Everyone who knows me knows that I love E36 BMWs of all kinds (yes, even the so-ugly-it’s-cure Compact). I also think that the naturally-aspirated I6 noises of the E36 M3’s S50 engine are the sorts of noises I want played at my funeral. This specific E36 M3 is a rally car made by Ilmo Lario in Finland and it sounds flipping delicious.
There’s something fantastic about the sound of BMW straight-six engines from this era of BMW. There’s no fancy exhaust trickery, no speaker noise and no dual-stage exhaust. It’s straight engine and intake noise, the sounds of an engine working and it sounds glorious. There’s a metallic growl low down and a howl that echoes through the forest as Lario rounds corners, out of the camera’s view.
Admittedly, this isn’t a stock E36 M3 and is highly tuned. We don’t know exactly how much power it has or what’s been done to it but it’s said to have around 400 hp, which is a lot for that engine. It also has an exhaust on it, which helps the noise, but there’s no denying the magical intake noise of this brilliant I6.
Plus, who doesn’t love watching an old, rear-wheel drive BMW M3 rip through dirt courses in the woods, sliding its tail around and kicking up dirt everywhere? Combine the fun rally driving with the fantastic noise and this could be my favorite video of the day. I have a short attention span…
