BMW Is Planning Even More Fast, Exciting Cars... But The Manual M-Car Is Doomed
BMW is reportedly planning more of its hardcore GTS and CSL models. The company has apparently spotted a growing market for more Car Throttle-appropriate cars. This is good news.
The company is on a bit of a roll right now. The M2 is one of our favourite cars on sale at any price, and with a CS version incoming next year, we don’t expect that to change. The carbonfibre-hosed M4 CS is a mighty thing, too.
Now, Autocar is reporting that BMW could be testing an M2 CSL off the back of M2 sales that are posting 40-50 per cent higher than expected. It would use the twin-turbo S55 straight-six from the M3 and M4, just like the expected M2 CS, but it would pack even more fight than the CS – and be lighter. A manual gearbox will still be standard (hallelujah!).
Speaking to the magazine, BMW M’s vice president Dirk Hacker said:
“The M2 is tracking at 40-50 per cent above our expectation in terms of sales, with almost half of buyers specifying a manual.
“Demand for cars like the M2, which is probably our purest M product today, has surprised us, and that opens opportunities for building more extreme cars, in the vein of GTS and CSL heritage models.
“Any car that has true heritage to motorsport is an opportunity for us. New markets are always opening for those cars and that will increase, so long as we keep building cars that are sufficiently special.”
While the rumoured CS is due to hit the shelves next year, when the (ever-so-slightly) facelifted 2-Series goes on sale, the CSL would be a run-out special. It wouldn’t be launched until the last year of the model’s life, and numbers would be limited.
To stoke the hype train even more, the M2 will also be the last M-car to have a manual gearbox, so a CSL halo model will be hugely, zealously sought-after. The speed advantages and marketing benefits that come with them mean that the manual M-car is officially facing its last hurrah. Damn.
Source: Autocar
Comments
I do agree dropping all manual is probably a mistake, but their current gearboxes are basically “good enough” that the paddle shift autos are superior. If I were buying one, I’d be hard pressed between a manual and a paddle shift; it’s that close.
Either way the world needs more M cars, so bring on the CSLs and build up that production! haha.
It is clear that auto is faster/better than manual. We get it.
But speaking in term of real driver involvement, manual is still king.
One more brand that led itself to normification… Keep the manuals in production goddamit… 50% of us want them!!!
The technology is becoming more & more obsolete, and most people prefer automatic or dual clutch with paddles. Even amongst petrolheads. And if I’d be you, I’d rather fight over being able to change gears at all, knowing that electric cars don’t need gearboxes
“Almost half of M2 sales are spaced with a manual”
What part of that tells them they should stop selling it with a manual?
People dont even buy manuals anymore so why should they waste millions for it?
a lot of Europeans still do actually. Upper class are mostly automatic, the rest is rather balanced. Compacts and subcompacts are still mostly manual.
2018 face lifted golf r owner here, in manual. Define “people” do not buy manuals anymore? If manufactures gave manuals a bit more attention, they can shift and be as easy to drive and just as fast as DCTs, but their focus is sadly elsewhere. Go drive an 80s hot hatch to see just how sweet manuals were back then, how easy the clutch is and the short shifts.
half of our costumers opt for the manual…so lets kill it in the next generation of ///M cars. Makes sense…
off course the M2 exceeded their expectations, it is as simple as it gets, going back to the E36 M3, no fancy 5 modes for suspension, steering and engine. You, the car and a stick shift in such a small package is just great, especially in germany you can get it for €59K pretty much fully loaded with options (except the transmission).
Actually including transmission, E36s had auto transmission as well
More M2 type Cars means happy world!
And thus, the M car is dead. Guess I’ll just be keeping the e46, then.
Yup. I’d like an E34 or an E36.
The M2 sells well because the current m3/m4 are pretty crap and miles away from what they should be, who buys a £80k car and wants the noise to be artificial, steering heavily assisted and are absolutely massive from m3’s past.
The M2 is brilliant because it’s pure little gimmicks, great noise, great engine and technology where appropriate and the size of an E46 it’s more of an M3 than the F80
I think they start from £50k and the new updated version is better to drive than the C63 and rs5
You guys should think about the new Hennessey Venom F5 debuting soon Matt Kimberley
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