BMW M4 News

The US car industry has come full circle and returns to old-fashioned horsepower at this year's Detroit motor show, with large pick-ups and "America's Ferrari" set to steal the limelight from imported exotica.Centre of attention at the show, which opened overnight Australian time, is Ford's new F Series truck, which has for decades held the title as the planet's favourite vehicle and makes a watershed move to aluminium construction.The bold decision, aimed at cutting fuel consumption, takes aluminium mainstream and makes Forda pioneer in volume production using the metal.Demand for pick-ups has rebounded since the global financial crisis and Ford sold more than 760,000 of the outgoing F Series last year, up 18 per cent.It has kept details of the redesign secret and will hope it can upstage its rival from General Motors, the Chevrolet Silverado, tipped to win Truck of the Year.US buyers strongly favour full-size pick-ups but last year GM broke ranks and offered a version of the smaller Colorado, described as "mid-size" in the US. At a preview event for the show, GM unveiled the GMC Canyon, a more upmarket version of the Colorado with a bull nose and acres of chrome.It marked the first appearance for Mary Barra since she was named chief executive - the only woman to lead one of the car giants. "I'm honoured to stand here tonight and humbly lead this team," Ms Barra said. "It's a team of men and women doing unbelievably great work."It comes just weeks after GM shed its "government motors" tag, with Washington selling the last of the shares acquired during the GFC. As well as a truck award, GM is also in the running for Car of the Year with two out of the three finalists -- a Cadillac and its reborn Chevrolet Corvette. The new Corvette has earned a reputation for delivering Italian sportscar performance at a fraction of the price. A track-focused version, called the Z06, will be GM's show star.The Z06 will compete for crowd attention with the Ford Mustang, which makes its first public appearance after private unveilings last month.GM's recovery milestone has a parallel at Chrysler, after Fiat recently acquired complete control.The smallest of the US "Big Three" is now wholly foreign-owned but rebounding thanks to a focus on Americana, with its controversially redesigned Jeep Cherokee SUV winning over sceptics. It too is in the running for Truck of the Year.Unlike the F Series and Corvette, it will be shipped to Australia starting mid-year. Hometown drawcards will force foreign brands backstage despite an impressive line-up.German and Japanese carmakers are also stressing traditional petrol-driven horsepower with an exceptional crop of performance cars. BMW debuts two halo junior executives in the M3 sedan and M4 coupe, which drop V8s in favour of six cylinders but have more power and better efficiency thanks to turbocharging.Lexus has the M4 in its sights with the RC F, a V8 coupe based on its mid-size luxury sedan. Meanwhile, Mercedes rolls out its next generation C-Class and a tuned version of its small off-roader, the GLA 45 AMG; Porsche shows a retro-flavoured 911 Targa sportscar; and Mini a concept that previews the upcoming John Cooper Works go-fast edition.Audi will attract attention for a crossover concept. It is expected to preview its smallest SUV yet, likely to be called Q1. The Detroit show has yet to return to its glory days of over-the-top presentations and for-the-fun-of-it concept cars, but the industry has been bolstered by 15.6 million sales last year and newfound confidence after the economic storm of four years ago.   

Licence-threatening burnout modes could well be the new launch control if the new BMW M3 Sedan and M4 Coupe are anything to go by, with confirmation of the optional new feature coming just days after reports of the 2015 Ford Mustang also boasting the pyrotechnic function.While ‘Smokey Burnout Mode’ might be handy at Summernats or when recreating 1980s music videos, BMW’s new hi-po mid-sizers are also more powerful, faster, lighter and more efficient than the M3 Sedan and Coupe they replace.Watch the desktop version of the BMW M3, M4, 2 Series, i8 and i3 at Detroit video here.Also watch the official M3 and M4 video here.  The looks of the new M3 and M4 come as no surprise though, with the enhancements over the garden variety 3 and 4 Series models a predictable facsimile of the impressive M4 Coupe concept unveiled at Pebble Beach in August.Also no surprise is the new models’ return to a six-cylinder configuration after the 4.0L V8 E90/92 series, the new M3 and M4 use a twin-turbo dry-sump 3.0L straight six that revs to a 700rpm fewer 7600 redline, but power climbs from 309 to 317kW and torque jumps from 400 to 550Nm. The flexible turbo layout makes max power from 5500-7300rpm, and max torque is available across a Nullarbor-like 1850-5500rpm. Such figures promise to rectify the tractability missing from the naturally aspirated V8, which achieved peak torque at 3900rpm and power at the stratospheric 8300rpm redline. Another bonus from the reduced-capacity turbo layout is a 25 per cent fuel consumption improvement over the current models’ 11.2 (auto) and 12.4L/100km (manual) combined figures, with both M3 and M4 recording 8.3 (auto) and 8.8L/100km (manual) on the European cycle.Both models are at least 80kg lighter than their forebears thanks to greater use of carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP) and aluminium, and the Sedan now matches the Coupe’s carbon roof panel for the first time.These improvements result in a claimed 0-100km/h figure of 4.1 seconds for both models, an improvement of at least half a second over the previous M3. Top speed is limited to 250km/h, or 280km/h with the optional M Driver’s Package.Thankfully, the choice of either six-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch DCT auto options remain for the new M3 and M4, and the new manual joins the DCT in blipping the throttle on downshifts.Power is sent to the Active M Differential via a 40 per cent lighter one-piece carbon fibre driveshaft, and the Nurburgring-honed M3 and M4 boast their track readiness with a sophisticated integrated cooling system for the engine, turbochargers and transmission.Also preparing the new models for the track is an M-specific suspension setup with standard lightweight forged 18 inch alloys. Staggered widths of 9 and 10 inches front and rear are wrapped in 255 and 275mm tyres, while heavier 19 inch rims and a carbon ceramic braking package remain optional.One detail unique to the new M3 and M4 is a serpent-like carbon-fibre strut brace draped between the suspension towers for chassis rigidity, and its one feature that’s destined for Ebay replication. The new BMW M3 and M4 are expected to arrive on Australian shores some time after mid-year. 

There are exciting new releases planned across the board; from budget hatches to practical SUVs, to exotic supercars. We’ve broken them down into segments and likely price categories to help you. We've based our price estimations on the current market, but some estimations could change in the future, and some model ranges span across price categories, so be sure to check our other stories...New cars for 2014 | less than $20,000New cars for 2014 | $20,000-$40,000New cars for 2014 | $40,000-$59,000New cars for 2014 | $59,000-$100,000LUXURY CARSAudi A8: Audi will refresh its A8 flagship sedan lineup by mid-2014, with subtle styling tweaks and interior details, along with shuffled drivetrain options. (Approximately $188,000-$249,000)Audi RS7 Sportback: Essentially a five-door hatch version of the existing RS6 Avant, the RS7 will arrive in February with sleeker Sportback styling than the wagon, and the same 412kW/700Nm 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8. 0-100km/h is the same 3.9 seconds too. (Approximately $240,000)Bentley Continental GT S: While Bentley prepares its first SUV model, there’s not much else in store for 2014 from the legendary Brit aside from powered-up new S models added to the V8 Continental GT lineup. (Approximately $380,000)Jaguar XJR: Jaguar will add the new XJR to its XJ big sedan lineup in the first quarter, with the 5.0-litre supercharged V8 performance flagship to sit above the existing Supersport range-topper. (Approximately $350,000)Lexus RC: Lexus’ new RC coupe should arrive before the end of 2014 to take on the BMW 4 Series and Audi A5, with a choice of petrol V6 and hybrid drivetrains likely to expand to include a high-performance 5.0-litre V8 RC-F soon after. (Approximately $70,000-$130,000)Maserati Quattroporte and Ghibli: 2014 is set to be a big year for Maserati, with the new Quattroporte (Approximately from $250,000) arriving in V6 form in January, and V8 form in February, with the return of the smaller Ghibli sedan ( Approximately from $150,000) in March.Mercedes-Benz S-Class: Mercedes will cap its local S-Class sedan lineup in January, with the arrival of the $385,000 S63 AMG high performance model. The 430kW/900Nm twin-turbo V8 S63 will sit above the existing S350 and S500 models, and be joined by the diesel-electric S350 BlueTec hybrid and twin-turbo V6 S400 variants by June. (Approximately $250,000-$385,000)Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe: Mercedes’ upcoming S-Class Coupe is expected down under before the year’s end, with the yet to be officially revealed new model replacing the existing CL coupe models. A drop-top version is also planned, and a V8 and V12 petrol-only lineup is expected with an entry price north of $300,000 likely.Porsche Panamera E-Hybrid: The plug-in Panamera E-Hybrid is also due early in the year, with a supercharged 3.0-litre V6 and 70kW electric motor to enable 3.1L/100km fuel use with 0-100km/h acceleration in 5.5 seconds. (Approximately $296,900)SUV/4WDLand Rover Range Rover: Before mid-year, Land Rover will add a range-topping lineup (Approximately $250,000) with new hybrid versions of it and the Sport expected before the end of the year. (Approximately $102,000-$182,000)Porsche Macan: Porsche will add the new sub-Cayenne Macan SUV to its Australian lineup from June, with the cheapest diesel model forming a new entry point to Porsche ownership at $84,900. Twin-turbo 3.0 and 3.6-litre V6s will sit further up the price scale, with the 294kW top-spec capable of 0-100km/h in 4.6 seconds. (Approximately $84,900-$122,900)SPORTS/PERFORMANCEAston Martin V12 Vantage S: Aston will add its fastest model this side of the ultra-exclusive One-77 in the first quarter of this year, in the form of the track-ready V12 Vantage S coupe. (Approximately $450,000)BMW M3 and M4: BMW’s new M3 and M4 mid-size performance heroes are set to arrive after mid-year, with the move to twin-turbo six power resulting in the fastest M3 to date, and matched by the renamed M4 coupe. (Approximately $124,000-$180,000)BMW i8: The i8 plug-in hybrid sports car is expected to arrive before the year’s end, blending grand tourer luxury with 4.4 second 0-100km/h acceleration and 2.5L/100km fuel economy. (Approximately $200,000)Ferrari 458 Speciale: The first of 60 Australian examples of Ferrari’s hardcore 458 Speciale are set to arrive before mid-year, with the lighter, more powerful track-focused special able to lap Fiorano 1.5 seconds faster than the old Enzo flagship. (Approximately $550,000)Jaguar F-Type Coupe: Jaguar will add the recently unveiled Coupe version of its stunning F-Type in the third quarter, with the 20kg lighter V6, V6 S and V8 S variants also expected to slightly undercut their soft-top counterparts on price. The Coupe-only F-Type R will sit at the top of the hardtop range, with the 404kW/680Nm spec V8 promising 0-100km/h acceleration in the order of 4.2 seconds. (Approximately $125,000-$200,000)Lamborghini Huracan: With the Gallardo now officially out of production, Lamborghini is keen to follow with its Huracan replacement to sit beneath the V12 Aventador models before June. The V10 Huracan is set to challenge Ferrari’s 458 with an uprated version of the Gallardo’s 5.2-litre V10 and seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. From $428,000Nissan GT-R: Nissan will bring its latest incarnation of the GT-R performance coupe down under from March, with cosmetic upgrades the key changes for 2014. New LED headlights and taillights are changed for the first time since 2007, and mesh wheels keep Nissan’s giant-killer a fresh opponent for Porsche’s new 911 Turbo models. (Approximately from $170,000)Porsche 911 Turbo and GT3: Porsche will launch several key hi-po versions of the 991 911 to its Australian lineup in the first half of 2014, with the $359,800 Turbo and $441,300 Turbo S arriving first in coupe and convertible ($29,000 premium) guises, with the $294,000 track-oriented and now PDK-only GT3 soon after.Porsche 911 Targa: The new semi-convertible unveiled in Detroit will touch down in Australia before mis-year, with a new folding roof mechanism and all-wheel drive 4 and 4S versions. Both manual and PDK auto will be available, and prices will sit $2,300-$3,300 over existing Cabriolet models. (Approximately $247,900-$291,050)CONVERTIBLESAston Martin Vanquish Volante: For those who prefer their V12 Astons roofless and with a back seat, Aston will bring the Vanquish Volante to Australia in the first quarter of 2014. (Approximately $510,000)Bentley Continental GTC S: Like the hardtop GT, the soft top Continental GTC is set to score a powered up S model in 2014. (Approximately $420,000)BMW 4 Series convertible: The folding hardtop version of BMW’s 4-Series coupe is expected by March, and echo its hardtop sibling with 420d, 428i, and 435i drivetrains. (Approximately $85,000-$120,000)   

Following the recent reveals of the performance-focused BMW M3 sedan and M4 coupe, the German car brand has launched configurators so you can build your own, rotate it to get a look from all angles -- and then order it, if you're one of the lucky future buyers.The configurators will let you choose your car's alloy wheels, paint colour and then head into the cabin to customise the upholstery, interior trims and accent lines. Because we're a pretty restrained bunch at Carsguide, we've gone for the M3 in Yas Marina Blue body colour with M 19-inch double-spoke black wheels, Silverstone orange leather upholstery with gloss black trim and accent lines.Try the BMW M3 configuratorFor the M4 we decided on Austin Yellow paint, again the M 19-inch double-spoke black wheels (yes, we've got a bit of a thing for them), Black Merino leather with Blue Shadow trim and black chrome accent lines.Try the BMW M4 configuratorAnd in our Walter Mitty daydreams, we'll be imagining the shove from the twin-turbo 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder engines' boosted outputs of 317kW and 550Nm (up from 309kW and 400Nm) handled by the carryover choice of the either six-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch DCT auto -- both now blipping the throttle on downshifts.Then there's the claimed  0-100km/h figure of 4.1 seconds for both cars, with top speeds limited to 250km/h, or 280km/h with the optional M Driver’s Package. And the cherry on top of our heavily frosted daydreams would have to be the 'smoky burnout' mode -- although keeping that in our imagination would also keep our licences intact.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

Images of the new BMW M3 and M4 have been revealed via an online BMW blog ahead of their official debut tomorrow. As you'd expect, the photos show a more aggressive treatment for the bodies, with muscular wheelarches housing big alloys, quad exhaust tips, and M badged heat extraction vents behind the front wheels.Watch the desktop version of the official BMW M3 and M4 video here.With the new BMW 4-Series already in Australian showrooms  attention will now be focusing on what we can expect in the coming BMW M3 and M4 that are set to arrive next May, BMW has alreqady comfirmed the outputs for the cars, announcing them at a technology workshop. The new M3 and M4 will deliver about 320 kilowatts of power and 'far beyond' 500 Newton-metres of torque from the latest 3.0-litre turbo in-line six-cylinder engine.The M3 gets a considerable hike over the same engine in the 4-Series 435i Carsguide tested in July, which delivers 225kW and 400Nm. But it's less of a jump over the outgoing M3's 4.0-litre V8 with 309kW and 400Nm. The M4's output is said to be 310kW, but we've also heard talk of a bigger 3.3-litre turbocharged six-cylinder that could offer 336kW. The German carmaker says that the engines are also much more efficient, achieving a reduction in fuel consumption and emissions of 'around 25 per cent'.BMW has reportedly decided on a more modest power hike in favour of a wider torque spread than the V8, also helped by a new cylinder head. In addition, the coming M3 and M4 will be lighter, with weight-saving strategies joining a carryover carbon-fibre roof to keep it tipping the scales in the target range of about 1500kg -- a drop of 100kg on the outgoing M3. More details will be revealed tomorrow, in preparation for the official unveiling at January's Detroit motor show.Watch the BMW M3 and M4 testing at the Nurburgring.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott  

After splitting their house into separate line-ups for the sedans and two-doors, BMW is getting ready to reveal the new M3 sedan and the M4 coupe

The M4 has already been unveiled as a motor show tease and this is the real thing, despite the underwhelming look of a 4 Series coupe body that looks like it's still waiting for the M work.It won't have the power of the C63 from Benz, but BMW is still touting more than 330 kiloWatts with sequential turbocharging.

 M fans need wonder no more; the BMW Concept M4 has just been revealed ahead of its debut at the 2013 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and subsequent Frankfurt appearance.Though still a concept, the car is an almost perfect representation of BMW’s successor to the M3 Coupe, the new M4, which we’re expecting to see debut at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show in January.Full information on the Concept M4 will be released in a few hours but from these images, we can see that the design takes the already aggressive 4-Series and turns things up a notch. Pumped fenders, chunky alloy wheels and carbon fiber used on the roof and exhaust tips all scream performance, and it’s great to see that designers have retained the previous M3 Coupe’s powerdome hood.The sedan version of the car, the M3, should adopt a similarly aggressive look. It is expected to debut in production trim alongside the M4 in Detroit. Both cars should be for the US market a few months after the 2014 Detroit Auto Show in January.What’s still unclear is what will be powering them. The engine is tipped to be a turbocharged 3.0-litre straight-six and matched to it should be an M-DCT seven-speed dual-clutch ‘box. Drive will be sent to the rear wheels via a limited-slip differential. You can hear the new engine in a teaser video released by BMW M recently.www.motorauthority.com  

Keep this video on repeat as those growls you hear are the sweet sounds of the new straight-six engine developed for the latest generation of the BMW M3 and the all-new M4 (basically a new M3 Coupe). Also shown in the video is a small sliver of the new M3’s power dome hood, whose yellow hue is likely to be the car’s hero color.BMW is set to preview either its new M3 or M4 (or perhaps both) in concept form at the 2013 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance later this week and will follow up with the production versions at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show in January. The cars are likely to hit the market early next spring, as 2014 models.The M3 will get the F30 3-Series’ body and the M4 will get the F32 4-Series’s svelte coupe shape. However, both cars will have common internals. The highlight will be the raspy engine you hear in the video above, which to these ears sounds a bit like the 3.2-litre straight-six last used in the E46 M3.The engine is believed to be a 3.0-litre unit codenamed the S55. That makes it sound very much like a high-performance derivative of the N55 found in the latest 335i and 435i models, which makes sense as the BMW M Division is no longer building standalone engines.A pair of turbochargers and tuning of the heads should get performance to the levels demanded by an M car. We’re expecting a power figure somewhere between 300 and 335 kW.www.motorauthority.com  

Much has been made of the significance of the two-door M3's name change to M4. But both M3 and M4 will live on in the 2014 model year, despite the nomenclatural bifurcation.The real test, of course, will be how the new M4 drives. If it's lighting lap times on fire and stunning stoplight racers, the name will be a technicality.Fortunately, we may not have long to wait now. In an interview with Motor Trend, BMW M Performance Automobiles's managing director Friedrich Nitschke has confirmed both the M3 sedan and M4 coupe will be at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show.So what can we expect next January? The 2014 BMW M4 is expected to focus on performance through lightness, shaving weight from the standard 4-Series wherever possible. Add to that a turbocharged in-line six-cylinder engine cranking out something north of 310kW and you have the start of a good recipe.The same engine is expected in the 2014 M3 sedan, and most of the rest of the performance equipment should be shared between the two, though adjustments to account for tuning differences will be made. Among the other performance-enhancers expected for the M3/M4 duo is an electronically controlled limited-slip rear differential, lower and stiffer suspension, wider wheels and tires, upgraded brakes, and a range of aerodynamic changes to the exterior. For more details, see our 2014 BMW M3 spy shots.www.motorauthority.com