The Ultimate Driving Machine. That's the status that most know BMW for. They take serious pride in their cars no matter if it's a small two-door coupe, a super-sedan, or one of the newer beastly SUVs they sell, like the X5M. That really shouldn't come as a shock to anyone, considering how long ago it was that they started branding their especially powerful and capable cars with their M for Motorsport in the early 70s.

Today, all sorts of cars like the Kia Stinger GT, Genesis G70, and Cadillac ATS-V are all gunning for BMW. The truth is that they all owe a debt of gratitude to BMW because without their innovation and hard work, many sports segments wouldn't exist today. Today we're going to take a look at the ten best M cars to ever come out of BMW. Every one of them is a hallmark machine.

10 E28 M5

via carthrottle.com

The E28 is the first M5 ever sold to the public and it set the standard for what a sports sedan could be. It was a fairly light car at the time and the powerful inline 6 get it to speed and keeps it there easily. The styling set the standard for the future and even now you can see some of that DNA in the modern cars.

9 E90 M3

via ukcar.reviews

The last smaller M3 and it just so happened to have a big brutal naturally aspirated V8 under the hood. You could also get one like this with four doors or go with the slightly lighter 2-door coupe. The looks are subtle too compared to current cars so if you prefer to surprise people, this M3 might be for you.

8 E39 M5

Via: Bing

Easily featuring the most future-proof styling here, the E39 M5 has a 400 horsepower V8, can be bought with a 6-speed transmission, and is highly reliable. Values are starting to skyrocket too. That's because this was the last simple, stout M5 ever built. Since then, they've gotten more complex and harder to care for.

7 M635 CSI

red BMW M635CSi
via wikiwand.com

The M635 CSI "Shark Nose" is a rare beast that you almost never see on the roads today. This car showed that BMW could translate the sporty nature of the M3 to a larger, heavier, and more practical vehicle. It also looks the business, doesn't it? That grille kinda reminds you of the new wild looking stuff that we're seeing on the new M3 too so at least they're hearkening back to history.

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6 E60 M5

Via bmwblog.com

My personal favorite M5, the E60 has a highly strung 507 horsepower V10 under the hood that revs to 9000 rpm. That's ungodly from a car that can be bought with a manual here in the states. In Europe, they got the estate version seen above. It was the last true naturally aspirated super sedan and while they do have some rod bearing issues, they're incredibly inspiring when they run right.

5 E46 M3 GTR

http://cdn.bmwblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/BMW-M3-GTR-Road-version-1900x1200-images-05.jpg

It may come as a shock but this is a real thing that BMW sold in a super limited production run of 10 cars. They had to build them to meet Le Mans homologation rules. These cars have a 380 horsepower V8 under the hood and were sold for more than $250,000 in 2001. They're rare, but they're real, and they deserve to be on this list.

4 1M

via ausmotive.com

Perhaps one of the best and most unknown sports cars to non-BMW focused enthusiasts is the 1M. The N54 twin-turbo engine is very strong and very capable. It's even tunable so you can build crazy power should the original 335 not be enough for you. Really, it should've been called the M3 because by this time the actual M3 was getting pretty big and this 1M was more similarly powered and proportioned to the original car.

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3 F87 M2 Competition

BMW M2 2019
via: superstreetonline

The M2 Competition is the most modern car on the list because it shares many of the same qualities of the M1 but it's more powerful and better built for life today. The interior is as nice as it gets here and frankly, it's probably the only M car in the lineup today that seems to truly share the same DNA, not just the styling, of the old cars.

2 E30 M3

This set the standard for all sports cars moving forward. The E30 M3 was a reasonably priced, reliable, and an incredibly well-tuned car that is still revered by automotive fans throughout the world. It's not impractical either, providing a killer daily driving experience for owners.

1 M1

BMW M1
Via rmsothebys.com

The M1 was the first M car and it's the first Mid-Engined BMW only followed up by the i8 in 2014. Originally intended to be powered by a Lamborghini engine, the crew at BMW M ended up putting their own motor in and it worked out just fine. This thing could hit 162mph in 1978. It was a killer entry into the market for M as a part of the company and it set the stage for all that we now know under the brand.

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