With the B3 GT3, Alpina have created a BMW 3 Series that gets as close to being an M3 model as possible and eventually turned into a racer lookalike.

The base car they used is a capable E92 BMW 335i which is powered by a twin turbo 3.0 liter inline six-cylinder engine.

Thanks to a few tweaks that lovely engine now develops a total of 408 horsepower and 398 lb-ft of torque. That’s just shy of what the V8 powered M3 can develop.

It takes 4.6 seconds to get from 0 to 62 and the top speed figure now goes all the way up to 192 mph. We’re guessing that alongside the new power, the removal of the electronic speed limiter has something to do with it.

We’ve no idea of what caused the tuner to hand over the car to Sport Auto magazine for a test drive but we’re very glad they didn’t focus on the custom full-body vinyl wrap its getting.

Alpina may be the creators of some of the finest looking BMW tuning packages but they have rather missed the mark on this one.

A discrete presence, lovely lines and a grown up interior; these are all things that didn’t really find their way into the Alpina B3 GT3.

That’s a bit of a shame, since the performance version of the 3 Series is now a lot more impressive, just as the video showcases.

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I’m talking about the Alpina B3 GT3 which is quite frankly the best kept secret of having a car that’s nearly as fast as the M3 yet isn’t a cliche.

I’ll be honest though, if you’re going to go for the proper Alpina feeling, you might want to lose the “boy racer” looks from the package and stick to what’s underneath and the wheels.

The spoiler is also a little too much but everything underneath is pretty much the best package you can get with the E92 BMW 3 Series.

Sure, you don’t get the impressive 4.0 liter V8 but a tuned version of the 3.0 liter straight six sounds much more pleasant in a BMW even if it has twin turbos.

Thanks to some Alpina work and an Akrapovic exhaust system that engine now develops 408 horsepower and 398 lb-ft of torque.

It makes for a bit less powerful powerplant than the M3 but you do get quite a bit more torque which makes the car a lot easier to live with under medium to low speed acceleration.

The interior of the Alpina B3 GT3 gets quite a lot of work done. The materials are upgraded to Alpina’s preference, the dials are blue and the trim is color coordinated to the exterior.

The most important changes of that equation are the Alcantara covered steering wheel and the newly fitted bucket seats make everything a lot more interesting.

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