The BMW M3 is an iconic sports car that's been produced for decades. The M3 has been in production since 1985 and shows no signs of slowing down. It's been the darling of enthusiasts since its inception. It has everything that anyone could possibly want in a car. It’s luxurious, finely crafted in Germany with quality materials. It’s quick, getting up to speed quickly – 0 to 60 takes just 3.7 seconds, and the top speed of the M3 is 174 miles per hour. The RWD and front-engine configuration mean that the car is planted and dialed in during corners, which is perhaps the primary appeal to enthusiasts. Just like the classic Mazda Miata with the light body, RWD, and turn-friendly chassis, the M3 has the perfect recipe to be a good driver’s car. The iconic styling has never faltered either, and the cult following behind this sports car is nearly unmatched.

This fervor for the M3 means that owners will want to modify their car and make themselves stand out, and that can go one of two ways. It can go incredibly well, and the owner will end up with a great-looking sports car that's both functional and gorgeous. Or the car can become difficult to drive, tacky looking, and a total eyesore if not done properly. With more money comes more potential for unnecessarily over-the-top modifications, and with expensive cars, that happens all too often. Read on to see some beautiful (and ugly) modified M3s, and judge for yourself how the owners did.

20 Let's Race!

via YouTube

Starting off, we have a nice-looking M3 that takes our breath away. The bright-blue paint job is both eye-catching and tasteful. The unique color works well with the rest of the black accents on the car, and the resulting design is certainly aggressive. This M3 has also had some work done on its exhaust and air intakes, resulting in a louder, better sounding, more powerful ride that we'd all like a chance to drive. The racing stickers covering the BMW add to its unique and aggressive look, showing that this car is no slouch when it comes to track performance.

19 What Time Is It? Race Time!

via Automotive Addicts

The race-inspired look fits this old E30 M3 quite well. It's always nice to see an old classic well taken care of, and this BMW is much more desirable than most modern cars on the road. The race stickers, the splitter, the side moldings, the new wheels, and the lowered suspension make this car look right at home on a race track. It likely has some power added under the hood to better propel it around the track. While this type of modification style can end up ugly and tacky, this owner has kept his M3 in great shape both mechanically and visually.

18 Wide Body, Wide Eyes

via BMWblog.com

This E46 M3 is stanced, which may be off-putting to some, but the owner has managed to make this controversial style look stunning. Although the camber provides issues with tire wear and traction, it looks nice on this car and isn't too extreme.

The widebody kit fits the handsome lines of this BMW well and, perhaps, could make the car more planted on the track.

The gleaming golden paint sets this car apart, and the black accents on the accessories make for a stately and imposing look. This coupe has great components that are subtle, yet they make a statement and put this BMW solidly in a league of its own.

17 Low Stance, High Standards

via racecarsforsaleblog.com

This newer M3 is stanced quite nicely. The deep rims are slick and add a bit of class to this look. They match the silver paint well and look sleek, pressed deep into the fenders.

The body accents and front splitter improve the aerodynamics of the BMW, as well as contribute to an aggressive look that makes us all want to get behind the wheel of this car.

While the lack of gap between the wheels and the body makes for a harsh and sometimes inconvenient ride, it actually works on this BMW and can be excused because of its amazing looks.

16 Clean, Cool, Compact

via DeviantArt

While the front of this BMW looks a little odd due to the black splitter, we can excuse it due to the slick looks. The rims look fancy and fit the M3 perfectly, as does the stance. The lowered suspension fits the wheels perfectly against the fender gap and provides a practical use as well, as it improves the aerodynamics and balance of the car. The splitter, although odd looking, adds an element of sportiness to the M3, letting us know that this car is much more than its looks. That's what we like to see - a performance car being used for its true purpose.

15 Blown Away By Blue

via superstreetonline.com

This 2001 M3 may be nearly 20 years old, but it still looks right at home around modern cars. The brilliant blue paint job is unique and makes the BMW stand out in traffic.

The rims keep the M3 looking modern, and their thin silver spokes compliment the blue paint and match the class that's attached to the BMW badge.

The ride height is perfect, keeping the drivability of this car alive while, at the same time, lowering the center of gravity for a significantly better driving experience. Most car enthusiasts would love to get behind the wheel of this M3, and it looks like a total blast to throw around the track.

14 Drift Monster

via SpeedHunters.com

This E46 M3 has gotten quite the makeover. Modified by HGK Motorsports, this executive coupe has been turned into a true drift monster. With an insane 950 horsepower, this BMW can chuck itself around corners with massive clouds of smoke nearly sideways. The exhaust comes out of the side of the car, just like a Dodge Viper. The backfire adds to the badass factor of this car, and there has never been a car we've wanted to drive more than this purpose-built drifter. While this car is likely awful to drive on the street, it looks like an absolute blast to take to the track.

13 Back In Black

via Bring A Trailer

Most of the appeal of this amazing M3 comes from its incredible paint job. The glossy black sheen is rare to see and looks stunning, making the car look expensive and intimidating. It fits the ideal look of what a BMW should be and likely makes other M3 owners envious.

The bronze rims compliment the black paint and make the car look even more expensive.

Additionally, the lowered suspension makes the M3 better to drive and sets it apart from the rest of the stanced cars by delivering a completely different look. This car would be at home on the track, cruising by upscale restaurants, or really being anywhere money is found.

12 Sleek Sleeper

via Bring a Trailer

This 2002 M3 is a total sleeper and will blow past whatever it lines up against. It looks subtly modified, thanks to its low suspension and aftermarket rims. These slick components will make onlookers look twice at this car, but they don't suspect the crazy power that it's packing. This BMW is supercharged, making it far quicker than a normal M3 but looking much more inconspicuous. There's something fun about sleepers, and part of it is knowing that your car lets you fly incognito but that you can speed past just about any challenger on the road. This BMW may not be the most impressive, but it's certainly desirable.

11 What's Cookin', Good Lookin'?

via MobMasker

This stanced E30 M3 is simply stunning. The deep and intricate wheels add a nice shine to the car and perfectly fit its retro styling. The low front bumper and side skirts bring the car closer to the ground, creating a crisp stance that sets it apart from other cars in the stance world. The setup of this M3 doesn't lend itself to practicality, but the looks are absolutely stunning. The gleaming paint brings this retro car into the modern culture. This setup is totally unique, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a better-looking stanced BMW than this one.

10 Shopping Cart?

via StanceWorks

While this stanced M3 actually looks pretty nice, the spoiler ruins the whole thing. It's unlikely that this car will see the track time that requires such a huge wing, making it a totally useless addition. It's a shame, too, because this M3 looks good, especially with the shiny green paint. However, the giant wing makes this BMW look like a shopping cart. Mods that could be useful but that are just for looks are ridiculous. This wing could look good if it were a bit smaller, but the fact that it's as high as the roofline is just stupid and ruins the whole car.

9 Why The Wing?

via YouTube

Again, we see a decent car ruined by a tacky spoiler. This M3, instead of having a spoiler that's too big, has one that's tiny and out of proportion to the rest of the car.

It's small and doesn't match the design language of the rest of the car, making it look like a dinky toy.

The stance looks pretty good, and the general design of this BMW is nice. But the spoiler ruins it, and that's a shame. Sometimes, the smallest things can ruin a perfectly good car, and this M3 is proof of that sad fact.

8 Ugly In Orange

via 101 Modified Cars

Oh boy... where do we start on this one? Again, the spoiler ruins the car. BMWs aren't meant to have spoilers unless it's a subtle lip spoiler. The black accents on this car don't do it any favors.

The fenders, the side skirts, and the body line on the doors don't need to be colored the way that they are, and neither does the carbon-fiber trunk.

Everything on this car, including the tacky orange paint, is wrong. This looks too much like a race car rather than a luxury sports coupe, and it would look much nicer if the owner had restrained the design language.

7 Uh Oh

via AmazingPict.com

This car just screams desperation. Subtlety is the key to beauty when it comes to many good-looking modified cars, but this over-the-top mess hopefully made the owner say a big old "uh oh" when they got it back from the tuners. The overly muscled body looks like it's trying too hard and doesn't match the usual sleek looks of BMWs. The red rims are incredibly ugly, as rims should never be in such a bright expressive color. It cheapens the look of this car, which is unfortunate because it had so much potential to look incredible.

6 Orange You Glad You Don't Own This Car?

via TuningCult.com

What's the deal with all of these orange M3s? They all look terrible, and orange really doesn't belong on a car unless it's a Lamborghini or maybe a McLaren. The color-matched wheels look awful and make the car look like it was designed by a child. Rims should only be black, silver, or bronze. Colored rims, especially those that match the body color, don't look good at all and ruin the appearance of this perfectly good M3. Additionally, the spoiler adds to the childish aspect of the car. It's filled with unnecessary modifications that make the car look more like a toy than a track beast.

5 This Is A Mess

via ZerCustoms

This M3 is a sad mess of failed design. The first mistake is the rims. They're far too thin for the muscular appearance of this BMW, and while thin wheels can look good, they have to be offset by thickness in other areas of the rims. These are thin everywhere and have ugly thin tires to accompany them. The resulting issue is that the wheels look disproportionate to the rest of the car. The rest of the car looks decent, especially with the subtle duckbill spoiler, but the wheels ruin the whole look. A new set of wheels is all this owner needs to fix the car.

4 If Only It Weren't For The Rims...

via Reddit

This M3 has been modified by European tuner Hamann, and it's ruined the poor car. The first issue is the gaudy rims - they look spindly and fragile, which doesn't work well at all with the sporty and aggressive design of the M3. This is a simple fix but is huge and makes the car look plain awful. The second problem is the god-awful front bumper. It looks clunky and heavy, not light and nimble like a sports sedan's should look. The stock bumper is miles ahead of this trash and shouldn't have even been messed with in the first place.

3 White's Not Right

via wallpaperlayer.com

Yet another M3 that's been ruined by a set of serious design mistakes. Color-matched rims, as mentioned before, are a big no-no. The white accents on these rims look awful and should be left behind. Perhaps they could be colored silver, but that or black are the only other options.

The blue headlights are a huge mistake as well - headlights, like rims, should only be two colors: yellow or white.

These colored headlights look tacky and cheap, ruining the look of this M3. These mistakes could've been avoided if the owner had shown a little bit of taste and restraint, but unfortunately, that didn't happen here.

2 Rice Rice Baby

via Reddit

This poor M3 has been 'riced' beyond belief. Where to start... the rims are awful. Chrome rarely looks nice, and this isn't one of those situations. The body kit looks cheap and plasticky, which isn't a good addition to a classy BMW. The Lambo doors are a huge no, and no matter what car they're on, they just look awful. The paint isn't at all befitting of a German luxury car. Rather, it looks like it belongs on the set of Fast and Furious. This is a bad mess that we'd rather not even know exists, much less analyze.

1 Don't Pick This Up

via BMWblog.com

Here, we have something rather interesting yet ugly - an M3 pickup truck. Luckily, this is just a concept, and a physical test version was released by BMW as an April Fool's joke and not something you'll have to see on the road. This wouldn't work at all as a pickup. No one with the money to buy this would use it for work, and as it's built on a small frame, it'll be unable to hold much cargo at all. The proportions are wrong, and the bed is too high to look attractive to drivers. As far as concepts go, literally anything would look better.

Sources: Reddit, BMW