There are cars. And there are icons. The E30 M3 is definitely the latter. Which is why many people think it´s a sacrilege to change the fundamentals of this BMW. However, a few radicals have always risen above this dogma – and built V8 engines into the M3.
Mathias Beetz had a different approach when he started his M3 project back in 1993. Running an independent BMW workshop in Berlin, he took the sporting ace and transplanted the drivetrain of BMW´s mighty 850 CSi under the slim hood of the 3-series. So a 5.6 liter V12 instead of an in-line-four. Massive torque instead of high revs. A 6-speed-box instead of a dogleg-5. Some might say that the soul of the M3 has been watered down by this. Others, and I´m one of them, see the metamorphosis as a legitimate game with BMW´s very varied parts catalogue.
Just recently, Mathias was able to get his hands on the car again and restore it after more than 30 years with multiple owners. He did a fantastic job, bringing this weapon back to former glory! Once the work was finished, and the historic license plate mounted – which is a thing in Germany… – he wanted to fulfil his dream and shoot his DTM-derived car on the remains of Berlin´s famous AVUS race track.
While only the Autobahn and some grandstands still tell the story of motorsport in Berlin, this very special M3 keeps the fascination for the racing 3 as well as Mathias´ engineering talents alive. It was an honour to document his legacy.
