We are days away from the world premiere of BMW's hotly anticipated M2 as the wraps will come off Tuesday, October 11. The digital premiere will be followed by a public debut the very next weekend in South Carolina at the BMW Performance Center. The compact sports coupe will be joined by the locally built XM, Bavaria's first dedicated M car since the M1 of the late 1970s and early 1980s. The two models are at opposite poles in the vast M lineup.
While the previous-generation M2 was assembled at home in Leipzig, Germany, it's replacement will be much closer to where the XM is assembled. BMW has decided to move production of its smallest M car to Mexico at the San Luis Potosi Plant. Should you wish to be among the first to see the M2 (codename G87), it's going to be showcased on Saturday, October 15, during the M Anniversary Celebration event to mark 50 years of the performance division.
2023 BMW M2 Prototype: First Drive
BMW is charging $35 for a ticket to attend the afternoon festival but you can also splurge $135 to join the driving event scheduled for 8 AM to 12 PM. The latter consists of two-hour sessions with the latest M products on the track while receiving guidance from the Performance Center's professional drivers. Throughout the whole day, attendees will be able to admire rare street and race cars spanning five decades of heritage. You can even book to ride shotgun in a classic race car and the proceeds will be redirected to benefit the BMW CCA Foundation.
The M2 will be the very last series production M car with a gasoline-only engine as all subsequent models are going to feature some sort of electrification. The baby M will inherit the inline-six engine from the M3/M4 but detuned to a little over 450 horsepower. BMW has confirmed a six-speed manual will be offered alongside an automatic, with both gearboxes routing the twin-turbo 3.0-liter's output to the rear wheels.
