The new BMW M2 is almost here and early impressions have been gathered, just not via conventional means. Welcome to M Mixed Reality...
On sale Summer 2023 | Price from £61,495
Although winning an Oscar must be a euphoric moment, there has to be a point where you ask yourself, what now? Well, one option is to accept that your career has peaked; the other is to try and further your success. The new BMW M2 embodies the latter choice, because it’s an attempt to improve on the highly revered original.
Not only that, but it’s also the final purely combustion-powered car that BMW’s M performance division will ever build. As such, it marks the end of an era, so (needless to say) it’s a highly anticipated sports car. And we’ve been for an early drive – albeit with a twist.
You see, we didn’t drive the new M2 on public roads, but a digital track mapped out on an airfield in Munich. The system is called M Mixed Reality and, in essence, it consists of physically driving an M2 – just while looking at a virtual environment. This is courtesy of a sci-fi-esque headset (pictured).
Produced by BMW and video game developer Epic Games, the technology recognises all movements of the M2, essentially turning it into your gaming controller. It isn’t something that you’ll see on sale imminently, but BMW is looking at improving the tech so that there’s no need for a headset; the resulting augmented reality car windows could potentially alert you to hazards or make it easier to follow sat-nav instructions.
What’s it like to drive?
Let’s forget about the technology for now, though, given that it won’t be included on the M2. What’s the car itself like?
Well, the steering is a particular highlight, feeling precise, consistent and well weighted. As a result, you quickly feel confident tackling corners at speed (even when they’re virtual).
In addition, you need only nudge the accelerator to realise that there’s immense performance potential. This is courtesy of a 3.0-litre straight-six engine (a version of the unit in the BMW M3 and BMW M4), which produces 454bhp. That’s even more than you got in the old M2 CS.
We tried the new car with the optional eight-speed automatic gearbox, which offers shifts that are punchy but not so aggressive that they make progress jerky. Indeed, they help cut the 0-62mph time from 4.1sec compared with the manual car’s 4.3sec.
Compared with the previous model, the new M2 is larger and heavier; in fact it’s just as wide as the longer M4. This enhances stability, as does a lightweight carbon fibre roof that lowers the car’s centre of gravity. But while the M2 stays impressively flat through bends, we’ll need more time with it to see if there’s a penalty to pay in terms of agility.
What’s it like inside?
Holding you in place through corners are sports seats that are aggressively bolstered, without being uncomfortable.
The interior also gets twin displays for both the driver’s display and infotainment screen. And while it’s a shame that these aren’t better integrated into the dashboard – they look tacked on – they do appear crisp and clear, even through the lenses of mixed reality goggles.
What also looked crisp and clear was the digital track’s dry Tarmac; a noticeable contrast with the real-world, wet conditions. This did result in the front end of the car sliding at times due to us entering corners too quickly for the conditions; BMW is exploring the possibility of different, virtual weather that matches whatever the reality is.
Our verdict
When the new BMW M2 goes on sale, it will cost from £61,495. That’s around £20,000 less than the M4 Competition and nearly £10,000 cheaper than our reigning Sports Car of the Year, the Porsche 718 Cayman GTS 4.0.
It’s also considerably more practical than the Cayman, with two extra seats and a much bigger boot, although hot hatches such as the Audi RS3 and Mercedes-AMG A45 are more practical and cheaper again.
So, is the new M2 worth waiting for? Well, it certainly has a lot of potential. As, indeed, does M Mixed Reality.
Keyword: New BMW M2 driven