You have probably heard the saying that you should never meet your heroes. Heroes are important in our lives, because they help to inspire us to be better than we already are. Why, you might wonder, would you avoid meeting your heroes? Well, the reason why you should avoid meeting your heroes, is that nobody is perfect. Everyone has problems that they have to deal with, and if you meet your hero, you might be disappointed by their imperfections. If you have read some of my posts about BMW, you are familiar with my affinity for small, six-cylinder coupes. I recently had the opportunity to drive what has to be the best production six-cylinder coupes to date. I got to drive a 2016 BMW M2.
What Is A BMW M2?
The BMW M2 has a rich history that has lead up to what the car has become today. In order to fully understand the excitement around a BMW M car, it is important to understand a little history. In other words, this next segment is brought to you by BMW, automobile racing, and the letter M.
The Origins Of BMW Sports Cars
BMW is now known for its automobiles, but in its origins it was known for making aircraft engines in Germany. They produced their first straight-six cylinder engined car in 1933 and called it the 303. While the 303 was a family car with a focus on luxury, by 1934 BMW was already producing their first sports coupe seen above. This was the 315/1 and was sleeker and lighter. Compared to todays sports cars, like the BMW M2, the 315/1 made much less power, and had far fewer comforts. In spite of all the differences, BMW has a long history of taking a regular family car and turning it into a race car.
Automobile Racing And Car Sales
Most people are familiar with automobile racing today like NASCAR, Formula 1, and the World Rally Championship. There is a lot of money in automobile racing these days, but how many of you were thinking about who won the last race when you bought your last car? The highest selling cars today are the simplest, the utilitarian, and the work vehicles. For that reason, it is no wonder that automotive companies today, like Toyota, are focused on fuel efficiency, safety, and entertainment features.
Decades ago, though, the automotive market was very different. There were no Toyota Camry’s or Dodge Grand Caravans, and cars were more of a luxury. As primitive as cars were, most people wanted to know which one was faster, and so racing was an important part of your marketing strategy. Companies like Ferrari only cared about racing and burdened themselves to produce cars for sale only so that it would fund their racing efforts.
BMW M Division
BMW’s M (motorsport) division was founded in 1972 with a small handful of employees with the sole purpose of producing race cars. This was following some great success of BMW race cars in the 1960’s. It wasn’t until 1978 that BMW started producing M cars for public purchase and this began with the M1. While the BMW M3 was not the first M car on the scene, it is probably the most popular. As seen above, the first M3 was a coupe built on the popular e30 platform. It had subtly flared fenders and shared many parts with the Group A Touring race car.
The Modern BMW M2
One thing is very clear for anyone that looks at the performance statistics for BMW’s lineup of M cars. And that is that the different cars are more about market segments than specific racing classes today. For many years, the M3 has brought up the smallest segment of this lineup. Since the advent of the 2-series in 2015 which means that the 3-series no longer has to be a coupe and a sedan, it wouldn’t be long before we got an M series coupe, the M2.
The Powerplant Of The F87 (BMW M2)
The M2 is powered by BMW’s N55 engine: a 3.0 liter straight six engine with a twin-scroll turbo charger. Compared with the previous generation found in the BMW e92 335, the N55 has a twin-scroll or turbo instead of two separate turbos. This sort of turbo has two separate plenums on the input turbine. Thereby giving you the advantage of grouping the cylinders ideally for exhaust pulses while having both groups on the same shaft. This does great things for reducing perceived lag on power delivery. The N55 is also equipped with dual VANOS (variable valve lift on intake and exhaust), which helps optimize the air flow through the valves at any RPM.
M2 Upgrades Over The Base 2-Series
Compared with the base 2-series coupe or even the M240, the M2 has several performance upgrades that allow for better track usage. The cooling system of the M2 is larger to allow you to drive harder for longer. Along the same lines, the brakes are larger with more pistons to allow for harder braking and better brake cooling. The wheels are an inch wider, which gives the M2 better grip for spirited driving. But wait, there’s more, the M2 is equipped with an M series active differential and 6-speed manual gearbox. And if you aren’t 3rd pedal inclined, the optional dual clutch semi-automatic transmission actually makes the car faster.
My Drive Of The BMW M2
I want to preface my review of my driving experience with a little about myself. I have never owned an M spec BMW, and I have never driven one before this. This being said, I have driven a few fast cars in my time, though, like a 1985 Chevy Monte Carlo SS. I even had the privilege of riding in a 2016 Shelby GT350, which boasts over 500 naturally aspirated horses. The M2 is owned by one of my coworkers. Thinking about how it seems that new sports cars all have over 500hp, I asked my friend a question. “Do you feel like your M2 is underpowered with only 365hp?” My friend smiled and said “Let’s go for a drive.”
Let’s Go For A Drive
It was a cold morning, so I gave the car a few minutes of easy driving to let the oil warm up. For all of the performance focus of this vehicle, it felt refined and composed. One of my common complaints about performance vehicles is how harsh they can be. The seats of the M2 are comfortable and the ride is well balanced. The suspension allows you to feel the contours of the road without having a chiropractor on speed dial. Not being familiar with the driving characteristics, and with cold tires, I left the traction control on. The last thing I want to do, after all, is to wreck my friends M2. With no one in front of me and the engine warmed up I dropped the clutch and gave it full throttle.
Does The BMW M2 Have Enough Power?
As soon as I laid in to the gas pedal that first time, I understood why my friend smiled. The surge of power was fast and smooth. There was no wait for the turbo to kick in or for the engine to roll onto the cam. The N55 didn’t feel like any other turbocharged engine I have experienced. Variable valve lift and the overboost features of the engine meant that there was usable power across the entire RPM range. The power delivery was so smooth that after a couple pulls I was beginning to wonder if the car had enough power to drift. It didn’t seem like the traction control was interfering at all. When my friend took the wheel, he turned off the traction control and showed me that the car could definitely go sideways.
Will It Handle The Bendy Bits?
Changing directions in a car is the great equalizer. It is the reason why the Mazda MX-5/Miata can be considered one of the best drivers cars. Making an engine more powerful is easy compared with managing the geometry and load balancing of your suspension. The quality of acar’s suspension is also what gives the driver the confidence to power through turns. The BMW M2 definitely shined for me in this regard. While I’m no Randy Pobst, I have been known to bomb down the occasional mountain road. I was very pleased with the turn-in of the M2. The steering was responsive and the tires could handle more lateral g’s than I was comfortable with.
Overall Impressions
The 2016 BMW M2 is a driver’s car for the ages. With all of the creature comforts it has to offer you could daily drive this car without a single regret. Then when you’re off the clock and looking to have some fun, the M2 has enough power and composure for any weekend warrior. When it comes down to it, I really think there is only one thing missing from this package. If you buy a BMW M2, you will be hard pressed to find a way to improve it. And if you can’t modify it, can you really have the same pride knowing you didn’t build it yourself? I may never own an M2, but having driven one, having met one of my heroes, I now know better what I want.