Backthrust 2008: BMW vs Mercedes-Benz

M5 Touring, took first place with a time of 5.04 seconds and also did 230 km/h in 1 000 m.

With The Citizen Motoring’s usual operations put on hold due to the current national lockdown, performing our usual high performance road tests are simply not possible. However, we have every intention of keeping petrolheads and enthusiasts interested during these times and for this we require the reserve gear.

I have been sniffling through my archives and discovered some interesting numbers in his detailed records from the last 16 years. For some light entertainment and an interesting glimpse into how things have evolved over time, we have compiled a list of the Top 10 fastest cars – in terms of 0 to 100 km/h – for every year dating back to 2004. We are rolling these out over the course of the lockdown.

In 2008, BMW’S unicorn car, the V10-powered M5 Touring, took first place with a time of 5.04 seconds and also did 230 km/h in 1 000 m, which was the highest speed recorded over that distance for 2008. I remember this car fondly; it was wild, it sounded the part with that wailing naturally aspirated engine under the bonnet and you could cart all your whole family and their junk in comfort.

I use the word comfort tongue in cheek though, because my wife hated every moment in the M5 Touring – that temperamental but brutal SMG gearbox made for one of the jerkiest rides around town. Despite being a ‘’station wagon’’ this was not a family car in any way other than offering some extra space over the sedan.

Mercedes-Benz’s C63 AMG, with an equally special 6.2-litre naturally aspirated powerplant, came in second with a tyre-smoking 5.10 seconds. This AMG was quicker than BMW’s V8 M3 by 0.16 seconds and still ahead at 1 000 m in a straight line, but it could not go around corners. It was heavy, it under steered everywhere and its German rival would smack it on the track.

A bit of useless information, when you took the speed limiter off the two cars, the M3 would run 286 km/h and the AMG 300 km/h. My secret weapon, a 335i without its limiter, would do the same 286 km/h. This was also the same speed the previous year’s Audi R8 could run. Fun times were had with that 335i.

This was the start of the era when the entire world starting to chip those cars. The 335i’s sibling, the 135i Coupe, also with a manual transmission, snuck into a very impressive third place with a time of 5.22 seconds. As said before these ‘35i’ family of engines were about to change the game in terms of performance.

We also got to run our first and last Aston Martin this year, the V8 Vantage N400, at 5.74 seconds. It made all the right noises and looked the part back then, but under that shiny coat was a whole bunch of Ford family car DNA. It too was manual, now you know when I say back in those days, you had to pedal your car, no matter the price, to win a dice.

Seat’s Leon Cupra, which was better than Volswagen’s Golf’s GTI, ran a 7.15-second time and took the title of fastest hot hatch in 2008. This was also the year that Wolfsburg started to feel the consequences of bringing in the Seat brand above Volkswagen in terms of price.

Overseas, the Cupra was priced below the GTI and as such was a better value proposition at the time. Customers figured this out and walked out the showrooms and the Seat brand was sadly marched out of SA not too long after that. The only challenge to the Leon Cupra was Volvo’s quirky C30 T5 R-Design that ran a 7.52 seconds.

The likes of Ford’s Fiesta ST did 9.40 seconds and Fiat’s Bravo T-Jet a 9.82-second run. Each and every one of them still running manual transmissions, as automatics were still considered the choice of old men.

Mark Jones is The Citizen Motoring’s Road Test Editor. All his data has been obtained up on the Reef using the world recognised test facility of Gerotek, located West of Pretoria. He has always followed the same test procedure and makes use of the world standard in road test data equipment Racelogic VBOX.

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