Now that we’ve learned about the upcoming G80 BMW M3 and G82 BMW M4, we know that the version to get, of either car, is the standard version. Why not opt for the more powerful Competition model instead? Well, because the standard model comes with something special that rests in between the front seats — a manual gear lever. The standard M3 and M4 will come with a manual transmission and that makes them the versions to get. In this newly released video from BMW M, we get to see a manual M4 lap a track from inside the cabin.
This video shows off the M4 lapping a circuit, with the driver actually moving his arm to change gears. Imagine that? More interestingly, it shows the driver heel-and-toeing on downshifts. What’s makes that interesting is the fact that most BMWs have always had auto rev-matching unless you turn the traction and stability control all the way off.
Now, maybe this driver did just that for the video, allowing him to heel-and-toe, but Zee Germans typically won’t do that. So it will be interesting to see if the new BMW M3 and M4 have the ability to turn that function off and still keep stability control on. If that’s the case, that shows BMW has listened to the complaints of its customers, who want to heel-and-toe on their own, on the street, without turning off stability control, as that would be unsafe on the road.
It sounds pretty good, too. Obviously there’s some speaker trickery going on but it should be able to either be turned off or at least turned down, as is the case with most new M Performance cars.
Overall, it’s just good to see the next BMW M4 actually being driven on a track, the way it’s meant to be driven; with a proper three-pedal gearbox and some heel-and-toe action.
