I'm starting to think this was better than the M3 GTR which had the V8. For one, the street-legal M3 GTR was barely any more powerful than the CSL, and second, only a VERY FEW units were built (referring to the GTR and not the CSL) and none were ever instrumentally tested.
The CSL could even hang with SUPERCARS of its day, and I'M TALKING ABOUT SUPERCARS. This car was MUCH cheaper than the Mercedes CLK DTM, with MUCH better handling, EVEN with three-quarters of the AMG-based car's power.
It was only half a notch down from competing with Ferrari 360CS, Chevy Corvette C5 Z06, Dodge Viper GTS ACR, and Porsche 996.2 GT3RS.
The funny thing was, the CLK-Class was the 3 Series coupe and convertible's direct competitor!
SAME HOLDS TRUE TODAY with the M3 GTS, the previous M4 CS/GTS, and the current M4 CSL!