BMW M3 and M4 head to Pure shores

BMW Australia has given its M3 and M4 performance pair a mid-life refresh, which ushers in updated levels of specification and a stripped-down Pure variant for the M3 and M4 Coupe, based on the Competition grade, priced from $129,900 plus on-roads for the M3 Pure.

Previously available on the M2 and outgoing M5, the Pure is equipped with the M Competition package which boosts power by 14kW to 331kW/550Nm, and ensures a 0-100km/h time of 4.0 seconds when teamed with the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

A 4.2s time is achieved when using the no-cost option six-speed manual gearbox.

Fuel consumption from the Pure’s 3.0-litre twin-turbo inline six-cylinder engine that also powers all the M3/M4 range is rated at 8.8 litres per 100km, while emissions stand at 204 grams of CO2 per km.

Suspension settings on the Pure have been tweaked for a stiffer setup, with the three adaptive settings – Comfort, Sport and Sport+ – reconfigured so that the Pure’s Comfort setting is equivalent to the M3/M4’s Sport setting.

Spring rates have also been increased by 15 per cent to allow for flatter cornering posture and swifter response with hard driving.

Visually, the Pure gains gloss black highlights on the rear M badge, exhaust pipes, exterior gills and kidney grille, while black 19-inch double-spoke light alloy wheels are offered as standard.

BMW is offering the 20-inch alloys from the Competition as an option.

BMW has removed equipment from the stripped-out Pure such as the Merino leather upholstery, harman/kardon surround sound system, heated front seats, roller sunblinds for rear seats, adaptive LED headlights and high-beam assist.

Specification on the Pure twins include a head-up display, carbon-fibre roof (unless a sunroof is optioned), carbon-fibre interior trim, navigation system professional, tyre pressure monitor, carbon structure cloth/leather upholstery, nine-speaker HiFi sound system, LED headlights, lane departure warning, approach control, keyless entry, and ConnectedDrive in-car services.

Meanwhile, the rest of the M3 sedan and M4 Coupe and Convertible range has been given light updates with no change to price, following updates to the 4 Series range last month.

The adaptive LED headlights have been tweaked with a hexagonal design replacing the old twin-circle headlight cluster, while at the rear new L-shaped LED tail-lights appear.

Inside, BMW’s latest iDrive6 infotainment system has been incorporated to the 8.8-inch colour display, that can be navigated using the iDrive controller or voice recognition.

Other interior updates include double stitching on the leather panel, electroplated details and chrome interior trims, an illuminated M3/M4 badge on the sports seats, and more tactile column stalks that stay depressed when pushed.

Pricing remains unchanged, with the cheapest of the non-Pure variants still the M3 priced from $139,900 plus on-roads, while the M4 Competition Convertible has the highest asking price at $165,900.

The updated M3/M4 range arrives in June, with the Pure following in July.

The limited-edition M4 CS will broaden the M4 range to four variants when it arrives in the fourth quarter, as a more hardcore version of the Competition but slightly less brutal than the M4 GTS.

BMW Group Australia CEO Marc Werner said the introduction of the Pure variants offered buyers a more affordable point of entry while keeping the dynamic focus of the M Competition package.

“The Pure puts an even-sharper focus on the driver by combining the popular Competition package with an extremely competitive price point. It’s a true ‘enthusiast’s choice’,” he said.

2017 BMW M pricing*

M3 Sedan
M3 Pure (a)	$129,900
M3 (a)	$139,900
M3 Competition (a)	$144,900
M4 Coupe
M4 Pure (a)	$139,900
M4 (a)	$149,900
M4 Competition (a)	$154,900
M4 Convertible
M4 (a)	$161,900
M4 Competition (a)	$165,900

*Excludes on-road costs