if ever. Steve Sutcliffe pegs the new BMW M3 against the Alpina D3 Biturbo. By now we’re all familiar with the M3, which is powered by 317 kW and 550 Nm blown straight-six. Of course it’s packed with many lightweight and go-fast M components too. So what is an Alpina D3 and how could any 3 Series come close to challenging the top-dog M, let alone a diesel-powered model? Well the Alpina D3 is based on the BMW 330d, a firm favourite of ours, and has been given a limited-slip differential and a serious boost in performance to 257 kW and 700 Nm (up from 190 kW and 560 Nm). The results of the performance tests might well leave you scratching your head.
Read our road test of the BMW 330d and watch Chris Harris’ review of the petrol-powered Alpina B3 Biturbo.
