BMW M2 xDrive Adds All-Wheel-Drive, Subtracts 0-60 Times, Hurts Keyboard Warriors

The BMW M2 has always been the German automaker's smallest and most enthusiast-oriented offering. Since its introduction for the 2016 model year, it has only ever been offered with rear-wheel drive. Today, that all changes with the introduction of the first M2 xDrive. That's right, folks. All-wheel-drive has come for the M2. You shouldn't be shocked. We warned you this was happening back in February. Before any of you keyboard warriors get yourself into too much of a tizzy, please take a quick breath. I want you to know it's just an option. Rear-wheel drive is still standard. Okay? Relax.

Anyway, now that the folks who weren't going to buy a new M2 in the first place are gone, we can talk about how the new M2 xDrive is actually pretty damn neat. It still has the same twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six cylinder motor found in the standard M2, pumping out an identical 473 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque. That power is then routed through a standard eight-speed M-tuned automatic transmission (sadly, there's no manual option in the xDrive), electronic limited-slip differential to all four wheels. The combination gives it a 0-60 time of 3.6 seconds, according to BMW — 0.3 seconds quicker than the RWD car, despite the 121 pounds the AWD system brings with it. Not too shabby.

BMW

The rest of its acceleration specs are equally not shabby. The M2 xDrive will rocket from 0-124 mph in just 12.8 seconds, which is incredibly quick for a sub-$100,000 car, and even at speed, the acceleration is brisk. The sprint from 50 to 75 mph is just 3.7 seconds. If you really keep your foot in it, the M2 xDrive will top out at 155 mph — rising to 177 if you go with the optional M Driver's Package. Those are both identical to the regular M2.

Even in the turns, though, BMW says the M2 xDrive will still feel like a rear-wheel drive car thanks to its Active M Differential, which can distribute power variably between each rear wheel as required — just like the regular car. Hell, in normal driving conditions, BMW says power is sent exclusively to the rear wheels. The fronts only spin up when the rears start losing traction. It says that the car's M xDrive system (including an electronically controlled multi-plate clutch in the transfer case) works in tandem with the active M Diff and stability control to keep the driver pointed in the right direction while they enjoy themselves.

BMW

Like other low-roof all-wheel-drive BMW M cars, AWD can be disabled altogether, and the M2 xDrive can be put in rear-wheel drive mode when Dynamic Stability Control is disabled. Other than having a manual transmission and gaining a few extra pounds, it's hard to argue the M2 xDrive isn't a really solid package.

BMW

Even though the AWD system brings with it a lot more componentry underneath, the car — as I mentioned before — is just 121 pounds heavier than the standard M2 automatic. It weighs in at 3,988 pounds, according to BMW. The RWD M2 has a curb weight of 3,867 pounds.

Similar to the standard car, the M2 xDrive gets 19-inch front and 20-inch rear wheels that can be optionally wrapped in track tires from the factory, as well as M Compound brakes with six-piston calipers up front and six-piston calipers in the back. Buyers can choose from fourteen different colors on the outside — including six BMW Individual colors like Borusan Turkish Blue, which hasn't been available on the M2 in the past.

BMW

Other than that, though, this is pretty much what you think it is: a regular M2 with a couple more drive wheels. Nothing more, and nothing less. Hell, it'll even be hard to tell on the outside, other than a few xDrive badges (which aren't actually pictured in the imagines BMW shared with us). It's clearly filling a niche for folks who might want an M2 but maybe live somewhere where the weather isn't all that nice.

Sure, purists will be angry with BMW, but when aren't purists angry with BMW? For everyone else who digs this sort of thing, sales start later this summer — right in time for the weather to turn nasty.