We Rode In The Manual M3 CS Before Anyone Else — Here’s the Verdict

BMW has been telegraphing this one for a while. Every time someone asked about a manual M3, the answer was some variation of “we hear you.” Well, they heard. The 2027 BMW M3 CS Handschalter is real, it’s rear-wheel drive only, and we got an exclusive preview at Willow Springs ahead of today’s official announcement.

We were there with Scott Stirling of BMW of North America’s M product team, who walked us through every detail of the car — and then pro driver Samantha Tan, who campaigns a BMW M4 GT3 in IMSA, took us out for hot laps in a pre-production example on the Big Willow circuit. Our full video, including the walk-around and the in-car footage, is up now on the BMWBLOG YouTube channel. Our own photos and video from the day are below.

What Makes This One Different From The M3 CS xDrive

The short answer: almost everything that matters to how it drives. Because it’s rear-wheel drive, the engineers had to rethink the suspension tuning from scratch. The M3 CS Handschalter sits 6mm lower than the standard M3 thanks to new springs and a revised rear axle link. The dampers are carried over from the M4 CSL — so not from the regular M3 CS — and the auxiliary springs are specific to this car. Wheel camber, differential controller settings, engine mapping, and steering calibration are all bespoke to the Handschalter. The xDrive M3 CS and this car share a name and a body. Beyond that, the engineers treated them as separate vehicles.

Power comes from the same S58 3.0-liter inline-six making 473 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque, mated to a 6-speed manual. BMW quotes 0-60 in 4.1 seconds. That’s not the point. The point is that all 473 horsepower goes through the rear wheels via a clutch pedal and a stick, and the car has been tuned to make the most of that specific setup rather than being a detuned version of something else.

Weight Savings That Actually Add Up

The carbon fiber reinforced plastic work is extensive: roof, hood, front splitter, front air intakes, mirror caps, rear diffuser, rear spoiler, center console, and interior trim. Add M Carbon bucket seats and a titanium rear silencer that saves over eight pounds on its own, and you’re looking at roughly 42 pounds saved versus a standard 6-speed M3. Spec the optional M Carbon Ceramic brakes and that number grows to nearly 75 pounds total.

The M Carbon Ceramic brakes are worth dwelling on for a second. They’re not standard. Neither is the gold bronze finish on the forged 927M wheels, which is just the default — you can also get them in black. Caliper options go four ways: M Compound brakes in red or black, Carbon Ceramics in red or gold.

Three tire options are available: high performance, track, and ultra-track (a Cup 2R equivalent at $600). Samantha ran us around Willow on what we believe were the track tires, and the front end bit with a confidence that surprised me from the passenger seat.

Four Colors, Two Of Them Worth The Premium

Isle of Man Green metallic and Black Sapphire metallic are no-cost options. Imola Red and Techno Violet metallic are $4,500 BMW Individual paints pulled from 40 years of M3 history. The car we saw at Willow was in Imola Red. It looked exactly as right as you’d expect. Techno Violet is the one I’d lose sleep over.

Inside, there are no options. You get bi-color Anthracite Full Merino leather with Mugello Red stitching, a CFRP center console, and the M Carbon bucket seats. That’s it. Scott was pretty clear about this when we asked.

What Samantha Tan Thought Of It

Tan has driven the M4 CS — she filmed a commercial for it in Croatia — so she’s not someone who needs to be told what a CS car is supposed to feel like. Her read on the Handschalter after hot laps at Willow was direct: nimble, well-balanced front-to-rear, and genuinely fun to shift. “It’s a pure car enthusiast car,” she said. “You might not get the quickest lap time versus the xDrive, but you’re living.”

The 10-stage M Traction Control was doing real work in the corners. Even without MDM active, the rear stepped out in a way that was manageable and, frankly, enjoyable from where I was sitting. The carbon ceramics held up without drama through multiple laps.

Price And Timing

The base price is $107,100 plus $1,350 destination. Production starts in July; deliveries are expected in the fall. Orders are open now through BMW dealers. North America only. The M3 CS Handschalter makes its public debut at the All-BMW Petersen Cruise-In on May 23 at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, with a reveal scheduled for 10:00 AM.

This is the last manual M3 of the sixth generation. BMW hasn’t said what comes next for the G80 platform, but they’ve been explicit that this is a send-off. If that framing is meant to move metal, it’s also just accurate.