New BMW M2 to be the Last Non-Electrified M Car
Electrification is accelerating at BMW and purists probably won’t like what BMW M boss Frank van Meel said this week: the end is near for conventional, gas-only powertrains.
“The M2 will be the last M with a pure combustion engine drive and also without electrification scope such as a 48V on-board network," he told Bimmer Today.
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The new M2 is slated to make its debut later this year as a 2023 model, joining the 2 Series lineup which was updated for 2022. It was caught by spy photographers during track tests recently, with an undisguised rear end showing more muscle. However, we know very little about the car as of now (to be clear, it’s not the one you see here on the pictures).
That means the next M3, M4, M5 and M8 (assuming the latter returns) will all be electrified in some capacity. Ditto for M variants of the X3, X4, X5 and X6. Let’s not forget the XM Concept, which foreshadows a 740-horsepower plug-in hybrid SUV exclusive to BMW M.
In 50 years, the automaker’s performance brand only had one model that didn’t come from its regular lineup: the legendary M1. The second will not be a car but rather an SUV, because as van Meel explained, “sports cars were the glamorous and profitable segment to play in the M1's era, whereas that segment is filled with SUVs now.”
Just like the new M2, the production XM is expected to pop up later in 2022, so keep following The Car Guide for everything BMW has in store.
