Normally, when BMW adds a competition badge to an M car
it needlessly ruins the suspension and adds some ugliness to the wheels.
But with the M2 competition
it has done something different, something better.
Because the M2 competition actually gets a new engine.
The S55 unit from the M3 is now wedged in there,
and you even get the funky carbon strut brace.
You also get a new chassis, new brakes, and a decent percentage of a new cabin.
You now have 410 horsepower and 405 foot-pounds of torque.
Big increases on the old car, but you also get an extra 55 kilograms.
But BMW loves its traditions, so it's added some uglier wheels,
just to stay faithful to the competition heritage.
Did you have a good summer holiday?
I did, but the way to get back into work is the new BMW M2 Competition.
Now it looks like BMW has very kindly given us an M2
with an M3 power bomb but it's not quite as simple as that
because the old M2 engine was killed off by the latest emission regulations.
So, either the M2 had to die or BMW had to bolt this engine in.
So we get a load more power, a bit more torque--
We get some more weight as well and that's the thing I'm a bit sniffy about.
The power-to-weight ratio of this car isn't that much better than a normal M2.
So, let's see what it's like on the circuit.
The last M2 was always quite a handful. What have we got here then?
We're at Clermont-Ferrand, which is one of the great circuits.
I've not been here before. I have no idea why I didn't know about it,
because it's superb.
The elevation changes are amazing.
Gearbox: DCT in this one.
It's really, really sharp. I reckon the shifts are that much quicker.
A little bit of rain at the moment, so I'm losing a bit of traction.
Engine: Pulls like a horse.
Doesn't feel quite as angry as it does in the M3
and for me there's always been a personality about the M2
that was missing in the M3.
And it comes from that short wheelbase.
The car just changes direction so aggressively,
but it also feels a little bit spiky.
There's an element of danger like it's a 2002 turbo.
I love that about these things.
Balance is good.
We've got a bit of understeer in the middle of the corner
and we've got oversteer coming out really as much as you want.
Let's just demonstrate that. Here we go.
We get on the gas and we get a little bit of that coming out.
There you go, armfuls if you want it.
Very controllable, typical BMW.
Cabin: I quite like these new instruments.
They've got a sort of new M5 style instrument pack in there
that looks quite funky and technical.
Brakes: Very good. I'd say the brakes are quite a standout for this.
This car still doesn't have the agility of a Cayman,
but what I like is that even though it's a complete yobbo when you want to be,
far more of a yob actually than a Cayman,
it can now carve the straight line a load more than it could.
So it's a fast car, it really is a fast car.
If you wanted something to run every day do the occasional bit of track work
I would never have advised the last M2, it wasn't up to the job.
This one certainly is.
As tested, this car, steel brakes, fairly normal spec inside, is £49,000.
That's an awful lot for a 2-Series based car,
but I don't know what else will do this for the money.
Of course, the main competition for the M2 really...
is a used M3, isn't it?
You can even pick one of those up for about 40 grand.
So, would you have a used M3 or an M2?
I think my money's on the M2 competition.
There's something about this.
It's quite spiky, it's quite good fun...
There's a personality here that I really, really enjoy.
Yeah, I'm taking one of these.
Let's do a bit of slightly stuff here. Look at this.
Why is it that BMW's engineers just know
how to make cars feel super, super settled when they slide?
It's partly the way they let them go all the way to the limits of grip
and the tyre never gets really spiky. The drop-off in grip is always consistent.
Also, the power steering,
the electric power steering on this car is a bit lifeless,
however, it stays consistent in the assistance
all the way to the lock stops.
There you go, some really useful consumer information.
This circuit, wow, what a place.
There is a bit of deadness to the steering, you know.
It is just a little bit lifeless.
But, I don't know, all steering systems tend to be like that.
Seating position still a bit too high for me.
I don't know why BMW are into that these days, but they seem to be.
What a thing.
It's slippery there though.
Yes, slippery today, it's slippery today.
Hold onto the wheel, Chris.