Although it was an improvement of over 30 hp, the 3.0 already was a very serious sports car. BMW officially claims 5.5 sec. for 0-100 km/h for the current M3 3.2 Coupe, and most magazines actually reach exactly this value in their tests. For the earlier M3 3.0 Coupe BMW claimed 6.0 sec., but most magazines would achieve much better results. In 1993 Europe's largest car magazine, the leading German "Auto, Motor und Sport" Magazine, accelerated a fully loaded M3 3.0 Coupe (A/C, electr. power seats, OBC, optional wider wheels 8Jx17, cruise control etc.) in only 5.8 sec. from 0-100 km/h. Here are some quotes from the Auto, Motor and Sport article (Issue 3/93) featuring the first full AMS test of the M3 3.0 after it's introduction: "A specifically more powerful engine in serial production currently cannot be found in the area of non-turbo motors" and "8.8 seconds, in order to accelerate from 80-120 km/h in 5th gear, means world-class-level. A Ferrari TR needs 0.8 seconds more."

One of the most impressive tests was performed by German Magazine "sport auto" in March 1993. The March issue featured a large BMW special, where the magazine compared all new sportive cars that BMW offered at that time, with comparable cars from Audi and Porsche. The cars were in detail: BMW M3 vs. Porsche 968 CS, BMW 850 CSi vs. Porsche 928 GTS, BMW M5 Touring vs. Audi S4 4.2 Avant.

The M3 and M5 had no problem in defeating their competitors. Only the 850 CSi could hardly keep up with the Porsche 928 GTS. However, the fastest of all cars in the test was the BMW M3 3.0 !!

The following table demonstrates the impressive performance: