The Speciality Equipment Market Association, or SEMA, show - running in Las Vegas for the next three days - is a major event for the mainstream manufacturers nowadays, so BMW is taking the time to display a new range of BMW M Performance Parts for both the M4 and the all-new, due-in-2016 M2 Coupés. While these parts are only for these two M Division products for now, they will soon be used on all the M-badged cars from Munich.
Exterior
Filling a gap (sort of) between the regular M4 Coupé and the mad-as-a-hatful-of-adders M4 GTS, this M4 Coupé with M Performance Parts (MPP) is mainly a styling exercise designed to accentuate the car's motorsport heritage. Finished in white with BMW M's tricolour stripes running down its shoulders, the M4 MPP has carbon fibre inserts at the front, its grille is painted M Performance black, polyurethane attachments are bolted on to the side sills (and they wear 'M Performance' script), while the door mirrors (carbon fibre) and side gills (high gloss black) continue this dark-on-light theme.
At the back are a carbon fibre diffuser and through-flow spoiler in the same material, with more 'M Performance' logos on the end plates of the wing. Not only do all of these extras give the car added visual clout, BMW says they're all aerodynamically optimised to keep the M4 balanced - and, in a brilliantly quirky turn of phrase, this apparently means they 'support an ambitious driving style'.
Interior
Think of the M4 MPP as something like the old Clubsport BMW 330Ci, which had all the racing addenda without any extra power. We wouldn't complain, though, because the car ends up with a beautiful M Performance 'Pro' steering wheel, its rim clothed in anthracite Alcantara and the boss finished in clear-finish carbon fibre. The 'M Performance' logo again makes it appearance, just to remind you what you've bought into (in case you've forgotten), and it has a blue centre-position marking at the 12 o'clock on the circumference, another motorsport link.
Elsewhere, the lever for the M DCT gearbox is styled up, the centre console trim is new, carbon fibre is liberally splashed over the door handles and the handbrake, while stainless steel pedals are to be found in the driver's footwell. As a final note, the M4 MPP has LED door projectors too.
Mechanicals
BMW suggests that the M4 MPP has exactly the same stats as the regular car - so 431hp, 550Nm, 8.3 litres/100km (34mpg), 194g/km CO2 and a 0-100km/h time of just 4.1 seconds, with top speed limited to 250km/h. But these numbers might be ever so slightly better than that, given the extensive use of carbon fibre replacing certain parts of the car reducing weight, and the fact it is fitted with an M Performance exhaust system that should improve the flow of waste gases out of the engine. This beauty features a logoed rear silencer made of titanium and tailpipe trims finished in... yes, carbon fibre; they also wear the letter 'M'. The exhaust has two settings, which are selected through the Drive Performance Control Switch. Even in its 'standard' mode, BMW says it has a 'striking, sports-style sound'.
And there's another bonus here in the form of adjustable BMW M Performance coilover suspension, which also lowers the M4 Coupé. Again, no quantifiable increase in performance, save to say it'll make the already pretty hardcore M4 feel even more dialled in to the road surface.
Anything else?
Although it was only revealed very recently and it's not due on sale until 2016, M Performance also has a lot of the same sort of stuff available for the M2 Coupé. So gloss black grille trims and side gills, carbon fibre mirror caps, a carbon rear spoiler, M Performance suspension and a sports exhaust, an Alcantara steering wheel and lots of open-pore carbon fibre for the cabin. More details on this kit for the M2 will be unveiled in spring next year.
All the M Performance Parts for the M4 Coupé will be available from January and BMW says the entire range of upgrades for all models will be in dealerships by June 2016.