The BMW M2 Competition takes on its bigger brother, the M340i, in a drag race

Family squabbles are also very common these days, especially in the car world, a sector in which the most powerful brands keep trying to outdo one another time and again. BMW presents itself as a company where the sporting gene has existed since time immemorial, something the new generations bearing the M badge remind us of. We see this reflected in the newcomer M2 Competition and in the M340i, the first sporting variant of the new 3 Series G20. Both models have decided to test their capabilities on the track, thanks to Carwow, a popular YouTube channel that set out to find out which is faster.

It is true that these two offspring of the German firm belong to very different segments, but their similar performance and the M badge shared by both lineages make us try to find similarities and differences between the two. To avoid hesitation and debate over the answer to this question, a straight-line acceleration race was held between the two heavyweights, who are seeking, in a friendly way, to find out whether the pupil has surpassed the master.

M2 Competition: pure German muscle

Rumours of an BMW M2 with the M4’s engine circulated tirelessly everywhere, until the German firm finally decided to ease our cravings with the presentation of that vehicle, the union we all suspected was coming. Under the Competition name came one of the wildest and most radical German sports cars to date, where power and precision join hands.

This is reflected in its engine, inherited from its bigger brother, which features a mechanical layout built around a 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder block capable of delivering 410 CV and 550 Nm of torque. These figures catapult the M2 Competition to 100 km/h in just 4.4 seconds, and it is set to reach a top speed of 250 km/h, electronically limited.

M340i: the delicious prelude to the imminent M3

The arrival of the latest generation of the BMW 3 Series has generated great anticipation, since it is presented as a mid-size saloon wrapped in the new design language used by the Bavarian firm. However, it was only a matter of time before BMW’s M department began working on the 3 Series G20, and the M340i is the first result of that involvement.

This name introduces the variant ahead of the future M3 and, although it does not match the same level of performance, it already features a very promising mechanical package. Beneath the bonnet of this first souped-up version of the 3 Series lies a turbocharged inline six-cylinder heart capable of producing 374 CV of power and 500 Nm of torque, figures that are shared between both axles thanks to xDrive all-wheel drive.

Time to face off

Although the M340i also claims the same 0 to 100 as its smaller sibling, the M2 Competition manages to take a slight lead in that contest. However, the final result ends with both competitors stopping the clock at the same time: 12.6 seconds over the quarter mile. But it is in the rolling race that we see the most radical version of the M2 win the day without question, demonstrating the difference between the two models.

From this premise we can conclude that the new BMW M340i is capable of delivering performance worthy of the M badge, but it will be with the future M3 that we see the work the German firm has put in over these last few years, a model that will arrive ready not only to revolutionise the segment, but also to mark a new era for the brand.

https://youtu.be/HqHCbqM0bBg

Technical specifications of this car

SedanBMW Serie 318 versions · from 50,200 €