BMW M2 G87 Show at M Fest 2022 in South Africa

South Africa’s largest car festival hosted the domestic debut of the M2 G87 where members of the media had the opportunity to see Baby M in Zandvoort Blue. It was another great opportunity to celebrate half a century on the M division and BMW M CEO Frank van Mill was on site to present the “M Child.” The pre-production prototype had standard red brake calipers and black wheels along with an optional carbon fiber roof.

The BMW M Festival 2022 returns after three years and takes place this weekend at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit and the International Convention Centre. It’s too late to buy a ticket as both days are fully booked, but rest assured New M2 It will be shown in other places around the world in the coming months. As a reminder, the global market launch won’t happen until April 2023, so there’s plenty of time to promote the fast compact car.

It was already the second generation of the M2 It was presented in Australia during the Motorclassica event, although it was a private reveal that happened a few days before the world debut. On both occasions, BMW decided to bring in cars with manual gearboxes. It’s not too surprising given that the 6MT take rate must be pretty high. Of course, the eight-speed Steptronic will be offered to those who want pure performance because the car offers faster acceleration.

While the design can be controversial and the M2 puts on a lot of weight, let’s keep in mind the model’s importance in the grand scheme of things. For starters, it’s BMW’s last regular production model to avoid electrification. It also happens to be among the very few high-performance cars that still offer a manual gearbox that sends power to the rear wheels. Although it has grown in size, it is still smaller than the M4 while borrowing the S58’s engine, brakes, and other goodies.

The G87 marks the beginning of the end for pure petrol M cars, so it has all the components of a futuristic classic.

[Photos: instagram.com/bundesstrasse3]