2022 BMW M240i xDrive at Lightning Lap 2023

From the February/March 2023 issue of Car and Driver.

Lap Time: 3:00.6

Class: LL2 | Base: $51,945 | As-Tested: $59,745
Power and Weight: 382 hp • 3885 lb • 10.2 lb/hp
Tires: Michelin Pilot Sport 4S; F: 245/35ZR-19 (93Y), R: 255/35ZR-19 (96Y)

Another repeat? Well, the 2-series got another invite because last year’s car was missing a key performance option: the $2400 Cooling and High-Performance Tire package. Although we had no cooling issues before, this option nets a more powerful fan and an additional oil cooler, plus Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires—20 millimeters wider in front—mounted on wider wheels (0.5 inch wider in front, 1.0 inch at the rear).

The same pilot coaxed the M240i to a lap 2.4 seconds quicker than last year’s car on Pirelli P Zero PZ4s. That time came in small chunks all over the track. The M240i started with slightly more grip in Turn 1 (0.98 g versus 0.97) and shaved fractions of time in each sector. This M240i’s front-engine, rear-drive balance is an ally, no matter the fact that power goes to all four wheels. The car didn’t suffer the excessive oversteer we contended with before, and it’s a rocket in a straight line.

Curiously, despite a 17 percent worse power-to-weight ratio than the Supra with the same B58 BMW turbocharged inline-six and a significantly taller roofline jutting into the airstream, the M240i closes the gap with the Supra down the Front Straight, leading us to wonder whether Toyota gets a second-rate tune. As before, the M240i’s brake pedal softened early; we gave the brakes daily bleedings to resurrect as much pedal feel as possible. This car had the RS3 beat until the Audi switched to its superhero tires, and the M240i’s time has substantially closed the gap with the last M2 Competition we ran (2:59.7). The M240i won’t be back again, but we look forward to seeing the 2023 M2 next time.

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