Category: Speed

Toyota is working on a modern Celica The new sports car is expected to complement, rather than replace, the GR86 and Supra. The jury is still out on whether the car will pack a gas engine or be an EV Toyota’s renewed interest in performance and sports cars may bring yet another gift to enthusiasts: a new Toyota Celica. Speaking during last week’s…

What kind of vehicle is the 2025 Dodge Durango? What does it compare to? The 2025 Dodge Durango is a three-row midsize SUV with the option for ample—and another option for extreme—power underhood. It’s comparable to the Jeep Grand Cherokee, Ford Explorer, and Kia Telluride. Is the 2025 Dodge Durango a good SUV? The Durango can be…

General Motors is looking to apply technology from adaptive dampers to springs for future suspension systems, a recently surfaced patent filing indicates. GM was a pioneer of magnetorheological dampers, which use a magnetic fluid to quickly alter damper firmness. In a patent application published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office…

• Hagerty pits the facelifted Tesla Model 3 Performance against the BMW M3 Competition xDrive.
• Both are all-wheel drive four-door sedans.

The BMW M3 is widely regarded as the benchmark in the sports sedan market. And no, your eyes are not deceiving you. Despite this being a website that specializes in writing about battery-powered cars, we need to recognize that BMW has mastered the art of producing a thrilling gas-powered four-door sedan that you can comfortably drive every day and take to the track now and then.

But here’s where the new Tesla Model 3 Performance comes into play. With new tech under the skin, such as better brakes and a fancy suspension, Tesla’s sportiest EV takes things up a notch and promises to be the best all-rounder, period. But is it so? Until we can get our hands on both a BMW M3 Performance xDrive and a Tesla Model 3 Performance, we’ll go by Jason Cammisa’s and Randy Pobst’s words, which were nicely laid out in the Hagerty video embedded below.

As a reminder, Camissa is a bona fide car journalist with two decades of experience reviewing cars, while Pobst is a multiple SCCA World Challenge GT champion.

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One of the biggest issues with the previous Model 3 Performance models was their inability to run multiple track laps at full speed without experiencing brake fade or some sort of powertrain limitation due to overheating. Now, though, it looks like Tesla dialed everything just right, with no brake fade after several hot laps in the Track Endurance mode. That said, the Endurance mode limits the EV’s top speed to preserve longevity, and it shows in the lap times.

After 15 minutes of continuous driving, the BMW M3 Competition was over 5,000 feet ahead of the Tesla Model 3 Performance, so there’s still work to be done. In a single-lap shootout, the M3 was also quicker than the Model 3, but by less than two seconds, with the EV’s biggest drawback being its tires.

As a daily driver, though, the Model 3 Performance is a great sports-oriented car, not just EV. The infotainment is great, although it doesn’t have Apple CarPlay, and the charging experience is excellent. However, the fact that there are no steering column stalks makes the Model 3 “dangerous,” according to Cammisa.

At the end of the day, however, the biggest issue is the price. The 2025 BMW M3 Sedan with rear-wheel drive and 473 horsepower starts at $76,000. Upgrading to the M3 Competition with xDrive all-wheel drive and 523 hp ups the price to $85,000. Add some options and you’ll soon pass the $100,000 mark.

Meanwhile, the Tesla Model 3 Performance, with dual-motor all-wheel drive and 510 hp, starts at $54,990. But, unlike BMW, Tesla doesn’t really sell optional extras, so what you see is what you get.

Is the BMW worth the extra $20,000 to $50,000? It’s a tough question to answer. Camissa said one could buy a Tesla Model 3 Performance and a Mazda Miata for the same price as a single BMW M3, which things into perspective. What’s your take?

What kind of vehicle is the 2025 BMW X1? What does it compare to? The 2025 BMW X1 is the automaker’s entry-level SUV, a small model that competes with the Audi Q3, Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class, and Volvo XC40. Is the 2025 BMW X1 a good car/SUV? The X1 is a refined small SUV with a roomy interior and decent pricing. It’s not too sporty…

Mercedes In-Drive relocates the brakes to inside an EV’s motor housing In-Drive remains a friction-based brake system In-Drive is in active testing with no timeline for production announced Future Mercedes-Benz EVs might not have brakes sitting behind their wheels. Mercedes-Benz engineers in Germany showed Motor Authority its latest EV drivetrain…

Volkswagen Group’s Cupra brand has given an update on its plans to launch in the U.S. The Spanish performance marque still targets a U.S. arrival by the end of the decade, but a previous plan to only sell electric vehicles, starting with a pair of crossovers, has been abandoned. Cupra now expects to offer gas, plug-in hybrid, and electric vehicles…

What kind of vehicle is the 2026 Kia Sportage? What does it compare to? Kia’s entry in the most popular compact crossover segment rivals bestsellers such as the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V, and squares off against the related Hyundai Tucson as well as redesigned versions of the Mazda CX-50, Volkswagen Tiguan, and Chevy Equinox. Is the 2026…

The Las Vegas Grand Prix is round 22 of the 2024 F1 season The race runs on a Tilke-designed street circuit known as the Las Vegas Strip Circuit The race is scheduled for Saturday night instead of F1’s usual Sunday setting The 2024 Formula 1 World Championship heads to Las Vegas this weekend for what will be the third to last race of the season…

The five-star safety rating system gets an overdue overhaul to test for pedestrian safety Measuring the effectiveness of driver-assist systems mirrors testing by the IIHS Analysts call the updates the most significant in the agency’s 46-year history The U.S. government’s new car safety agency will enact more rigorous crash-test criteria to offset…