Entrance-wheel drive would possibly work in the present day for many small BMWs, however when it got here to the spirited 1 Sequence Coupe, it was a nonstarter. The unique E82 two-door coupe, together with its convertible sibling, the E88, was outlined by the old-school thrills of rear-wheel drive. This setup made the automobile an outlier in its section, providing driving dynamics that harkened again to BMW’s roots. On the high quality was the firecracker 1 Sequence M Coupe, a automobile that we personally cherish, and personal. The limited-run marvel (6,309 items) packed 335 horsepower from the N54 TwinTurbo into its compact body. Recognized affectionately because the 1M, it grew to become an immediate cult basic, promoting double the anticipated numbers and leaving fans clamoring for extra.
Naturally, changing the 1M and its rear-wheel-drive ethos posed a singular problem for BMW. Across the center of the earlier decade, BMW was planning on pivoting the 1 Sequence vary to a front-wheel drive household of automobiles, a transfer pushed largely by price effectivity. However for 2 (former) key executives—Klaus Fröhlich, Board Member for Analysis, and Ian Robertson, Board Member for Gross sales and Advertising—such a departure for the 1 Sequence Coupe’s successor was unthinkable. This wasn’t simply one other small automobile; it was a halo mannequin for BMW’s efficiency credentials and an entry level for future M automobile homeowners.
The Case for a Rear-Wheel-Drive Insurgent
“The previous 2002 was actually cool—the height of BMW-ness in some methods,” Robertson displays within the Steve Saxty’s “BMW by Design” books summing up the inspiration behind what he and Fröhlich needed to attain. The 2002 Turbo, launched in 1973, had been a uncooked and quirky sports activities automobile that no different model, besides maybe Alfa Romeo, dared to construct on the time. It represented all the pieces BMW stood for: daring efficiency, compact proportions, and rear-wheel-drive thrills. The pair envisioned a contemporary interpretation of that system.
For the brand new automobile to be a real BMW M product, it wanted a six-cylinder engine and rear-wheel drive, no compromises. Some inside BMW recommended all-wheel drive (humorous sufficient that is coming in 2026) and even front-wheel drive, citing the broader platform technique. However Fröhlich and Robertson had been adamant: a front-wheel-drive M automobile was sacrilege, and something lower than a six-cylinder motor wouldn’t carry the legacy ahead. They pushed arduous, finally gaining approval for a automobile that will turn into the F87 M2, constructed on a cut-down model of the three Sequence platform, very similar to the 2002 was derived from the Neue Klasse structure.
A Minimize-Down M4 and a Discount Halo
Saxys tells in his books that BMW’s engineers borrowed liberally from the F80 M3 and F82 M4, giving the M2 a strengthened chassis, uprated suspension, and a performance-oriented rear axle. The outcome was a automobile that felt each bit as partaking as its bigger siblings however in a tighter, nimbler package deal. Initially, there was no M engine for it, identical to the 1M’s. So the M model went to the subsequent neatest thing they’d: the three.0 liter six-cylinder N55 TwinScroll engine. It made 365 horsepower and was provided with a DCT and a six-speed guide.
The F87 M2 Competitors mannequin got here two years later in 2018 that includes below the hood the turbocharged S55 inline-six engine, detuned from its utility within the F80 M3 and F82 M4. It now made 405 horsepower. For purists, this F87 M2 Competitors was the automobile to have. The M2 Competitors would now function the head of the two Sequence lineup, with its efficiency credentials filtering right down to the extra attainable four-or-six cylinder fashions, and it will lure in youthful consumers who dreamed of at some point proudly owning an M3 or M4.
A Small Automobile with Large Affect
Whereas the F87 M2’s major mission was to function a non secular successor to the 1M and 2002 Turbo, it additionally had a broader impression on BMW’s lineup. Its improvement paved the best way for the two Sequence Gran Coupe, the small four-door sedan (now in its second era) aimed squarely on the Mercedes CLA-Class. But, there’s one dream that stay unrealized: the 2002 Turbo Hommage. BMW deliberate on construct this stunning 2002 with F87 M2 influences, however the quick timeline between mannequin adjustments put the dream on a shelf someplace in Munich.
As an alternative, the F87 M2 laid the inspiration for the G87 M2, a automobile that elevates efficiency to new heights whereas sparking even larger debate with its polarizing design.
