BMW 4 Series

Segment creep. It’s that curious car industry phenomenon that sees every new model grow a bit bigger than the one it replaces.

It’s innocent enough – hey, who wouldn’t want a slightly roomier next-gen model? – yet over generations amounts to an insidious shuffle of models into entirely new segments.

Giving some thought to segment creep is key to getting your head around BMW’s G22 4 Series. Well, it was for me, anyway.

You see, if you still view BMW’s E46 3 Series coupe as the stuff of legend, or even have a soft spot for the old E92, you might figure that a new 4 Series is the machine for you. After all, it’s a continuation of the same line, with the 4 Series amounting to a renaming of the two-door 3 Series in 2013.

But a helluva lot’s changed even since then…

So while the well-received first-generation 4 Series was devised as its own spin-off line, but could easily have worn a 3 Series badge, that’s far less true of the second gen.

Styled, engineered and equipped to thrust the 4 Series upmarket – and towards new customers – now the nameplate really is its own thing.

With a roofline 57mm lower than 3 Series – which brings a useful 21mm lowering of the centre of gravity – and a rear track width increased by 23mm, the G22 4 Series distances itself from its mechanically similar sibling.

It’s also way longer than the previous 4 Series coupe, stretched by 128mm, though the wheelbase only grows by 41mm, so much of the extra length is in the overhangs. And it’s 27mm wider.

Then there’s xDrive all-wheel drive in a model that was once a paragon of rear-drive purity, with its sledgehammer-packing 285kW and 500Nm of a mild hybrid-assisted turbocharged in-line six, where a sweet atmo six used to do the job nicely in a non-M 3 Series coupe.

Yep, the M440i’s ‘boulevard meets bruiser’ personality makes today’s ‘compact executive’ BMW coupe a very different beast.

The bottom line is the M440i is a grand touring-slash-sports coupe not far off 6 or 8 Series proportions – the wheelbase is 33mm longer than the original 8 Series, for example.

So to measure the G22 BMW M440i’s xDrive’s greatness – or otherwise – it has to be held up to GT benchmarks, rather than considered as a descendant of the 2002ti.

Now, the 4 Series’ controversial snout has stolen headlines and copped an, erm … grilling from the YouTube personalities, so let’s leave that alone.

Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but when the M440i is parked side by side with the Audi S5, it’s the latter that’s the better looker if you ask me (if you ask anyone?).

Ingolstadt got the A5 and S5’s basic coupe proportions right from the start and the conservative second-gen redesign, itself nearly five years old, brings an appealingly subtle channelling of Camaro. The Audi’s clamshell bonnet brings cool-factor, the Coke bottle hips impart classic muscle, and the optional carbon and black pack’s boot-lip spoiler is a neat touch.

My road-testing wingman tended to agree, proclaiming that the M440i looks best from the driver’s seat. A touch harsh perhaps, but either way, that seems like a good place to start.

Crack open the M440i’s long door and the puddle light projects a mysterious pattern at your feet – art deco wings? A stylised M logo? Settle into the well-bolstered, Tacora Red vernasca leather-trimmed seat and the aroma is unmistakably BMW, with no notes of real estate agent (yet). The big coupe powers the seatbelt to your hand; the engorged weisswurst wheel lives on, providing another nod to the coupe’s origins.

A prod of the centre console start button sees the twin-scroll turbo B58 six burble into a bassy tickover. That’s the current J29 Supra engine to fans of Japanese tin, as seen in a variety of Munich’s machines. In urban confines the 2998cc in-line mill satisfies with a marque-signature crisp, low howl.

The electric-motor assist, which comes as part of the G20 3 Series-shared CLAR platform’s 48v architecture, fleshes out that zone below 1900rpm where the donk is yet to rustle up the full 500Nm, making the M440i effortless everywhere.

Flat-out, in sport mode, it’s a jet, with a full-blooded snarl, and feels more than capable of the 4.5sec 0-100km/h claim. That instant twist teams with a rear-biased xDrive all-wheel drive to deliver the rear-drive feel the BMW Roundel primes you to crave, and continues to favour the rear wheels up to a high threshold, only offering torque to the front treads when it senses slip.

The big coupe’s off-power balance noses into subtle understeery territory, which can then be coaxed to pivot through an accelerator-assisted neutral mid-corner attitude to feel poised and ultra-rapid at exit.

That push on entry may be the work of a 54/46 front-to-rear distribution of the G22’s substantial 1815kg, which could be those eff-off big grilles.

The M440i’s thick steering wheel rim implies chunkiness, yet the electrically assisted rack and pinion system, while quick, comes up short on clarity. A keener snout and a more intimate front end would be transformative and sure they might feature for M4, but I can see no good reason they’re not part of the package here, too.

If it’s a deliberate positioning move, it seems a pretty odd one, given there are a multitude of ways to spend a lot than $116,900 and have both these qualities.

Taking a step back, the acres of sheetmetal between the top of the 4 Series’ rear arches and the rear side windows make the good-looking M light double-spoke alloys look smaller than they are. They’re 19s, wrapped in adhesive 225/40 and 255/35 Michelin Pilot Sport 4S to endow the BMW with huge grip and presumably an equally large tyre replacement bill. (At least they’re not 265/30R20s, as worn by the S5 all-round!)

There’s a lot to like about the M440i’s grand touring capability. There are electronically controlled dampers, of course, and the admirable ride in urban conditions becomes even more cosseting and impressive beyond the subdivisions.

Even rear occupants get a decent deal. There’s good leg room and okay headroom, as well as HVAC outlets and temperature adjustment, a fold-down centre arm rest and handy storage pockets.

At 440L the boot is down 40L on 3 Series and 25L on its rival, but it’s still generous enough, with the flexibility of 40/20/40 split-folding seatbacks just as in the Audi.

As a low-fi guy who’d find all I need in an E30 M3 – non-airbag wheel, clutch pedal and gear stick – I’m slightly ashamed to admit that even the semi-autonomous tech is good. Here, the BMW’s systems are a bit more switched on than the S5’s.

But making the most of it comes down to your approach. Get it wrong and, just like treating a dual-clutch auto like it’s a slusher and expecting smooth progress, you’ll be disappointed.

Speaking of intuitive autos, that’s what this pair has, in the form of the polished ZF 8HP eight-speed.

Anyway, I engage the BMW’s semi-autonomous mode as though it’s normal cruise, but it’s comforting knowing there’s the benefit of a safety net in the event my lane-keeping gets a bit sloppy or someone carves me up, and it does a terrific job.

I’m less convinced by the M440i’s lane-keeping behaviour outside of semi-autonomous driving. In these conditions it’s rarely a help and instead feels like the tramlining of every car I’ve ever owned, with negative camber dialled up to the max ’cos it looks cool.

The M440i’s Selective beam Laserlight headlights are a class act too; quick and precise, to seamlessly provide maximum illumination without dazzling other drivers (see details below).

As for the Audi, a visually mild 2020 facelift keeps the S5 competitive. On the all-important infotainment front there’s a new 10.1-inch dash-top display with mirroring for both kinds of phones and because it’s a touchscreen the console buttons are gone, freeing some oddment storage space.

Audi’s Virtual Cockpit cluster is standard, as are B&O audio, beautiful Fine Nappa leather, 20-inch alloys and Matrix LED headlights. And the safety suite is expanded with lane change assist, rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise, a 360-degree camera, parking sensors and an exit warning.

Out tester’s quilted Nappa in black with ‘rock grey’ stitching, Alcantara door trim inserts and swathes of carbon across the dashboard and centre console see the S5 take an each way bet on sports and luxury, to good effect.

A cocktail of leather, carpet and I don’t know what else makes the cabin scent unmistakably Audi, which I prefer to BMW, for what it’s worth. Which probably isn’t much, given my own car smells like the old Converses I wear while mowing the lawn.

Creating class and a high-quality feeling in a cabin is not easy, I think, judging by the number of cheap interiors around, but Audi has known how to do it for more than a decade.

Rear occupants experience the typical limitation of a coupe roofline but few other compromises. There are air vents, third-zone temperature controls, cup holders, a fold-down centre armrest and side storage compartments.

A press of the S5’s console start button is greeted by a brief guttural growl before the V6 eases into a smooth and refined low idle. An almost instant 500Nm – the peak arrives at 1370rpm – and transmission smarts make for a sensation of riding a seamless wave of shove, up to the 260kW, 6400rpm crest.

There’s no mild-hybrid assistance here but the EA839 donk’s reverse flow design sees gases exit the 2995cc unit in the vee, with each of the turbo’s two scrolls fed via an ultra-short path by a trio of cylinders and a dozen exhaust ports.

The note is distinctly V6; not especially charismatic – or quite as generous with the decibels as the BMW – though a phlegm-clearing overrun and mild tailpipe crackle add interest.

The S5’s sculpted, ovoid-section wheel feels right and is attached to an electrically assisted steering that is light, yet conveys a hunger for turns, but little actual feel. The S5 complements corner entry enthusiasm with an all-wheel-drive system that can deliver up to 85 percent of torque to the rear, and the press car’s $2990 optional quattro sport differential, which can deliver all those Newton metres to a rear wheel.

The result is an already fairly neutral-feeling chassis that, perhaps unintuitively, rewards accelerator inputs early in a corner with a satisfyingly rear-driven feel to the way it fires onto the next straight bit.

The S5 glides over coarse and lumpy surfaces with the benefit of adaptive suspension – and the hindrance of wide, shallow-sidewalled 20-inch tyres – to deliver ride comfort that completes an appealingly consistent package. Further, it’s perfectly capable left in comfort during more enthusiastic moments, where it impresses with unflustered backroad pace.

Ingolstadt’s Impala never feels terrifically involving, but nor does it ever come across as the tiniest bit compromised. Instead, it’s classy, smooth, refined, absorbent and easy. It’s also moderately engaging, decently balanced, and effortlessly rapid. Often, all at the same time.

And it has visual pull, like a sophisticated modern muscle car, for the buyer who demands something more polished and premium than an actual Camaro or Mustang.

These coupes are nearly as easy to drive around town as a Mazda 3, but they make you feel more special, if you’re into that sort of thing.

And the back seats are actually plenty useable – good legroom; reasonable headroom – which should not be any surprise given their sizeable wheelbases.

The M440i’s adoption of rear-biased AWD brings unflappability and hard-launching pace, and leaves alternatives up, down and across the range should rear-drive be a must.

If it’s not, the S5’s all-four flavour might be for you too, just make sure the optional quattro sport diff is part of the deal; it makes a big difference.

They could both do with a bit more edge in their steering feel and chassis poise. Yes, I know there are the M4 and RS5. But GT qualities and perfectly polished dynamics are not mutually exclusive, so let’s have a bit more of the latter.

The M440i feels noticeably quicker than the S5, but they’re both so rapid that, in the engine compartment at least, they make you question if you really need an M4 or RS5. Yet, the BMW M440i and Audi S5 don’t undermine the hero versions, despite potentially being easier to live with while damn near as capable, because there are always buyers for whom knowing they’ve parked the ultimate version in their garage is non-negotiable.

I know this is a coupe comparo, but if it was between the equivalent wagons, I probably would opt for an M340i xDrive Touring over an S4 Avant quattro.

It’s more difficult to choose here.

Personally, I’d want the M440i’s driver-assist tech, grunt and acoustic edge. But I’d want them in the S5.

The Audi’s classic, muscular proportions appeal, while I find the BMW sheetmetal ... well, not to my taste. And style is a massive factor in this kind of car, though also one that’s highly subjective.

But it really comes down to the S5’s more inviting cabin and its beautifully judged balance of comfort with dynamics, which is precisely what’s called for in this segment.

Frickin’ Lasers! BMW’s Selective Beam Laserlight explained

The M440i’s striking kidney grilles, which reprise a design applied to BMW’s 1936 328 sports car and late-’60s E9 coupe (pictured), are not its most interesting frontal element. At either side are BMW Selective Beam Laserlight headlights that, as well as increasing high beam range to more than half a kay, and taking GPS inputs to follow the curves of the road, are truly remarkable in their workings.

The units, first seen in the hybrid i8 supercar, fire lasers via a series of mirrors that reflect and focus the beam into a lens filled with yellow phosphorus. This substance creates a bright, intense white light, which in turn is diffused and reflected onto the road. The benefits are light 10 times brighter than an LED headlight, super energy efficiency, and compactness. Fancy-pants tech that’d be right at home in the outback.

2021 BMW M440i vs Audi S5 specifications