Make no mistake though, when it comes to piling on speed, the M440i is a proper fast car. BMW says it will do 0-100 km/h in 4.5 seconds but the independent readings will tell you that’s a conservative estimate. As usual. The 500 Nm of torque are there with you from 1,900 RPM and the gearbox is doing a great job at keeping up with your right foot, in all driving modes. Well, maybe in Eco Pro mode it needs a bit more convincing but that’s normal, after all.
The mild-hybrid setup might also have a thing to say about the way this car drives and feels. Under the hood of the M440i you’ll find a small electric motor working as a starter-generator. It can develop up to 11 HP and is there to help out in various scenarios. From turning off the engine while approaching a stop light to giving you a little push when setting off, this was initially meant as a system aimed at decreasing emissions and improving fuel consumption.
It also works a lot better in combination with the six-cylinder under the hood as it’s a more balanced setup compared to four-cylinder engines, especially diesels. The switch from electric power to the ICE was smooth and sometimes barely noticeable.
But this setup has another task too: to fill up torque gaps and help under heavy acceleration. With its introduction, the M440i feels like a car with no turbo lag. In Sport mode, the 4er sprints from under you the moment you touch the gas pedal and it keeps going until you’re too scared to continue. The limited top speed of 250 km/h is reached without breaking a sweat and the car feels like it could keep going for a lot longer.
Go into a series of tight bends and you start noticing the other differences compared to the more ‘pedestrian’ models in the range. The one thing you experience right away is the steering. It’s still electronically assisted but it’s direct, fast and, on the M Performance model you get a variable steering ratio. That means the car adapts to the speed, and you can feel it. It may not offer the same level of feedback older systems offered but, it’s better than the system found on the first generation 4 Series.
The M440i also felt heavy to me, it leaned a lot more into corners than I expected while, at the same time, being a bit more composed than the 430i or the 420d. The latter were bouncing a lot more when going into corners with rough patches of asphalt. The damping somehow felt better, but all in all, you do feel a bit more isolated as a consequence.
That baffled me, as I was expecting this to be the rawest experience a 4 Series could offer. But it wasn’t. Instead, it was the fastest and most precise of the three. Approaching a corner with more speed than you intended could trigger an adrenaline shot in anticipation of a crash. But the M440i can take it, as the wider track and lower center of gravity gives you better control.
The car has tons of grip, and the xDrive system, along with the M Sport differential will allow you to accelerate and slingshot your way out of a corner with ease. This is still a fun BMW to drive, but you do feel less connected to the road in it and you notice its heft too.
Heavier Than The Other 4 Series Models