Alpina B3 GT Touring 2025 review – a 190mph alternative to the BMW M3 Touring
A swansong for Alpina’s hot 3-series lineup, the B3 GT Touring is a fine and unique alternative to the very best fast estates
While its closest rivals have floundered in recent years, BMW M has been on a roll. The M2, M3 and M5 have all proven to be excellent driver’s cars despite increasing pressure on the segment, making them a common sight on our roads. Should they be too common for your liking though, Alpina has always been the first place to turn, and now it’s created a direct alternative to the ever-popular M3 Touring with the B3 GT.
On first impressions, this is an entirely different proposition to an M3 Touring. Granted, it’s a tuned 3-series estate, but gone are the M3’s imposing swollen arches and full height kidney grilles, with an ordinary narrowbody shell in its place. Finished in Porsche Brewster Green (a £4260 option) and with GT-specific gold detailing, 20-inch wheels and decals, this particular example does look the part, but to the untrained eye there’s no immediate tell as to the performance at play.
> The 186mph BMW M3 CS Touring is the ultimate fast estate
We’ve spent plenty of time with the ordinary Alpina B3, so what’s new here? They’re easy to miss at first glance, but the GT gains subtle aero devices all-round, with front canards, a more pronounced splitter and a new rear diffuser all contributing to a boost in visual purpose. Lift the bonnet and bespoke Alpina strut braces are front and centre, proudly finished in the same GT-specific Oro Tecnico gold shade as the wheels, badging and decals. They also happen to frame the most significant component in the B3 GT’s armoury.
Engine, gearbox and 0-62 time
It might have the same body-in-white as a 320i, but Alpina has shoehorned the M3’s full-fat S58 straight-six into its engine bay. Unlike the ordinary B3, the GT’s output is no lower than its M relative at 522bhp, and given Alpina’s focus on long-distance comfort and autobahn performance, it actually produces more torque. The current M3 (even in hardcore CS spec) makes do with 479lb ft, while the B3 GT pushes pulling power to an Aventador Ultimae-beating 538lb ft. Don’t expect great economy, with an average mpg readout in the mid-20s likely on a mixed drive – at the very best you can nudge 30mpg on a long run.
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Thumb the start/stop button (now with Alpina blue backlighting) and the S58 fires into life, but it’s a relatively subdued affair. Despite its increased focus and M3-beating numbers, it goes without the overbearing synthetic cabin sound we’ve come to expect from fast BMWs, with the aural experience much more authentic.
Roll into its endless torque reserves and the B3 GT hauls up to pace without a second thought, the gearbox rarely feeling the need to downshift at part throttle. Foot flat and it’s relentless, as while first to third gear are quick, pull takes a significant step up in fourth, climbing further from there with an urgency that makes its 190mph top speed feel well within reach – it’s within this window that the GT’s additional performance really makes itself known, and does make you doubt the accuracy of that 522bhp power figure (the Alpina B5 GT has been found to produce significantly more power than quoted, perhaps a political move to keep numbers just shy of its M equivalent).
Interior and tech
The cabin exudes more of the same old school authenticity as its powertrain, with the very best leather applied to almost every surface (this car has the £1450 Nappa leather-adorned instrument panel), bucket seats swapped for more conventional items, and tasteful Alpina branding throughout – a central plaque denoting the car’s special edition status, neat Alpina roundels integrated into the carbonfibre trim and even Alpina branding on the floor mats are a nice touch. Elements such as the modified digital dash design are also charming, with the Alpina colour scheme and font bringing it in-line with the rest of the package.
As much leather as you can throw at it, though, there’s no escaping its basic 3-series beginnings. The cold-touch Alpina paddles (also finished in gold) are highly satisfying to use and are a fantastic way to lift the feel of the cabin, with the driving position also much improved, but if you’re not keen on the 3-series layout, infotainment and build quality, Alpina can’t do anything to change that – even in uprated Harman Kardon-form, the sound system lacks the edge you’d expect too.
The B3 GT features a rear-biased, variable all-wheel drive system just like the M3 Touring, but if you’d like to configure the system to your preferred setup at the touch of a button, you’re out of luck. Being based on a standard 3-series comes with its drawbacks, with the M3’s M1 and M2 steering wheel buttons absent from the Alpina. While this will be a non-issue for some, being able to drop all of your favourite settings under one button is something we find especially convenient in cars with such vast configurability.
Ride and handling
Choose your preferred drive settings (of which there are fewer in the B3 GT, admittedly), set off, and on the mottled, cratered roads around Alpina’s UK headquarters, those skinny 30-profile Pirellis make themselves known. Combined with the tweaks made to the GT’s chassis, the worst of our roads aren’t a great match for this super estate as far as ride comfort is concerned, with those (presumably hideously expensive) 20-inch wheels feeling awfully precarious. Find a proper road though, and things improve.
Despite the Alpina stereotype, ride isn’t immediately more supple than an M3, but the way the steering and chassis respond to inputs is undoubtedly more in-line with the firm’s GT focus. Where most cars with this level of performance are pointy and constantly on their toes, the GT is more rounded, but does so without losing the front end confidence that makes its M sibling so well revered – feel is lacking, but the way in which the car responds to inputs gives you more than enough information to place it accurately. If only the steering wheel wasn’t the girth of a coke can…
On the right B-road, ride only improves with pace, with expertly judged spring and damper rates perfectly suited for carrying speed on trickier roads. Grip is high, even on a chilly winter’s day and on relatively modest 265-rear, 255-front tyres, but given the power under your right foot it will gladly rotate when required, giving you plenty of feedback through the seat to keep things in check.
Given the speeds it can achieve, it’s a good thing brakes have been given some attention. Specific perforated discs, unique pads and branded calipers look the part with Alpina lettering stamped into the hub, but they also perform. The pedal has strong response from the very top, and while others fail to retain this feel throughout the range of motion, this system is wonderfully linear with plenty of power for the job.
It might have more power than the standard B3, a more focussed chassis and canards fixed to the front end, but when you’re not looking to shave time off that ETA it absorbs miles like not much else. Like most of the Alpina range, there’s a Comfort Plus mode which slackens every configurable element to offer the most relaxed drive possible, and it does it well. The B3 GT retains its tight, purposeful feel no matter the mode, but it’s more than capable of being a true ‘GT’ should you need it to be. The transmission is smooth and unintrusive at everyday speeds, with the lack of synthetic exhaust sounds making it much more refined than an M3.
Price and rivals
Direct rivals are virtually non-existent beyond the BMW M3 Touring, which now starts from £89,435 in its new facelifted form, just a hair under the Alpina’s £92,740 starting price (£1100 more than the saloon). It’s easy enough to pile on the options despite its range-topping status though, with the likes of full Merino leather a £3800 option, the panoramic sunroof £1550 and Driving Assistant Professional package £2000.
With over £15,000 worth of these extras, our £105,315 test car is not cheap, but while the B3 GT isn’t technically limited by number like its B5 relative, you’re unlikely to see another one on the road. Given Alpina’s uncertain future, this could just be one of its finest, and final ever creations.
Alpina B3 GT specs
| Engine | 3-litre twin-turbocharged S58 straight-six |
| Power | 522bhp |
| Torque | 538lb ft |
| 0-62mph | 3.5sec |
| Top speed | 190mph |
| Weight | 1945kg |
| Power-to-weight | 268bhp/ton |
| Price | £92,740 |
