You know that feeling when you get the sense of being uber-quick on the Nurburgring and something that shows up in your rear-view mirror comes to prove you wrong? Well, test drivers sometimes go through the same kind of shenanigans, even when they're out putshing performance cars to the limite on the Green Hell. And the latest adventure of the kind involves the 2020 Mercedes-AMG CLA 35 AMG Shooting Brake and the 2020 BMW M3.
Now, with 306 horsepower on tap and all-paw hardware, the baby Affalterbach machine is quite the sprinter. Then again, the 2020 M3 simply plays in a different league, as this is expected to deliver between 450 and 500 ponies.
Well, prototypes of the two German toys recently crossed paths while out testing on the Nordschleife. As you'll notice in the piece of footage at the bottom of the page, the M car was the one that chased the spiced-up Shooting Brake. And while fans of the latter will cry that an even more potent model is coming (think: the CLA 45 or CLA 50), the brief Ring moment we have here is simply a form of enterntainment and not intended to serve as a comparo.
However, while the already-unveiled Mercedes-AMG CLA 35 "sedan" (this is more of a four-door coup), with its 400 Nm/295 lb-ft and its seven-speed dual-clutch tranny, has shown us what to expect from the upcoming S/B model, we don't have the complete tech puzzle for the new M3.
Of course, the 2019 BMW X3 M and X4 M have brought us the new twin-turbo 3.0-liter straight-six with up to 510 horsepower. And the unit will be present on the 2020 M3, once again being offered with multiple outputs.
Then again, we'll have to wait and see if goodies such as an all-paw system with a RWD mode (think: F90 M5) is on the menu. And we can say the same about the number of pedals - here's to hoping the Bavarian carmaker will offer an optional manual tranny.
In his quest to bring you the most impressive automotive creations, Andrei relies on learning as a superpower. There's quite a bit of room in the garage that is this aficionado's heart, so factory-condition classics and widebody contraptions with turbos poking through the hood can peacefully coexist. Full profile
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