$170k BMW M3 Competition tested for Australian police duties

Once upon a time, having a fast car in the hands of police officers was the only way crooks in hotted-up vehicles would be caught red-handed, but thanks to new technology, those days are long gone. 

Despite this, Australian police are finding it hard to let go of these performance machines, and the most recent test subject pushes this point to new heights. 

The car in question in BMW's somewhat controversial new M3 Competition, the one with the nose that not everyone loves. But it seems that everyone is sold on the performance. 

Beneath the bonnet sits a twin-turbo 3.0-litre straight-six engine that makes over 370kW. This is sent exclusively to the rear wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission, and it'll hit 100km/h in less than four seconds. 

Interestingly, the test subject was a rear-wheel drive model, which is strange considering BMW's xDrive all-wheel drive model is only a matter of months away. It's somewhat obvious that this one will likely be a little safer.

Testing for a pursuit role, the crim likely wouldn't have much of a chance on dry tarmac, but as soon as things get moist, this 3-Series loves to swing its tail around, and Andrew and Sam demonstrate here. 

It's likely that BMW M3 Competition will be used as more of a promotional vehicle than anything, which is a similar sort of scenario that happened with the M5 Competition that was unveiled a couple of years back. 

While we doubt we'll ever see such a performance car among the New Zealand Police Force, it looks likely that the Skoda Superb PHEV models should be introduced at some point.