Our “speed date” with BMW M models at the annual BMW M Drive Festival was a great way to get to know them better
Bira Circuit, Pattaya, Thailand - That institution of the all-you-can-eat buffet with its ginormous spread doesn’t really get our juices flowing these days, because the sheer variety on offer overwhelms the enjoyment of the individual dishes.
Truth be told, we’d much rather enjoy a quality tasting menu that focuses on the key dishes, which is exactly what we got to experience during the 2024 BMW M Drive Festival Pattaya.
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This year’s BMW M Drive Festival was held at the tight, technical and twisty Bira Circuit, which is located a short-(ish) 1.5hr shuttle-ride from the Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok.
The media, as well as owners and prospects from the two BMW dealers in Singapore, hopped into BMW’s performance models to participate in a M “mixer” on both the road and the race-track, with a thoughtfully curated selection of performance machines on offer.
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With such fearsome levels of firepower at the behest of one’s right foot, the best place to experience such high-performance cars is in a closed environment, such as the 2.4km Bira Circuit in this instance.
The sporting machines for the track session included the M4 Competition Coupe, M3 Competition Touring (pictured above on the left), M3 CS (pictured above on the right) and the M2 Coupe.
For the scenic road drive, we had the petrol-electric XM 50e hybrid (pictured below) and the all-electric i5 M60 (pictured above) at our disposal.
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The route saw us cover busy townships, winding roads and the occasional highway spurt.
Everyone has that one model that “sold” this BMW M Drive Festival event to them.
For many of us, it was the M3 CS (pictured above), an edgier version of the regular M3 Competition that brings it closer (in looks and in performance) to the hardcore M4 CSL.
However, with a little over one lap per car (one out-lap and one flying lap) for the M3 and M4 family, the car that we would ultimately see a lot of seat-time in was the M2 Coupe.
In fact, the pint-sized M2 (pictured above) also proved to be the biggest surprise for most folks, because of how much fun it delivered.
“Driving the M2 hard on track now makes me really want the (coming) G87 M2 CS!”, quipped Mr. Benjamin Goh (pictured above), 50-something entrepreneur.
He has been a serial M-car aficionado since the 1990s and owns the F87 M2 CS, G82 M4 CSL and G81 M3 Touring, as well as more recently, the E46 M3 CSL and F82 M4 CS.
Goh goes on to say, “As an owner of multiple M models, this driving event achieved some unexpected results that surprised even me. For instance, the basic M2 drives really well, while the “practical” M3 Touring easily keeps up with its CS and Coupe counterparts. I feel that more similar events should be organised for prospective buyers and existing owners, so they can appreciate and understand more of the BMW M cars’ abilities.”
We were pretty much on the get-go from start to finish, with only a short warm-up exercise that comprised slalom and hard-braking to stir us from the post-lunch stupor.
After that, it was go-go-go as we jumped into the deep end and rotated through the various ICE-powered (Internal Combustion Engine) M models to experience the full-octane intoxication that comes with driving such performance machines hard.
Like Goh, we found that the M3 Touring isn’t just “M3” in spirit, but also in performance as well, because it gamely kept up with its sportier brethren. It proved playfully agile in the corners and positively ballistic on the straights.
In fact, we’re pretty sure it will keep pace with most modern sportscars in real world driving conditions, except it will also accommodate the whole family, your dogs and the kitchen-sink in the process!
The M3 CS was a real eye-opener though, because it delivered a thrilling performance on the circuit that let us appreciate its kinship to the visceral M4 CSL, yet retained a modicum of pliancy for supple road use.
However, the “M” touch isn’t just limited to the ICE models, but extends to BMW’s sportier electrified offerings as well.
In particular, the hybrid XM 50e proved to be a balanced performer for the road, as it seamlessly combined an effortless cruising poise with crushing performance when you let the hammer fall.
The big surprise for this author though, was the M2 Coupe, incidentally the “smallest” car of the pack, especially since it was more “grunt” than runt.
We’re almost glad we had so many laps in it compared to the other cars because there was something endearing about the way it sniffed out corners like an eager terrier.
When you full-send, the compact Coupe slays in terms of handling finesse, which really belies its proportions.
It is light on its feet, with a strength and fortitude to its personality that gives and gives and gives, especially at the hands of a committed helmsman.
Don’t forget, it’s not necessarily about being the fastest, but being fast enough!
The M2 may not have had the biggest engine output of the track-fleet, but it had a big enough heart and personality to remind us that if you’re prepared to dig deep enough, it is always possible to rekindle one’s love for driving.
Now who says you can’t find love on a Speed Date?
