The BMW M240i is now out and a lot of journalists find it extremely enticing. From the looks of things, BMW managed to create a car worthy of the badge and its predecessor. The previous and first-gen M240i model was loved by many of its customers and was considered a great thrill/buck value. The new one seems to be exceeding expectations as well and is even instilling fear into the M2 right now.
That might be a bit of an exaggeration but there is some truth to it. For example, instrumented tests have shown that the M240i xDrive is noticeably faster than the more powerful and agile BMW M2 Competition. The guys from Car and Driver took out their pens, paper and stopwatch and put the two to the test. The results showed that, at least in a straight line, the BMW M240i xDrive is faster than the full-on M model.
Be it with the manual or the seven-speed DCT gearbox, on the quarter-mile, the M2 Competition was 0.3 seconds behind the M240i xDrive at 12.4 seconds, compared to the 12.1 recorded by the M Performance model. That’s despite the fact that the M2 has a faster gearbox and a more powerful engine, rated for 405 horsepower compared to the 382 of the M240i. On top of that, the M2 is also lighter by 249 pounds.
So, how is this possible? Well, it’s quite simple, if you think about it. Having a lot of power doesn’t really mean anything if you can’t put it down efficiently. That’s where the M240i xDrive gets its upper hand. The all-wheel drive system helps it put its 382 horsepower down in a more efficient manner, managing to outsprint the M2 on shorter distances. Transform that race into a rolling start one or take the two to the track, you’ll start seeing some obvious differences. However, for most people, the M240i xDrive will make a lot more sense.
