2019 BMW M3 to kick-start 26-car M division expansion

Opinion: will BMW's expansion affect its key cars?

Sources have told Autocar that the next M3 is likely to remain rear-wheel drive, with earlier plans to provide it with a fully variable four-wheel-drive system similar to that offered on the new M5 now ruled out because of cost and weight.

The sixth-generation M3 will, like the current car, be joined by a mechanically identical sibling, the second-generation BMW M4 Coupeà and Cabriolet. It is tentatively scheduled to make its world debut at the 2019 Frankfurt motor show, prior to the start of UK sales in early 2020.

It will then effectively open the M floodgates for a raft of new models, set to boost both the volume and reach of BMW's high-performance division - an illustration for the growing appetite of consumers, particularly in emerging markets, for ultra-hot variants.

The architect of the plan to broaden the M line-up is Frank van Meel, the 51-year-old Dutch-born engineer poached from Audi Sport (formerly Quattro) in 2014 to lead BMW’s performance car division. Van Meel described the new M3 as a linchpin in BMW M’s plans to match Mercedes-AMG with combined global sales of M and M-Performance models of more than 100,000 per year in the longer term.

The plan also includes the introduction of several more slightly softer M-Performance models, with the overall aim of clawing back the sales advantage currently being enjoyed by the performance divisions of its arch-rivals, Mercedes and Audi.

“Along with the M5, the M3 is a crucial car for BMW M,” he said. “It wasn’t the first fully-fledged M car but it continues to stand for everything the brand is based upon.”

Full-blown M variants of the recently introduced third-generation BMW X3, second-generation BMW X4, upcoming fourth-generation Z4 and resurrected 8 Series feature among the hot new BMW models already undergoing development at BMW M’s workshops. The new 8 Series is set to sire two new M models in coupeà and cabriolet body styles that will act as upmarket replacements for the existing M6 Coupeà and Cabriolet.

Also slated for launch within the next 18 months, according to well-placed BMW M division sources, are a number of new mid-range four-wheel-drive M-Performance models. These include powered-up variants of the new X2, the upcoming sixth-generation 3 Series and the all-new X7 — models that are aimed at providing stiff competition to Mercedes-AMG’s upcoming GLA 35, just updated C43 and GLE 43, among others.

Other new BMW M cars are on the drawing board but have yet to be officially committed to production. Among them are M-Performance variants of the upcoming 4 Series GT as well as the second-generation 4 Series Coupeà and Cabriolet — all due out in standard guise in 2019.

BMW M’s strategy has been described to Autocar as the most ambitious yet undertaken by the performance division. Hot on the heels of the new 592bhp M5, it plans to add up to 26 new or enhanced models by the end of 2020: 11 hardcore M models and 15 M-Performance variants.

As well as concentrating its efforts on bolstering the line-up with fresh new models, BMW M is also planning to sharpen its appeal through the launch of image-leading track-based variants within each model line up.

This will echo the approach taken with the recent introduction of the M3 CS and M4 CS. They will be complemented in 2018 by a similarly conceived version of the M2, rumoured to be called the M2 CSL, which is also planned to receive a 400bhp-plus version of BMW’s turbocharged 3.0-litre six-cylinder petrol engine together with various aerodynamic and weight-saving measures to enhance its performance potential. It's been spotted testing at the Nüburgring on numerous occasions.

BMW M has turned its attention to more affordable models, too. As scooped by Autocar, in a bid to match the likes of the Audi S3 and upcoming Mercedes-AMG A35, development work has started on an M-Performance variant of the third-generation 1 Series, which forgoes the rear-wheel drive of today’s model for front-wheel drive. It's expected to be called the M130ix M Performance.