THE M3 has in the last two decades established itself as a sports car made for folks who do not particularly fancy the traditional properties of a sports car.

It has the brashness of a sports car, backed by impressive credentials, but it simmers under a veneer of civility. An automotive version of Clark Kent, if you will.

People liked that.

On a more literal level, the car is a distilled version of the BMW 3-series, the most accessible and most recognised of "ultimate driving machines".

Unlike its monstrous but unwieldy M5 cousin, it is nimble, controllable and a delight to the senses. It looks good (rippling metallic muscles), sounds good (deep, stirring, textured engine note) and even smells good (leather, lacquer and excitement). People liked that, too.

But for all the accolades it has accumulated over time, for all the wealthy individuals it has rescued from a dull existence, the Super 3 has not been able to confront its kryptonite. Until now.

Admittedly, it has not been easy to spot the chinks in the armour. Not when the armour is hurtling past as fast as the shinkansen (if you remove the speed limiter).

Firstly, it has long been a two-door, with the exception of a model launched 14 years ago. Not that having two doors is a chink in any armour. In fact, it only serves to strengthen it.

But with rivals such as the Mercedes- Benz C55 AMG and Audi RS4 dressed in four-door splendour, what's a Bavarian beefcake to do?

So now, besides having the choice of either a coupe or a cabriolet, M3 buyers can opt for an insanely quick four-door.

Having driven the M3 sedan for a few days, with and without passengers, briskly and even more briskly, it appears the car's rigidity suffers little from the usual ill effects of having two more openings.

The carbon-fibre roofed coupe - 25kg lighter, 0.1 seconds quicker to 100kmh and $18,000 pricier - may well be stiffer, but you are quite unlikely to notice any difference outside of a race circuit.

Secondly and more impressively, the new M3 is by far the brainiest M3 made. It is so smart it allows the driver to decide - from an iDrive menu listing damping, throttle and steering characteristics as well as level of stability assistance - exactly how he wants the car to be in "whoopee" mode.

The car memorises the settings and recalls them at the touch of an "M" button on the steering. It is so good it is like having two cars in one.

But even in its more relaxed default setting, the M3 is able to deliver the goods in a head-spinning, breath-holding fashion. In first gear, it pulls away with such frightening force that you sometimes have to fight the life-preserving urge to ease off the pedal.

The car's 4-litre V8 possesses such a wide power band that it is often possible to drive the six-speed manual car like an automatic by leaving it in third gear. It will even pull willingly in sixth, from as low as 40kmh.

In M mode, the car's electronic nannies tolerate lots of wheel-spinning. So clearly, there is plenty of potential for antics best reserved for track days.

As a day-to-day car, the M3 is one sweet GT. It has the comfort and luxury to go with its dizzying prowess. Its suspension holds up well to cornering forces and yet the ride is always pliant.

Its V8 rumble is music to the ears when on song, but is never intrusive when revs are below 3,000rpm. So you can better enjoy the car's new high-end audio system.

The only niggle is that the car has a rather wide turning circle for its compactness. Even so, if Ferrari were to make a sedan, it could do worse than use the BMW M3 as a template.

The car's closest rival now is the Audi RS4. But a friendlier and quicker dual- clutch paddle-shift version that's due in the second half should up the ante and put some real distance between the M3 and its Merc and Audi competitors. Not to mention the "traditional" sports cars.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Apr 12, 2008.