M version of X4 confirmed – but not for us

That escalated quickly. It took years of pushing, demanding and questioning before BMW brought the X5 and X6 into the M fold. It’s taken just a year to bring the smaller X4 to the same place.

While the five-seat X4 M40i isn’t a full-house M car, it’s still signature fast and suitably menacing in the looks department. The bad news is it is not likely to be built in right-hand drive.

For those of you still interested (Ed: not me!) here’s a few details…

Thanks to a 265kW version of the turbocharged, inline 3.0-litre turbo six-cylinder engine under the nose, the X4 M40i is capable of bursting to 100km/h in 4.9sec, with its top speed limited to 250km/h. And, unlike the full-house M cars, the M Performance Automobiles special is all-wheel drive, so it should be able to get close to its best start-line surge regardless of the weather.

The heart of the upgrade to M40i status is in its engine. It uses variable valve timing and lift, direct fuel injection and a twin-scroll turbocharger to deliver 465Nm from just 1350rpm, all the way up to 5250rpm. No excuses for being caught in the wrong gear, then.

Also fitted to the new 340i, the engine uses the forged steel crankshaft from the M3/M4 engine, along with the spark plugs and the crankshaft bearings. The pistons, too, are almost identical, differing only in their top ring design. It also gets an upgraded air-intake manifold, boasts a higher fuel pressure and more turbo boost, plus receiving a stand-alone oil cooler.

Its exhaust system will be characterized by more than just its black chrome tips, with a double-flow exhaust setup under the floor, active control of the exhaust flap an a unique resonator to deliver its own sound tuning.

The eight-speed automatic transmission delivers a launch-control system as standard kit, along with paddle shifters on the steering wheel and more aggressive downshift mapping.

The chassis grip should be improved by adding more front camber and BMW M Performance has stiffened the wishbones in an attempt to deliver greater feedback through the steering. A tauter M Performance steering tune has also been introduced.

BMW has aimed to reduce body roll by stiffening the springs and anti-roll bars all around compared to the standard car and there’s an optional M Performance version of the electronically controller active damping system.

Forced to tote 1840kg (dry), the 3.0-litre straight six uses 8.6L/100km (NEDC Combined).