Last week BMW spilled the beans on its upcoming M240i Coupe, and now rumours are starting to emerge about the M2 performance flagship.
According to BMW Blog, the upcoming BMW M2 is likely to be the last non-hybrid product that the M division produces, and according to one of its European contributors the vehicle will continue to offer the option of a manual gearbox, while the current seven-speed dual-clutch automated gearbox option will make way for the eight-speed torque converter auto box that has become the default in modern BMWs.
BMW Blog also reports that the new M2 is expected to produce around 335 kW, which would be a 33 kW improvement over the current M2 Competition and just 18 kW shy of the standard M4. Maximum torque, however, is likely to remain around the 550 kW mark.
Given that the new M240i will be an all-wheel drive model, it’s quite possible that the BMW M2 will offer this configuration too, with a selectable rear-wheel drive drift mode. However, given that RWD is still the standard configuration in the latest M3 and M4, there’s also a very decent chance that BMW will stick to the purist path.
BMW of course hasn’t confirmed any of the details regarding its next M2, but last week the Bavaraian carmaker did release a stack of information on the M240i Coupe model. The company has confirmed that the M240i will have xDrive all-wheel drive, and an output of 275 kW, which is a 25 kW gain over today’s car. BMW says the model’s AWD system will have a rearward bias to ensure “hallmark BMW driving pleasure in conjunction with a power distribution that adapts perfectly to adverse road and weather conditions”. The M240i Coupe will also ship with an M Sports differential, with a fully variable locking effect.
BMW says that the new 2 Series Coupe will go into production around the third quarter of this year. No timelines for the BMW M2 have been mentioned, but early next year is probably a good bet.
