18. BMW E30 M3
When most people think of BMW performance, they think of M cars. But among the dozens of models that wore the M badge which one is the most iconic? Of course, it’s the M3 E30. BMW produced it from 1985 to 1992.
And the E30 M3 was, in fact, a homologation special they designed to go racing in the European Touring Car Championship. The heart of the E30 M3 was the S14 straight four engine with 2.3-liters of displacement producing 195 HP, and later 215 HP. Since the car was light, the performance and road holding was great.
In fact, the M3 turned out to be the most successful racing car in touring racing history. The road going variants later received the bigger 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that developed 238 HP, which was a hefty number, even by today’s standards.