The point missed here is "time period". In 1988, this car was the bomb
The cars of the period were not near what the BMW ///M car experience was. American cars were for the most part crap. The imports were all about fuel efficiency, and the euros seem to be perfecting this world class driving experience.Now, these late '80s ///M cars are crude by comparison to the modern car, were it's much easier to deliever a much more refined high performance driving experience from cars that are 1/2 the cost. Essentially, technology has rendered cars like the first gen ///M3 relics of a long gone era.
RussC