4 Series made sportier and more distinct
The BMW 3 Series’ zippier cousin will again offer three body styles and a hot M4 — plus a new electric i4.
The bold front end has been described as the first step towards giving each BMW model a unique interpretation of the brand’s kidney grille.
BMW will greatly expand the 4 Series line-up for the sporting coupe’s second generation later this year, spearheaded by a trio of M4 models with 510hp and the 530hp i4 electric sedan.
The German manufacturer is working to increase the differentiation between the 4 Series and the closely related 3 Series sedan, with engineers involved in its development saying that substantial work has gone into improving the dynamic qualities of the Audi A5 and Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe rival.
To this end, the 4 Series has also been given a major design revamp — including the grille featured on the Concept 4 Series that caused great controversy when it was revealed in September last year.
Known internally by the code name G22, the new 4 Series will be launched shortly in two-door Coupe form, followed by the Convertible and the fourdoor Gran Coupe.
The range will then be crowned in 2021 by the M4, which will be offered in Coupe, Convertible and, for the first time, Gran Coupe forms. But the most powerful 4 Series variant will be the i4, which will be the second electric BMW to share its underpinnings with a conventional internal-combustion car, after the iX3 SUV.
The new Tesla Model 3 rival will use a pair of electric motors to offer up to 530hp, around 800Nm of torque and an 80kWh lithium-ion battery pack with 600km of range on the WLTP test cycle.
The importance of the 4 Series to BMW can be seen in the strong sales of the current model. Since its introduction in 2013 as a replacement for the 3 Series Coupe (the history of which stretches back to 1975), almost 700,000 examples have been sold worldwide.
Of the three body styles offered today, about 50% of buyers choose the Gran Coupe, while the Coupe and Convertible each account for around 25%.
BMW has committed to significant modifications over the 3 Series to provide the 4 Series with greater individuality and increased standing within the line-up.
Leading the host of changes is that striking new look. Inspired by the vertical kidney grilles that graced BMWs from the 1930s, the bold front end has been described by design chief Stefan Woerns as the first step towards giving each BMW model a unique interpretation of the brand’s most recognisable styling element.
When it goes on sale later this year, the 4 Series Coupe will offer up to three petrol and three diesel engines, each with four or six cylinders.
There’s the 430i and M440i xDrive petrols, while German automobile registry records show that the range will also feature an entry-level 420i and 420d, 430d and M440d diesels.
The M440i and M440d M Performance variants will both feature 48V mild-hybrid technology, providing off-throttle engine-idle coasting, regenerative braking and a Sprint mode that calls up an additional 11hp for stronger acceleration under load.
In a return to its roots, the 4 Series Convertible will swap its folding hard-top roof for a multi-layer fabric structure.
The M Performance pair will be the initial range-toppers, before the second-generation M4 — developed under the code name G82 — arrives in late 2021.
The M4 will again be offered with the Coupe and Convertible body styles, as well as in standard rear-wheel-drive and top-spec four-wheel-drive Competition forms.
With a six-speed manual gearbox and rear-wheel drive, the M4 will produce 480hp in its standard guise. The 510hp M4 Competition will feature an eightspeed torque-converter automatic gearbox and a fully variable M xDrive four-wheel drive system, mirroring the more powerful M5 sedan.
BMW is also planning to add fourdoor practicality to the M4 line-up for the first time by offering a Gran Coupe version. The junior sibling of the recently introduced M8 Gran Coupe is scheduled for launch in 2022 as a rival to the Audi RS5 Sportback.