This is the new BMW M4 Competition Convertible - Top Gear

As surely as night follows day, and – in the UK – rain follows yet more rain, BMW has followed up the M4 Competition with this. This is the M4 Competition Convertible.

A perfect car for this rainy, royal throne of kings, then, this sceptered isle. We’ll start at the top. The freshly lobotomised M4 Competition features what BMW calls a ‘panel bow’ soft top, said to combine rigidity with the appeal of a fabric roof. It’s 40 per cent lighter than the metal roof on the last M4 cabrio, and can be opened and closed in just 18 seconds at speeds of up to 31mph.

Said lobotomy has necessitated the deployment of the usual cabrio suspects: new underfloor bracing elements, an aluminium shear panel up front, and torsion struts at the back. Naturally, the M4 Comp Conv gets a bespoke double-joint spring strut front axle, and specially adapted axle geometry with a tuned steering ratio.

It gets the same four-wheel-drive setup optional on its M3 saloon and M4 coupe siblings, which means a rear-wheel bias, an active M diff, and the option of switching off the front axle to make it RWD. It also gets the same 3.0-litre turbo straight-six, developing the same 503bhp and 479lb ft of torque, matched to an eight-speed automatic gearbox.

All this power and torque and traction fuse to deliver a 0-62mph time of 3.7secs – just two tenths slower than the quoted times for the 4WD M3 and M4 coupe, and two tenths quicker than the RWD versions of both. BMW also reckons the cabrio will hit 124mph in 13.1secs, and ticking the ‘M Driver’s Pack’ box opens up the top speed to 174mph. Otherwise it’s 155mph, obvs.

There are M carbon bucket seats inside – heated, too – lots of buttons to push, lots of leather, lots of red colour accents, much standard equipment and many, many options. BMW will start building them in July this year, and each car will start from £81,915.

Does the M4 cabrio better fit this precious stone set in the silver sea, or is the M3 Touring the car Britain’s really waiting for?

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2021-05-25 22:01:00Z
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