BMW has given the M2 more power, more speed and more colour

At no point in Top Gear’s custody of a baby blue BMW M2 did we once think, ‘hmm, bit underpowered, this, could use another 20-odd horses and more torque’. BMW has clearly thought about it more than once, because it’s given it exactly that.

So, the not-so-baby BMW M car has been given an inflation-linked power and torque bump, which brings more speed in all the crucial, pub bore measures. Where the 3.0-litre twin-turbo straight-six once delivered 454bhp – loads for a small-ish, rear-drive coupe – it now develops 474bhp.

The M-experts among you will spot that this follows the refreshed M3 and M4 (which use the same engine) being bumped from 503bhp to 523bhp. So, the nostril twins stay just ahead of the ‘baby’ M car. And the marketing department can rest easy at night.

There’s more torque on offer, too – but only if you opt for the eight-speed automatic (which, whisper it, we actually preferred). So the self-shifter gets 443lb ft, while the six-speed manual gearbox, still an option, only comes with 406lb ft. Either figure is sufficient.

Not least because the refreshed M2 will now sprint from 0-62mph in 4.0s (for the auto, 4.2s for the manual) and 0-124mph in 12.9s (13.7s for the manual). Context? The former is 0.1s faster, the latter over half a second. That’s serious pace… that nobody asked for.

Anyway, as per the rules, max speed is still capped at 155mph, and can still be uncapped to 177mph. There’s the same M-specific exhaust note, and the same M-specific bodywork which still isn’t as clean as the old M2. Bruiser, this thing.

Speaking of which, you can spec a new colour called ‘Twilight Purple’ so it looks like a 1,725kg bruise, and if you’re immediately thinking ‘Daytona Violet E36 M3’, we salute you.  Other colours are available too: red, yellow, grey, green, and some blue.

Inside, there’s a new steering wheel that’s flat in bottom, M Carbon buckets as an option, BMW’s upgraded Operating System 8.5, and all the other goodies you get bundled in with a powerful, rear-wheel-drive not-so-baby BMW M car.

Not-so-baby price, either: in the UK, it’ll kick off from £63,360.