BMW isn’t holding back. One whole, entire day after revealing the new 3-Series sedan, it’s applied the performance treatment to it.
This isn’t—for shame—the new M3. Expect that in at least a year’s time, with a tuned-up turbo six delivering 500hp or thereabouts. But these M Performance parts for the regular, sensible sedan gives us a little peek at how a sportier 3-Series looks. And therefore, if you squint, how that M3 might look.
The exterior tweaks comprise ten new parts, in either gloss black or carbon fiber, and with aggression-packed names like ‘M Performance front splitter pro.’ As well as the usual spoilers and diffusers there are also new mirror caps, side sill films (with copious M Performance branding) and gray-tinted rear lights. The exhaust pipes are a mix of titanium and carbon.
There are bigger, more curb-able wheels too. You can have 18-inch matte black alloys, which allow you to run BMW’s winter tires (a must in colder seasons in Germany), or 20-inch rims with a choice of finishes and which are necessary to house the M Performance braking system, with its 18-inch perforated, grooved discs and red calipers.
Inside there’s a choice of M Performance steering wheels, with optional Alcantara and carbon (the latter on the shift paddles if you’ve gone auto) as well as a new ‘drive analyzer.’ Essentially, it’s one of those gimmicky data recorders that feels frivolous in a hot hatch, never mind a rep limo, though it does incorporate a video camera for those of a dashcam persuasion.
No word on prices yet, but if you’re so desperate for a new M3 you’ll drive around in a 320d that looks a bit like one, it’s here.
What do you reckon? Does the M Performance makeover convince you of the new 3-Series’s styling?
NOTE: This article first appeared in TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
