After teasing them yesterday, BMW Malaysia has introduced the 2014 F80 BMW M3 Sedan and F82 M4 Coupe in the country – the cars were officially unveiled at a closed customer event in Sepang earlier today. There’s no press launch, so we’ll have to make do with just these few exterior photos of the duo.
Revealed globally last December, the sedan and coupe break tradition of having both wearing the same M3 badge, as seen in the previous E90 and E92 versions of the type. Also moving away from tradition is the use of a turbocharged engine, replacing the normally-aspirated route of yore.
Visually, the cars showcase BMW M design features such as the distinctive M double-bar kidney grill, M Double-spoke style wheels, heavily bolstered wheelarches and the characteristic dual-exhaust system, with their four tailpipes.
There’s that unmistakable power dome on the bonnet, and the M gills have been re-designed, now featuring Air Breathers exit slots that team up with the Air Curtain intakes positioned within the front bumper to improve aerodynamics.
Elsewhere, a black, unpainted CFRP roof is standard fitment on the car, and at the back, the M3 Sedan gets a Gurney spoiler lip and the M4 Coupe, an integrated rear spoiler lip, as well as a diffuser in the rear apron.
Inside, you get the usual mix of carbon-fibre trim and leather-upholstered sports seats, with plenty of M-badged extras (door sills, driver’s footrest, gear lever, etc.) to remind you what you’re in. The traditional BMW M circular instrument panel with white graphics and M leather steering wheel with three-colour contrast stitching are all here too.
The front seats are of the M sports variety, and have a one-piece shell back panel derived from bucket seats used in motor racing. They’re lighter than their predecessors, and feature illuminated BMW M logos on the seat backrests.
Speaking of lighter, the cars themselves are too, down 80 kg from the previous generation – the local M3 Sedan and M4 Coupe tip the scales at 1,635 kg and 1,612 kg respectively.
Drivetrain-wise, the cars share the same 3.0 litre straight-six M TwinPower Turbo engine called the S55, which replaces the naturally-aspirated 4.0 litre V8 motor seen in the previous generation. Power is up from 420 hp to 431 hp at 5,390 to 7,000 rpm.
That’s not a lot, but maximum twist has gone up significantly, from 400 Nm in the old car to 550 Nm now. The torque is also available across a wider rev band too (1,800-5,390 rpm), and the motor revs up to 7,600 rpm, high for a turbocharged engine.
Performance figures include a 0-100 km/h time of 4.1 seconds in both the M3 Sedan and M4 Coupe, this with the seven-speed M DCT ‘box. The six-speed manual transmission variant, which doesn’t go on sale here, is 0.2 seconds slower. Top speed, meanwhile, is electronically-limited to 250 km/h.
Aside from the standard fit Active M Differential, M Dynamic Mode and the newly-developed M Servotronic electromechanical steering system, the Malaysian models feature standard M compound brakes, but come with Adaptive M suspension fitted.
Baseline wheels are 18-inch units, but the local cars come with 19-inch double-spoke M light alloys (and mixed-sized tyres) as standard fitment, with a silver finish found on the M3 wheels, and black for the M4.
Three exterior colours are available for the M3 Sedan – there’s Alpine White and Sakhir Orange, which comes with a Leather Merino Black interior scheme. The hero shade is Yas Marina Blue, which gets the option of Leather Merino Silverstone for interior upholstery.
As for the M4, Alpine White and Sakhir Orange again feature alongside Mineral Grey and the striking Austin Yellow for exterior colours, with Leather Merino Black and Leather Merino Sakhir Orange being the interior schemes available.
The BMW M3 Sedan is priced at RM738,800, while the M4 Coupe goes for RM748,800, both on-the-road without insurance, with BMW Service + Repair Inclusive (BS+RI).
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