BMW M3 Reaches The Finish Line As 2027 Becomes Its Last Year

The BMW M3 as we know it is rolling toward retirement, and the chequered flag is closer than many enthusiasts realise. The G80-generation sports saloon has officially entered its 2027 model year in the United States, and that will be its final lap before the curtain falls. Confirmation came straight from BMW Product Planning Specialist Scott Stirling, who told BimmerLife that the sixth-generation car will not carry over into 2028.

Stirling is no stranger to the M3 story either. He was the man who pushed BMW’s Munich headquarters to greenlight the M3 CS Handschalter, the lightweight, three-pedal swan song built specifically for North America. That special edition joins a short and storied roster of region-exclusive farewells, sitting alongside the E92 Lime Rock and the E36 Lightweight in the M division’s history books.

Production timing remains slightly hazy, though chatter on the Bimmer Post forums points to February 2027 as the moment the last G80 will roll off the line. Its direct petrol successor, codenamed G84, is not expected until sometime in 2028, and it will mark a historic shift. For the first time, a combustion-powered M3 will be assembled outside Munich, with the seventh generation moving to the Dingolfing plant. Power will come from a fresh take on the twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre straight-six, reportedly with mild-hybrid assistance to satisfy tightening European emissions rules, and the new car is tipped to be automatic and all-wheel-drive only.

Running parallel to the petrol car will be an all-electric M3, codenamed ZA0, scheduled to enter production in Munich next year. Teased as a quad-motor monster, the EV variant will reportedly feature synthetic V10 soundtracks, simulated gear shifts, an M-specific battery pack with a net capacity north of 100 kWh, and considerably more punch than the 463 horsepower offered by the current i3 50 xDrive.

For driving purists, this all signals a fading era. M boss, Frank van Meel, has openly suggested the six-speed manual is unlikely to survive into the next decade, citing limited demand and dwindling supplier interest. The current M2 and M4 are tipped to keep the stick-shift flame burning until closer to 2030, but with the manual M3 bowing out and the next generation tipped to skip three pedals entirely, the Handschalter may well be remembered as the final hurrah for the rear-wheel-drive, manual-gearbox M3 formula.