BMW M has released yet another video in a series of explanatory videos about the new BMW M3 and M4. So far, we’ve learned about the cars’ weight, power, seats and, in this latest video, their brakes. According to BMW M’s brake engineers, “the later you brake, the faster you are.” So, to brake that late, the M3 and M4 are going to need impressive brakes.
The new BMW M3 and M4 get six-piston calipers up front, which allow BMW M to use larger brake pads. Both of those combine to give the new M cars better braking stability, durability and comfort. The calipers are also available in three different colors; black, blue and red; which is a first for BMW M.
You can’t upgrade brakes properly by just slapping bigger ones on. To truly improve braking performance, you must upgrade your car more comprehensively than that. So to improve braking over the previous-gen models, BMW M engineers added better brake cooling as well.
What’s most interesting about these new BMW M3 and M4 models is that they also get what BMW calls Integrated Brakes. The new IB system (IBS?) allows for two different brake settings that the driver can choose from. So there’s Sport and Comfort braking, which gives drivers greater flexibility. It also, in theory, allows you to have your cake and eat it, too; with strong, immediate brakes for hard driving and more forgiving, relaxed brakes for normal driving.
These new brakes are going to have to be good, as the BMW M3 and M4 are porky siblings. The max-spec M4 Competition weighs over 4,000 lbs, which is almost upsetting when you think about its lightweight lineage. So with all of that weight and ability to achieve rapid speeds, the M3 and M4’s brakes are going to have their work cut out for them.
