BMW M2 review

Because the M2 now sits on an M4 platform, guess where the interior comes from? So far as showing off to your mates goes, the new M2 feels more spacious and far better trimmed inside than before.

Perhaps the M-colour graphics on the door inserts are a bit ‘greetings, fellow kids’, but overall this feels like an expensive place to sit, stuffed with equipment. More spacious than the old M2 as well, as you’d hope from the wheelbase swelling.

Though, the M2’s rear seat USP isn’t a complete slam dunk: access is narrow and adults will only tolerate being that cramped for very short trips.

What about the tech?

Atop the dashboard lives the now familiar 14.9-inch ‘curved display’, with its annoyingly unintelligible dials and fiddly menus. And now the heater controls live in the screen, it’s more irritatingly (and less safe) to use on the move than the old M2. The new one feels more opulent, but it’s come at the expense of common sense and user-friendliness, which rivals like the Porsche Cayman and Toyota GR Supra (with its ironically BMW-based interior) are able to exploit. 

As usual for a modern M car, you can avoid delving into the furiously complex screen too often by taking the time to set up your favourite M1 and M2 modes while stationary and armed with the instruction manual. These are then saved and accessible via the little red cat’s-tongue levers on the steering wheel. 

Let's talk chairs.

As an optional extra, you can spec the carbon fibre seats from the M4, complete with the silly thigh gutter spoiling your attempts to left-foot brake and causing passengers to judge your lifestyle choices. The stock response is “actually they’re phenomenally supportive and surprisingly comfortable long-distance".

Having now sampled both styles of seat, we'd recommend saving a four-figure sum and sticking with the standard seats, which are easier to dismount, plenty supportive enough and very comfortable to boot. Seat heating could be a bit more powerful, mind you. And the illuminated 'M' badges in the headrests are, as always, disgusting. 

BMW says the M2 doesn’t have rivals, because all the other £60k+ sports coupes are two-seaters. They kinda have a point. The new M2's back seats offer just enough headroom to consider giving a lift to some adults, though it's certainly not a four-up road trip car.

The M2 is practical as a tourer though, with 390 litres of boot space, plenty of oddment stowage in the cabin, and a 40:20:40 split folding rear seat.