2020 BMW X3 M and X4 M arrive with as much as 503 horsepower
Both of BMW's new high-performance crossovers can accelerate to 60 miles per hour in 4 seconds flat.
BMW launched its latest salvo in its relentless quest to fill every last possible market segment on Tuesday, with the announcement of the 2020 X3 M and X4 M.
The newest additions to the M brand both feature a 3.0-liter, twin-turbocharged I6 engine that, in base trim, produces 473 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque. Both crossovers can make the sprint to 60 miles per hour in 4.1 seconds, and they'll do 174 miles per hour flat-out.
If that's not enough for you, BMW will also offer the X3 M and X4 M in Competition trim, which bumps output to a frankly silly 503 horsepower and raises the crossovers' top speeds to 177 mph. Power from either engine setup is routed through an eight-speed, M-tuned automatic transmission, and goes to the pavement through a rear-biased all-wheel-drive system.
The new M models still use BMW's older iDrive 6 infotainment tech.
One of the coolest parts of these new technological terrors from BMW is the fact that the core of the engine's cylinder head is 3D printed. This allows BMW to do things that it couldn't previously with casting and allows the new head to be lighter than before. This, along with other engineering wizardry, allow the S58 engine to rev up to 7,200 rpm. Not bad for a crossover, eh?
To go along with the added power, the X3 M and X4 M have upgraded suspension geometry, including electronically controlled dampers at all four corners. The standard X3 M and X4 M roll on 20-inch wheels, while Competition trims upsize those to 21s.
Inside, requisite M badges adorn the sport seats, but otherwise the cabins carry over largely unchanged from the crossovers' non-M counterparts. That includes infotainment tech, where BMW's iDrive 6 system sits atop the center stack.
Production on the M versions of the X3 and X4 is slated to begin in April of 2019 at BMW's Spartanburg plant in South Carolina. BMW is being a bit cagey when it comes to pricing, but we'd expect there to be a tidy premium over the current M40i versions.
