BMW M2 — the smallest car in the M division and the last with the classic formula

Within the M range this model holds the position it is valued for: an inline turbocharged six, driven rear wheels, a compact base by the standards of the segment, and a gearbox that can still be ordered with three pedals. The combination has all but disappeared among rivals, and it shapes the conversation about the car more than any single technical parameter.

In short. The BMW M2 of 2024 is a compact rear-wheel-drive coupé from the M division with the S58 engine, an inline six with two turbochargers. Top speed according to the catalogue card is 250 km/h.

The M2 line: three steps and one disputed ancestor

The story begins not with the M2 badge but with a 2011 car, the BMW 1 Series M Coupe. Formally it is a different model: the M2 designation is not applied to it in factory press material, and it was built from the N54 engine, familiar from civilian versions, plus suspension and brake components from the M3 of that period. The reason the right index is missing is prosaic — no separate 2 Series existed at the time; it appeared only in 2014.

The first car officially named M2 was the F87 generation: announced in October 2015, on sale from spring 2016, with the N55 engine and a single twin-scroll turbocharger. In 2018 the Competition version arrived with the S55 engine from the larger M3 and M4, and in 2019 the limited CS, the most powerful of the first generation.

The current car is the second generation, index G87: announced in October 2022, on sale from April 2023. The count here is not in dispute — the manufacturer itself called the newcomer the model’s second generation at launch, leaving the 2011 car outside the numbering.

The S58 engine: a unit shared with the larger M cars

The S58 is an inline six of 2,993 cm³ with two mono-scroll turbochargers, one per bank of cylinders. It is the same unit fitted to the current-generation M3 and M4, with a reinforced block and additional cooling circuits. Moving to it closed an old reproach aimed at the first M2: the base 2015 car used the series-production N55, which part of the audience considered insufficient for a proper M model.

The unit developed in steps. The 2023 version delivered 453 hp; an update announced in June 2024 and put into production from August of that year raised output to 473 hp on the North American measure and 480 hp on the European one, while for the automatic variant torque rose from 550 to 600 Nm. Technical publications separately discuss early cases of leakage in the cooling circuit on this engine family; the manufacturer has never described them as an acknowledged defect, so it is more accurate to treat this as a subject of discussion rather than an established fact.

Why the output of a 2024 car cannot be given as one figure

The 2024 model year falls exactly on the boundary between two settings of the unit. Cars assembled before August 2024 belong to the original specification, those after it to the updated one. The catalogue card does not publish output, and attributing one of the two figures to a particular car without confirmation would be incorrect. The correct formulation runs like this: depending on the build date this is either 453 hp or 473–480 hp on different measures, with torque of 550 or 600 Nm.

Top speed the catalogue states directly — 250 km/h. That is the value to treat as current for this car.

Rear-wheel drive as a matter of principle

No generation of the line has ever received all-wheel drive, although the larger M3 and M4 have long offered such a version. The rear wheels remain the driven ones, and an active differential handles the distribution of pull between them. For a compact coupé with a short wheelbase that means a mobile rear axle and a character that reveals itself at the driver’s request rather than imposing itself constantly.

The second generation has meanwhile gained weight: factory mass by the European method is around 1,705 kg for the current car with the manual and 1,730 kg with the automatic, whereas the first generation in Competition form came in at roughly 1,550 kg. Dimensions and wheelbase have grown too — a consequence of moving to a platform shared with the 4 Series.

The independent press is of two minds about the behaviour. On one hand it notes a playful side that switches on at the driver’s request, while in the ordinary setting the car stays calm. On the other it speaks of relative heaviness and of mid-engined rivals feeling sharper in response and steering feedback. The manual is called not the most tactile, with wide gaps between ratios, but involving.

The argument about the “right formula”

The thesis put by specialist publications, that the first generation was the last genuinely honest compact M, needs to be understood precisely. It is not about a naturally aspirated engine — forced induction was present on every car in the line, including the 2011 predecessor. It is about a set of features: an inline turbocharged six, driven rear wheels, a manual that must remain available, no hybridisation and no all-wheel drive, compact dimensions.

The current generation has kept that set in part. The manual is still in the manufacturer’s catalogue — a rarity for the segment, noted by everyone who has tested the car. But the seven-speed dual-clutch unit has given way to a conventional eight-speed automatic with a torque converter, mass has grown, and the body has become larger.

The decisive turn came with the next step: the second-generation CS, released in the summer of 2025, is for the first time in this line’s history offered with the automatic only. Part of the press reads that as a farewell to the original formula on the top version, though the ordinary car retains the manual.

The CS versions and a lap of the Nordschleife

Both CS versions are rare, sharpened cars, and their numbers are useful as a reference point rather than as a description of the fleet vehicle. The first, from 2020, added forty horsepower over the Competition and received a carbon bonnet and roof, forged wheels and track tyres. The second, from 2025, grew to 523 hp on the North American measure and 530 on the European one, with 650 Nm, suspension lowered by eight millimetres and carbon body elements.

The second CS returned 7:25.5 around the Nordschleife in April 2025, beating the previous class benchmark by roughly eight seconds; for comparison, the series car of the current generation covered the lap in 7:38.7 in 2023. Later the ordinary car with the factory track package improved that to 7:25.068 — so the gap between production version and special one, in the hands of the same driver, proved smaller than is usually assumed.

Official mass figures for the second CS, incidentally, do not agree between the manufacturer’s national organisations: the European and North American methods give a difference of roughly thirty and forty-four kilograms against the series car. The discrepancy comes from different measuring methods, but in direct comparison the figures contradict each other.

Interior, luggage and everyday use

Two doors, four seats, sports seats with pronounced lateral support. The rear row works for a short trip and for belongings — getting in means folding a front seat, and an adult will be cramped there on a long run. Boot volume is typical of a compact coupé: luggage for two fits easily, for four it does not.

Everyday usability is higher than a sharpened coupé might suggest. The adaptive modes spread the suspension and transmission settings widely enough that in the relaxed position the car does not wear you out on the open road, and its dimensions cause no trouble in town. The one thing to reckon with is the low front overhang at underground car park entrances and at kerbs.

Warsaw and where to go

Polish speed limits are tiered: 50 km/h inside a built-up area at any hour, 90 beyond it, then 120 on an expressway with separated carriageways or 100 where they share one, and 140 on a motorway. For a car quoted at 250 km/h that means interest shifts away from straight sections towards roads with geometry.

There are not many such directions from Warsaw, and the most obvious is the Mazury lake district. Mikolajki is some 223 kilometres and about three and a half hours away: part of the route on the S8 expressway, then regional roads through forest and along lakes, where a short wheelbase and an active differential finally make sense. The direction is worth planning with at least one overnight stay — going out and back in a day consumes the whole day at the wheel.

In winter a rear-wheel-drive coupé of this power calls for a direct conversation. Polish law fixes no date by which tyres must be swapped, though the requirement that a vehicle be roadworthy never lapses, and after a crash on unsuitable rubber the argument shifts to what the insurer will pay. The condition of the tyres: confirm when booking.

Who it suits and who it doesn’t

Good for a pair after involvement rather than speed alone: compact dimensions, rear-wheel drive and an active differential give sensations a bigger, more powerful car cannot give by definition. It suits a combined route where a fast section gives way to a winding one.

It does not suit four adults with luggage — the rear row and the boot rule that out. It does not suit anyone looking for all-wheel drive: this line has never had it. And do not expect steering as sharp as a mid-engined rival’s — everyone who has tested the current generation writes about this. For year-round journeys the fleet has the all-wheel-drive BMW 430i xDrive, and the rental terms for the M2 are on the model page.

FAQ

How many generations does the M2 have, and does the 2011 car count as the first? Officially there are two generations. The 2011 model was called the BMW 1 Series M Coupe, and the M2 designation is not applied to it in factory material. When launching the current car, the manufacturer described it outright as the model’s second generation, thereby leaving the predecessor outside the numbering. The specialist press treats that car as a spiritual ancestor but does not rename it retrospectively.

Is this the same engine as in the M3 and M4? Yes, the unit is shared. The S58 is an inline six of 2,993 cm³ with two mono-scroll turbochargers, fitted to the larger models of the current generation. The tuning and some ancillaries differ, but the architecture and the block are the same. Similar logic applied earlier in the first generation, where the Competition version received the engine from the M3 and M4 of its day.

Is there an M2 with all-wheel drive? No, no generation of the line has received all-wheel drive. The rear wheels are always the driven ones, and an active differential handles the distribution of pull between them. This is a deliberate position of the M division for its smallest model: the larger M3 and M4 have offered an all-wheel-drive version for years, while the compact coupé keeps the classic layout as part of its character.

How does the CS version differ from the ordinary car? The CS is a limited version with higher output, weight savings from carbon panels and a sharpened chassis. The first such version came out in 2019, the second in the summer of 2025, by then with the automatic and no manual option. The fleet holds the series car, so the CS figures in this text are given as a reference point for comparison rather than as its characteristics.

Which gearbox does the fleet car have? For the current generation the manufacturer offers two variants: a six-speed manual and an eight-speed automatic with a torque converter, which replaced the earlier dual-clutch unit. The catalogue card does not publish which gearbox a particular car has, so confirm it when booking if it matters for the trip. The difference shows in the quoted figures too: the automatic version has more torque and accelerates faster.

Why is the output of a 2024 car quoted differently in different places? Because that year falls on the boundary between two specifications. Cars built before August 2024 belong to the original setting with 453 hp, those assembled later to the updated one, which is quoted at 473 hp on the North American measure and 480 on the European, with torque on the automatic version raised to 600 Nm. The exact figure is determined by a particular car’s build date.