BMW Isn’t Done With The 3 Series G20 Just Yet

The new 3 Series (G50) debuts at the end of the month, so the current-generation G20 is officially one foot in the grave. BMW Japan, however, isn’t quite ready to pull the plug. Instead, it’s giving the outgoing M Performance versions a suitably dark send-off with a new Black Package. Available exclusively in the Land of the Rising Sun, the special-edition treatment extends to the M440i xDrive Gran Coupe. BMW has already started taking orders, with deliveries scheduled to begin in late September.

As the name suggests, the Black Package takes the stealthy route. All three models get black M badges, black model lettering at the rear, and black 19-inch wheels. The M340i models use the 19-inch Double-Spoke Styling 995 M wheels, while the M440i gets its own 19-inch Double-Spoke Styling 861 M design.

Buyers aren’t limited to black paint, either. BMW Japan offers Alpine White, Black Sapphire, and M Brooklyn Grey. Pairing a lighter exterior color with the black wheels and badges should make the special editions look particularly sinister without going full murdered-out.

Black Inside Out

The cabin follows the same theme. The M340i Sedan and Touring get black Vernasca leather with blue stitching, M Sport seats, and carbon fiber trim extending to the steering-wheel spokes. The M440i Gran Coupe swaps the blue stitching for red accents. All three also get heated steering wheels and galvanic-finish controls.

Underneath, there’s nothing mechanically exotic going on. That’s hardly a complaint, considering the M340i and M440i already use BMW’s familiar turbocharged inline-six and xDrive all-wheel-drive system. The Black Package is about appearance and equipment rather than adding more power. If you want extra oomph, the M350 will come with a heavily upgraded B58 engine.

BMW Japan plans to build 150 examples of the M340i xDrive Black Package, while the M340i xDrive Touring and M440i xDrive Gran Coupe are each capped at 100 units. The automaker notes that it could increase production if demand exceeds the initial allocation.

Prices start at ¥10.32 million for the M340i xDrive Black Package, while the Touring has a ¥10.67 million sticker price. If you’d rather get the M440i xDrive Gran Coupe, it’s the most expensive of the bunch at ¥10.76 million. All three are right-hand-drive models with an eight-speed automatic transmission.

Out With The G20, In With The G50

So while the G20 is nearing the end of the road, BMW isn’t letting it quietly disappear. In Japan, at least, the current-generation M Performance 3 Series is going out with a little more carbon fiber, a lot more black, and a limited-production badge to make the farewell more interesting.

If you’d rather get the G50, it’ll go official in late September and should hit the road in Europe before the end of the year. Even with the next-generation 3 Series arriving soon, the old M3 G80/G81 models are likely to continue well into next year. The G84 sedan is supposedly planned for 2028, and hopefully, BMW is also cooking up that G88 wagon we keep hearing about.