BMW spills details on upcoming 4 Series
Thursday, 30 April 2020
BMW has revealed fresh details on its upcoming 4 Series refresh, due later this year.
The Bavarian C-Class and A5 competitor will be spearheaded by the M440i Drive until the mighty M4 arrives.
It will get the same turbocharged 3.0-litre inline-six as the M340i, albeit with the addition of a 48 volt mild hybrid system.
The new electricals consist of an 8kW starter/generator and a small lithium-ion battery to both improve efficiency and off-the-line go. Total power is an identical 275kW while torque should be improved over the M340i's 500Nm. BMW isn't getting into specifics on those, but we'll get all the information when the model launches around July.
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As the xDrive suffix denotes, the M440i will have all-wheel drive, with an eight-speed automatic doing the cog changing. BMW's M Sport active differential on the rear axle should improve handling. The manufacturer doesn't say whether or not this is a fully adjustable AWD system like the M5's, but we would imagine a small amount of rear-drive lunacy will still be possible.
Coming default are larger brakes and 18-inch wheels, with 19s available as an option. Ride height has been dropped by 57mm compared to the 3er, with a 23mm wider front and rear track. The centre of gravity has been lowered 21mm and, as a result, BMW says the 4 Series should have the dynamic edge over the 3 Series sedan.
As for suspension, the same double-joint sprint-struts are up front while the rear end is held together by a five-link set-up. We'd expect the 3 Series' trick 'lift-related dampers' to be present and accounted for as well.
More bracing elements at the front and rear have been applied to improve stiffness and steering precision as well as straight-line stability and lateral acceleration.
In terms of styling, well, you can see the images above. Not much to go on, aside from the regular-sized kidney grille. It looks like the big sniffer will be reserved for the M3/M4, though BMW could simply be hiding the true size of the grille destined for the cooking 4 Series.
The M440i xDrive will be joined by a convertible version as well as a four-door Gran Coupe before the high-performance M4 debuts.
M has already confirmed the fastest 3 and 4 Series models will get the 375kW/600Nm 3.0-litre twin-turbo straight-six engines already found in the X3 and X4 M Competition models. In addition to the all-paw automatic versions, M will offer a manual transmission for the purists out there… all two dozen of them that will actually buy one.