Reviewed: BMW M4 Competition coupe
The car starts from $172,900 and is built as a daily drive and for track days.
What better way to make an impression on International Women Drivers’ Day than in a BMW M4 Competition coupe resplendent in San Paulo Yellow.
Thursday June 24 was chosen to celebrate women drivers as it was the date three years ago that the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia was lifted.
The day also recognises that women influence more than 80% of car purchases in advanced countries.
The Women's World Car of the Year organisation created the June 24 and it says that females will influence more car purchases in the coming years because “the percentage of young women university students is already higher in developed countries”.
“Wage parity is starting to be an achievable goal, Boards of Directors are no longer exclusively male and in the lists of the richest people in the world, it is not unusual to see more and more women’s names,” said Marta García, Executive President of WWCOTY.
To recognise the day we started early with a photoshoot of the BMW M4 Competition and to make the most of the colour, Andrei Diomidov decided on a sunrise location, Eastern Beach.
And you can see for yourself the outstanding results (left).
On the subject of the colour, San Paulo Yellow, it was a head-turner for sure. Some of them were puzzled head turns, and others admiring glances. One of my neighbour’s nicknamed it Chernobyl Yellow. How rude! I know it was in jest but it shows Kiwis’ love for conservative coloured cars, such as grey.
But there is a growing demand for non-traditional hues for our vehicles, plus as a hero colour, the M4 Competition’s job is to draw attention to the brand.
Plus BMW says that its M4 buyers are what it calls ‘extroverts’. Hence the hue, and the portrait grille – that I think works so well with the coupe. I loved the grille when it was introduced on the 4 Series, and in the M4 Competition matched with colour it really stood out. Add the bulging bonnet that gives it a dynamic appearance and you’re in for fun.
The M4 Competition starts from $172,900 with our model priced at $191,400.
The M4 Competition coupe and its sedan sibling, the M3 Competition, were launched in New Zealand at the start of quarter two.
The sixth-generation high-performance vehicles from BMW M feature all-new motorsport-inspired platform, power and styling.
Both vehicles are powered by a 3-litre, six-cylinder in-line engine with M TwinPower Turbo technology that produces 475kW of power and 650Nm of torque.
The M4 Competition Coupe goes from 0–100km/h in 3.9 seconds.
They go from 0 – 100km/h in 3.9 seconds and from 0-200kms/h in 12.5 seconds.
All of that power is channeled to the rear axle through a ZF-sourced eight-speed automatic transmission.
The latter replaces the dual-clutch automatic of the previous generation, laying the groundwork for the all-wheel-drive versions that will be launched later this year.
The M4 Competition coupe also has the new portrait grille.
When they were launched, Karol Abrasowicz-Madej, Managing Director of BMW New Zealand, said, BMW M fans in New Zealand have been “waiting with eager anticipation for these models to reach our shores”.
“Deeply rooted in motorsport, the BMW M3 and M4 Competition are prime examples of the technology transfer from racing to series production and the Competition variant will deliver the highest levels of performance,” he said.
The M4 Competition starts from $172,900 and is built as a daily drive and for track days. My press model had the option of M Carbon bucket seats and M Carbon Exterior Package, adding $18,500 to the price tag.
It has the option of M Carbon bucket seats that are great for the track, just not short people.
Sure, the bucket seats would be great on the track as they hold you snug and keep in the correct seating position. But unless you’re tall and lanky then you probably wouldn’t add them to your car.
Unfortunately for a shorty like me, it meant I had to lower and push the seat back whenever I tried to exit the car as the side carbon rim of the seat was quite high. But hey, exit isn’t as tricky as the BMW i8 coupe that required an almost forward roll to exit over its sill!
The cool part about the seats though is an illuminated M4 logo.
The M4 Competition coupe’s optional bucket seats had a illuminated badge.
While we’re on the interior, the M4 Competition retains a lot of features from the 4 Series including the high-set centre console, buttons to activate such functions as the radio, plus a dial to control the console.
The steering wheel is also similar to the standard 4 Series coupe, with advanced driving functions on the wheel. But it also has the M1 and M2 buttons on it to enable assertive driving, especially on the track.
The Siri-like voice-activated assistant, “Hi BMW” is more adept at understanding the Kiwi accent and functions straight away via a visual aid microphone on the head-up display, rather than you having to wait for it to say, “how can I help you?”.
It has a healthy roar when the M4 Competition starts, but has artificial exhaust sound.
The powertrain, chassis, steering, and brake can be adjusted in multifarious ways, and the instrument cluster offers different display options.
It fires up with a healthy roar which is an artificial enhancement thanks in part to the sports exhaust button. But it’s all part of the fun of the M4. I did turn off the sports exhaust button when I left my home before sunrise as to not annoy my neighours.
On the city road, I kept it in comfort mode, but once I was on the motorway, it was fair game as I adjusted it to M1, with the steering firmer.
The M4 Competition has a 3-litre, six-cylinder in-line engine.
It can be tempting to let it play to its full potential on the motorway, especially when other car enthusiasts see you tootling along and feel the need to get a closer look.
After dropping my daughter, Grace, and her boyfriend (and BMW 3 Series fanatic) Jeremiah, at Auckland domestic airport, I was minding my own business when a driver in an Audi TT decided he needed to check out the car. He began weaving through traffic to catch up then tailgated me until I turned off the motorway. Hey, can’t blame him for wanting a closer look.
Talking about passengers, there is room in the back for two passengers, with enough head- and leg-room for your average-sized person, and BMW added Isofix points in the back seat. Now, imagine heading to kindy with your tots in the back. That’ll make an impression. The boot space is a decent size too.
The M4 Competition coupe has two seats in the rear.
Left in its lowest setting, the automatic transmission shuffles politely up to eighth and sits at 2000rpm on the motorway, newly acoustic windows blocking out everything but the roar from its tyres. Dial in M1 and you get knocked down to sixth gear, meaning there is plenty left under the bonnet.
The engine is fitted to a chassis that's designed to make the most of its performance. There's 50:50 weight distribution and a low centre of gravity, while carbon-reinforced plastic is used in the M4's construction to help save weight.
The rear-wheel-drive handling demands respect in slippery conditions.
The M4 Competition has M1 and M2 red buttons on the steering wheel.
For more active driving around some country roads, I dialled in M1 and used the steering wheel paddles to move through the gears. Again, starting from zero, you can get some wheel spin if you don’t control the power so you need to feather the accelerator rather than plant your foot.
But due to the 50:50 weight ratio it holds it on through winding roads. That’s also because it is wider, longer and tauter than its predecessor, it can take even greater speed into corners.
The M4 Competition’s main rival is the Mercedes-AMG C63 while the Audi RS5 sportback is another opponent.
