Twenty five years ago BMW created an icon when it debuted the very first BMW M3 at the 1985 Frankfurt Motor Show. At the time, the sportiest BMW 3 Series ever produced boasted 147 kW, a top speed in excess of 230 km/h, and a sprint from a standing start to 100 km/h inside 6.7 seconds. More significantly, the BMW M3 created a legacy of driver involvement, great handling and giant-slaying performance that has been passed on to each of the car’s four generations.

However, South African buyers never experienced that first BMW M3. It was only built in left-hand drive and the first BMW M3 to reach these shores was the 6-cylinder E36 M3 Coupe of the early 1990s. So, to meet demand for a sport BMW 3 Series in the late Eighties, BMW South Africa’s engineers produced two very special BMW 3 Series for South Africa only.

The first was the Alpina-based BMW 333i, which shoehorned a 145 kW 3.2-litre inline 6-cylinder engine into the two-door BMW 3 Series saloon in 1985. Then, in the late 1980s, the Rosslyn engineers created the BMW 325iS.

Initially the 325iS was merely a 2-door 325i saloon fitted with a bodykit and a close-ratio gearbox, which improved acceleration at the expense of top speed and economy. But more changes were made to keep the car competitive in South African saloon car racing, culminating in the 325iS Evo II of late 1991. By now several body panels were made of aluminum and the engine capacity grew to 2.7-litres, produced 155 kW and the car achieved a 0 – 100km/h dash in a mere 7.5 seconds.

Now, to celebrate 25 years of the BMW M3, BMW South Africa’s engineers are at it again and will produce a very special version of the current V8-engined BMW M3 Coupé in celebration of this milestone.

This BMW M3 ‘Frozen Edition’ – of which only 25 will be produced – will be available exclusively in Frozen Black or Frozen Grey matt paintwork. The matt paintwork is matched to red brake callipers housed behind a set of gloss black 19-inch alloy wheels. Inside, the special M3′s black leather will feature red stitching and behind the steering wheel will be the controls for the M-DCT transmission, which all 25 cars will be fitted with as standard.

More significantly however, unlike their US counterparts, these special BMW M3 Coupés will also benefit from AC Schnitzer performance parts to further set them apart from the standard M3 Coupé.

Featuring an AC Schnitzer exhaust pipe, intake manifold and a revised engine management system, all covered under the standard BMW Motorplan and Warranty, the Frozen Edition BMW M3 Coupé will now produce 330 kW at 8 400 r/min and 420 Nm of torque at 3 900 r/min. As a refresher, the standard BMW M3 produces 309 kW at 8 300 r/min and 400 Nm at 3 900 r/min.

Only eight Frozen Edition M3s will be available in 2010, with the remainder of the production run following in the first quarter of 2011. The BMW M3 Frozen Edition will set you back a chilling R1 180 000.