BMW is promising the new 4 Series will be “exhilarating”

M model apart, the two-door 3 Series has never quite made the cut as a driver’s sports coupe befitting of the brand. With the new version, now undergoing its final testing, BMW has distanced the Four from the Three in a number of ways, the result this time round being rather more than just a two-door 3 Series. BMW asserts that it will have “a chassis set-up focused unerringly on exhilarating dynamic performance”.

Proportions, weight distribution, suspension geometry and aerodynamic properties have all come under the microscope as the new 4 Series goes in search of this more convincing sporting character. Platform and powertrain starting points are as the 3 Series as before, but the new coupe is lower, stiffer with a wider footprint, while cleaving the air more efficiently and having less rear-end lift at speed.

The 57mm lower body means a 21mm lower centre of gravity; the front wheels get a dose of negative camber and the rear track is wider by 23mm. Millimetre changes only but together with custom struts, strengthening braces for the steering and rear suspension, and the latest 3 Series’ progressive dampers, BMW says the new coupe is now “significantly” sharper handling. Its agility and lateral acceleration are raised “by a sizable margin” over even the latest, and highly praised, saloon while retaining its comfort levels, claims the company.

A more focused 4 Series also augurs well for an absolute blinder of a new M4 of course. The first drives will reveal all… BMW engineers are being so upbeat about the Four they will be disappointed if it does not go “straight to the top of its segment” as they say it will. Rivals, including the Mercedes C-Class coupe, will be no pushover, but journalists’ first tastes of 4 Series prototypes are so far positive.

Any new 4 Series has less to prove in the engine department. In time there will be a range of Fours – petrol, diesel, hybrid, rear-drive, all-wheel-drive – but the headliner that BMW has confirmed today is the M440i xDrive. This is a mild-hybrid all-wheel-driver that combines 374PS (369bhp) straight-six with 48-volt starter-generator to boost efficiency but also provide an 11-horsepower kick to improve engine response off the line. No performance data yet, but expect this new sub-M4 range-topper to come with an array of BMW performance aids: eight-speed Steptronic Sport transmission, M Sport differential and M Sport brakes and wheels with mixed-size tyres.

And, be in no doubt, people will see you coming – the new 4 Series will be the first BMW to get the new-look corporate grille, the kidney shape taller than it is wider for the first time since… well, probably since the 1936 BMW 328 which is said to have inspired it. As you can tell from the pictures here of the heavily camouflaged test cars, that grille is still under wraps, but a flavour is provided by the 4 Series concept from last year’s Frankfurt Motor Show. The production grille may not be as extreme as that, but it is still sure to stand out.

Speaking of prototypes, how about a video of the new 992 Porsche 911 GT3 and GT3 Touring testing at Monza? Don't worry, they're still naturally aspirated...