If you can’t get enough of the BMW M2, you’re in the right place as this new video shot in South Africa gives us a tour of the G87 with a manual gearbox. The rear-wheel-drive sports coupe was filmed at the local launch during the M Fest 2022 where the baby M was showcased in Zandvoort Blue, a new shade introduced with the second-generation M2.
Right off the bat, we notice this 2023 BMW M2 has at least three optional features. Starting at the front, it has heavily tinted headlights courtesy of the Shadowline upgrade. The glossy black roof will be an alternative to the more expensive lightweight carbon panel that should lower the vehicle’s center of gravity a bit for better handling. Inside, those carbon bucket seats borrowed from the M3/M4 will also cost extra.
Overall, this pre-production prototype looks tame if you compare it to the M2 revealed a few days ago with the full array of M Performance Parts. Say what you will about the styling, but we must give credit to BMW for making the effort to give the range-topping 2 Series Coupe a substantially different look than the lesser 2er models. In fact, we can see an M240i in Thundernight Metallic was on location at M Fest.
Although it’s technically the smallest M car BMW sells, the new M2 is much larger than the model it replaces. Indeed, the G87 is 119 mm (4.68 in) longer than the old F87 and it actually has the exact same length as the M3 E92. It also happens to be 16 mm (0.6 in) wider than its predecessor and with significantly broader hips than the last coupe to be sold as an M3. Of course, weight is a concern as the lightest version tips the scales at 1,700 kilograms (3,748 pounds) in European specification without a driver.
Built exclusively in Mexico, the revamped M2 will be launched in April 2023. It should remain on sale until near the end of the decade as the final BMW M model with a pure gasoline engine. It’ll likely be the very last with a manual gearbox since the current M3/M4 will have been discontinued by 2030.
Source: Sebuwa M / YouTube
