We’ve been obsessively covering the M2 G87 for more than a year and yet BMW won’t unveil the car until October prior to its market release in April 2023. To ease the wait, your favorite brand has been bombarding us with numerous teasers, with the most substantial released a few days ago. The last M car powered solely by a combustion engine was shown in a colorful M livery, which has now been digitally removed for what we believe is an accurate (but still unofficial) rendering.

As with its predecessor, the new M2 won’t look all that different compared to the M240i. Sure, it’s getting the quad exhaust system, fender flares, and rectangular front air intakes, but the top dog in the 2 Series family won’t be a vast departure from the M Performance car. These subtle upgrades will come along with a vast array of mechanical tweaks, highlighted by the availability of a manual gearbox. In fact, the M2 will be the only way to buy the 2er with a clutch pedal.

Say what you will about the styling, but we can all agree the shape is borderline perfect. The long hood and short rear are telltale signs we’re dealing with a pure RWD car equipped with a longitudinally mounted engine. Being the M2, its wider hips and generous use of carbon fiber will lend the performance coupe a sportier stance, accentuated by enlarged brakes and unique wheels.

With 19-inch front wheels wrapped in 275-mm tires and 20-inch rear wheels with 285-mm tires, the M2 will get the same shoes as the M4. It’ll also inherit the standard brakes from its bigger brother, but without the optional carbon kit. BMW has told us a carbon-fiber roof will come at an additional cost, as will Individual colors and M Performance Parts.

As you probably have heard, the new M2 will have somewhere in the region of 450 horsepower and just about the same level of performance as the old M2 CS. The manual and automatic transmissions will be adapted from the M4 and without any power differences as the S58 will deliver the same output in both applications.

October is still a long way to go, which can only BMW will continue the teaser campaign in the following months. The M2 G87 is shaping up to be an instant classic, especially since it will go down in history as the final M car to eschew any sort of electrification. Of course, the base model is likely to be followed by an M2 Competition and/or CS, and ideally, an M2 CSL. It almost happened with the F87, so here’s hoping it’ll get the green light this time around.

Source: Kolesa.ru | Rendering: instagram.com/kelsonik