One of the features that turned many of the BMW models into what was considered to be the perfect driving car, especially the M3, was the engine. This engine wasn’t one that was beefed up in any way; instead it offered the right amount of power and balance without being too large or too small. Making a car feel as athletic as the M3 or M4 takes a carefully crafted and perfectly balanced approach to the build of the car. The engine we used to enjoy on any road that gave us this feeling was the straight six-cylinder engine.
What made this engine the one of choice was the fact that it gave us a straight line of cylinders that couldn’t throw the car off balance because three were always firing in the line. The BMW models we see today typically make use of a four-cylinder engine or a V8 leaving the six-cylinder behind and on the shelf. With a V6 there is no balance because the engine is constantly firing off balance which leaves us with a car that is more difficult to drive properly. This takes away from the balance of the car, which makes it reasonable to use the fours and eights of the engines.
One place the straight six-cylinder engine is still used is in the BMW motorcycle. A motorcycle with this much power makes for a bike that can give you a fantastic ride on any road so that you can enjoy the full feel of driving through the control offered. The only question then is to wonder why this engine is no longer added to the cars from BMW. Obviously they still have the engine and can certainly take it off the bike and stick it in the M2 to give us an affordable and exciting ride from a beautiful BMW coupe that is truly the athlete we want it to be.
Right now the problem is not only a power and balance one but also an affordability issue. The 3-Series and 5-Series cars that are typically leased come with the four-cylinder engine which shows low power and not enough flash to make them more than a more expensive commuter car. The jump to the V8 creates a ton of power and a price that typically takes these out of reach of most buyers. What we need is a car with the straight six-cylinder engine that makes the right amount of power and comes at an affordable price, even if that means leaving out some of the frills.
If you want to drive a truly great car you should look to the BMW models of old that had this gorgeously brilliant engine under the hood. Possibly it will make the return we want and bring us a ride that is highly desirable overall, but the current lineup seems to have a hole in it that should be filled with a straight six-cylinder engine that comes on the 3-series or 5-series model to give us the balance and power to make the perfect on road athlete.
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