2014 BMW M3/M4 First Ride

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BMW has finally pulled back the curtain a bit farther on the M3 sedan and M4 coupe, revealing a tantalizing amount of technical detail during a "second look/first ride" event held near the vehicle's birthplace outside Munich. We'll spare the suspense and let you know that corralled within the aluminum hood and front fenders lies an all-new, 3027cc twin-turbo inline-six that BMW promises will provide the instantaneous throttle response, linear power delivery, and stirring engine note of a high-revving naturally aspirated engine, and the stout, broad-as-Ayers-Rock torque curve of a turbo. And yes, it's an all-new engine, with an 89.6mm bore and 80.0mm stroke (the 335i measures 84.0 x 89.6, for 2979cc) that we're told will produce somewhere in the neighborhood of 430 hp and 370 lb-ft of torque. That's 25 percent more torque with a claimed 25 percent less fuel consumption (see our Engine Deep Dive below for more). A choice of six-speed manual (with automatic rev-matching in Sport, but not Sport Plus mode) or seven-speed M Double Clutch Transmission (using the M5/M6's taller gearing) will route all that furious twist to the rear wheels.

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Relative to previous M3s, this new F80/F82 generation of M3/M4 sedan and coupe vary more from their cooking-grade siblings than ever before; the fifth-generation M3 is the first to weigh less than its predecessor, though don't hold your breath for that 1500 kg (3300 lb) figure, as that's a European dry weight, and U.S. cars are always of higher specification. Where did the weight go? Milligrams here, there, and everywhere (see Weight Loss Program below). Aerodynamic improvements include air-curtains (inlets in the outboard edges of the fascia that route air past the front tires), fender gills to relieve pressure that builds up in the front wheelhouses, underbody trays, the shape of the rear silencer, and the coupe's decklid spoiler.

The BMW M3/M4's entire suspension is different, with most pickup-points moved slightly to change the geometry. The front engine and suspension carrier is now made of aluminum and includes extra mounting points to improve rigidity and reduce weight. The steel rear carrier is rigidly bolted to the chassis instead of using rubber isolation like the 335i and previous M3. This improves lateral wheel control significantly enough to accommodate wider tires (our test-ride cars wore 255/35R19s in front, 275/35R19s out back) without fear of them rubbing during hard cornering.

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Speaking of cornering, you'll be ordering that up via electric power steering. But fear not, we're assured, the team has sweated the road-feel details like never before. Exhaustive testing of zillions of combinations of racks, ratios, electric motors and rack "transmissions." The end result is a unique rack using the 5 Series' transmission with a smaller electric motor that's quicker to rev. And to keep the steering feel pure, the EPS motor does one thing and one thing only: Helps you dial in exactly as much steering as you wish. It never assists with quotidian tasks like lane centering or returning the wheel to straight ahead after a turn. Nor will it ever counter-steer for you at the stability-control system's behest. And while the rack ratio is still variable, the wildly variable Active Steering will not be offered. The engineer tasked with tuning the new M3/4 steering set the E92 (fourth-gen) M3's hydraulic-assist rack as his personal benchmark. I look forward with guarded optimism to discovering how close he came.

M Carbon Ceramic Brakes introduced on the M5/M6 become available on the M3/M4 as well, forcing the 19-inch wheel option (18s are believed to be standard, though this wasn't officially confirmed). They're clamped by six-piston front and four-piston rear calipers, while base steel brakes get four piston calipers at all four corners. The M5/M6's electromechanical Active M Differential trickles down to the 3/4, bringing with it the capability of variable locking from 0 to 100 percent, as conditions and driver expectations dictate. The aluminum differential case is isolated from the rear suspension carrier by six rubber mounts, and features inch-deep fins for cooling, so as to avoid another heat-exchanger.

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For a tiny taste of how the new BMW M4 will feel, I climbed in for a taxi lap with Brazilian-born BMW DTM racer Augusto Farfus at the helm for two laps of a road course laid out on the former runways and taxiways of the shuttered Flugplatz Fürstenfeldbruck airbase that now serves as home to the BMW Driving Academy in Maisach. As we charged off toward the circuit, I can sense a seamless surge of power all the way through first gear to 7500 rpm, and the engine note is quite racy indeed, the tone a warm bass/baritone that is punctuated by an occasional brrrapp when shifting quickly. Farfus describes the car as feeling completely different from the old one, with the biggest difference being a noticeably lighter front axle that's more willing to turn in. He also noted that when cruising along, folks won't have to work the transmission as much because there's so much more grunt available for passing and accelerating at highway speeds. The carbon-ceramic brakes threaten to detach my retinas, and the car zig-zags through a slalom with very minimal roll. And then, in the blink of an eye, we're parked again with the red-hot exhaust ticking as it cools.

The BMW M3 and M4 will launch simultaneously in mid-June 2014, so we'll have to wait several more months to sample this latest icon from the M folks at Preusenstrasse 45, Munich. We expect to be mightily impressed.

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• Aluminum closed-deck design for strength
• Liner-less cylinders have an LDS coating ("Lichtbogendrahtspritzen" is a twin-wire arc spraying process that deposits molten iron on the aluminum walls)
• Magnesium oil sump is optimized for high-g lubrication with double-flow recirculation pumps, and suction pumps to pull oil from the turbochargers
• Crankshaft, rods, and pistons all weight-optimized for high-revving
• Direct injection
• High-speed Valvetronic variable timing and lift reduces pumping losses
• Two small single-scroll turbos are positioned closely enough to their cylinders to enjoy impulse charging. Each is powered by three cylinders, but boost pressure mixes, is shared amongst all. Peak boost is 18.1 psi, but on a normal, cool, sea-level day they require less to develop full power/torque. That peak boost is only required in hot weather or at elevation. This means it will be easy for tuners to just always make bigger boost, raise output, and reduce durability.
• An air-to-water intercooler utilizes a separate "cold" (85-95-degree) circuit with its own electric water pump.
• Engine cooling is provided by a mechanical pump, but an auxiliary electric pump can keep the coolant circulating when shutting down after a hot run.
• 8 heat exchangers! The intercooler gets a big radiator out in front, and a small one in the right outboard fascia opening; the AC condenser is behind it, the main engine radiator is behind that, with a second radiator in the left outboard fascia opening; the DCT transmission gets a cooler below the cold-water one, and an engine oil cooler is below that, positioned horizontally where air passes down to flow under the car. The eighth one is an oil warmer in the transmission.
• Low-back-pressure exhaust features close-coupled oval-shaped catalysts with metal substrate (less restrictive than ceramic). A second set of cats guarantee emissions durability (tuners will likely remove these). Farther back is a central silencer, and the main silencer at the rear features exhaust valves ahead of the silencer. When closed, flow is forced into and laterally across the silencer; when open, flow is more directly through the narrow part of the silencer. As a result, exhaust always exits all four outlets. Active sound enhancement will be provided as well.

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BMW M's target was the E92 (fouth-gen) M3's weight. We don't yet have official weight estimates for the U.S.-spec M3, but our last E92 M3 coupe weighed 3576 lbs.

• Engine weight savings (fewer cylinders, magnesium sump) add up to 10 kg (22 lbs)
• Aluminum hood and fenders
• Forged aluminum suspension links and front carrier
• Unique coupe decklid features a sheet-molded carbon-fiber inner structure sheathed in low-density sheet-molding compound plastic. It is the first such panel in production to be painted on the normal body paint line. It also incorporates a more prominent aerodynamic spoiler to reduce drag and balance lift (the sedan doesn't need this lift compensation, so it uses the stock decklid). Weight savings: 5.5 kg (12 lbs)
• Carbon fiber roof (first time offered on the sedan) incorporates a carbon-fiber and aluminum hybrid roof bow. Weight savings: 5 kg sedan, 6.5 kg coupe (11/14 lbs)
• Carbon fiber prop shaft eliminates the need for a center bearing, allows for lighter steel inserts at either end for a total of 5 kg (11 lbs)
• Transmissions, seats, doors, and forged wheels are all slightly lighter

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