After a month long voting exercise, BMW fans and petrolheads from New Zealand and around the globe made the E46 BMW M3 CSL their all time most desirable BMW. The unique limited edition lightweight and premium priced variant of the standard E46 M3 took top honours against more established and sometimes race proven pedigree stable-mates.
Early on in the voting the E30 M3 took a predictable lead, being the obvious overall favourite, but was soon overtaken by the eventual winner. Mid way through some of the greatest current models then made their way up into the top five, including the V10 E60 M5, the E63 M6 and the V8 powered M3's. They look set to lock out the top positions alongside the classic 507, until some swift voting catapulted the M1 supercar into second, the 507 into third, the E30 M3 into fourth and finally the E9 3.0CSL Batmobile into fifth.
Surprises included the classic sporting 2002 Turbo all the way back in 13th place, the special E36 M3 GT down in 16th, the sharp handling Z3M Roadster/coupe in 23rd and finally the new X3 in plum last place.
Other notable places and honorary titles include:
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Most desirable BMW M3 was the BMW E46 M3 CSL (overall winner)
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Most desirable BMW M5 was the current E60 (6th place)
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Most desirable BMW M6 was the current E62 (8th place)
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Most desirable open-top BMW was the 507 (3rd place)
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Most desirable BMW available in a Touring version is the current E60 M5 (6th place)
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Most desirable 4 wheel drive BMW was the current X6 (20th place)
Thanks to BMW New Zealand for supplying prizes, official BMW vehicle information as well as wallpaper and model images. Additional support and voting from readers of BMW Blog, bimmersport.co.nz and other global BMW forums.
Most Desirable BMW Ever - Points table
| Place |
Model |
Points |
| 1 |
E46 M3 CSL |
6,525 |
| 2 |
M1 |
6,048 |
| 3 |
507 |
5,940 |
| 4 |
E30 M3 |
5,811 |
| 5 |
E9 3.0 CSL |
5,507 |
| 6 |
E60 M5 |
5,413 |
| 7 |
E90/92/93 M3 |
5,291 |
| 8 |
E63 M6 |
5,084 |
| 9 |
E39 M5 |
4,368 |
| 10 |
Z8 |
3,996 |
| 11 |
Z4 M Coupe/Roadster |
3,981 |
| 12 |
E31 8 Series |
3,803 |
| 13 |
2002 |
3,694 |
| 14 |
E28 M5 |
3,498 |
| 15 |
E24 6 Series |
3,478 |
| 16 |
E36 M3 |
3,365 |
| 17 |
327/328 |
3,201 |
| 18 |
E87 1 Series |
3,106 |
| 19 |
F01 7 Series |
2,935 |
| 20 |
X6 |
2,931 |
| 21 |
E34 M5 |
2,898 |
| 22 |
Z1 |
2,626 |
| 23 |
Z3 M Coupe/Roadster |
2,575 |
| 24 |
X5 |
2,481 |
| 25 |
E65 7 Series |
2,069 |
| 26 |
Isetta |
2,048 |
| 27 |
501/502/503 |
1,963 |
| 28 |
The Dixie |
1,761 |
| 29 |
E21 3 Series |
1,637 |
| 30 |
E23 7 Series |
1,498 |
| 31 |
E12 5 Series |
1,496 |
| 32 |
X3 |
1,441 |