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Vicki Butler-Henderson Drives the 480hp 2025 G87 BMW M2 – Pure Driver’s Car?

Join Vicki Butler-Henderson as she takes the updated BMW M2 (G87) out for a test drive. The facelifted M2 pairs 480hp from its 3.0-litre turbocharged straight-six engine with rear-wheel drive and the option of a six-speed manual gearbox, promising old-school driving thrills in a modern package.

The mid-life update brings sharper looks, updated tech, and more power, while keeping its compact, two-door coupe format. There’s a revised front end with BMW’s horizontal kidney grille, flared arches, and quad exhausts, giving the M2 a squat, bulldog stance. Inside, a curved digital display runs BMW’s latest Operating System 8.5, while options like carbon bucket seats and a head-up display add track-focused flair.

On the road, the M2 mixes agility with surprising comfort thanks to adaptive suspension, while the manual gearbox delivers the tactile, connected feel that purists crave. For those who prefer convenience, the eight-speed automatic unlocks extra torque and even faster acceleration – but can it match the engagement of the manual?

Practical touches remain too, with folding rear seats and a boot larger than a Golf’s, making this baby M car more usable than its aggressive looks suggest.

So, is the 2025 BMW M2 still the ultimate compact driver’s car, or has the facelift taken it in a new direction? Vicki puts it through its paces to find out.

This video is brought to you by DriverReviews in partnership with Yokohama tyres, the BMW M2 is equipped with Yokohama Advan Sport V107 tyres, developed in close collaboration with BMW to deliver grip, stability, and precision at speed.

Specification

• Price: Starting at £69,000 (model in video is £74,000)
• Power: 480 BHP
• Engine: 3.0 litre M TwinPower Turbo inline 6-cylinder petrol engine
• Acceleration: 0-62 mph in 4.2 seconds (manual)
• Boot Space: 390 litres

Pictures of the BMW M2 Coupé at a video shoot

Exterior Design & Facelift Changes

The M2 looks so imposing that you could be forgiven for thinking it had a body kit. Its presence can be likened to that of a bulldog. Unlike other M cars in the range, the M2's BMW-signature kidney grille is horizontal. A single circular bulb in the headlights is a nice nod to BMWs from the '60s and '70s. The air intake section at the bottom is quite busy, but it's a feast for the eyes. Let us know in the comments of our YouTube video whether you like the air intake section or not!

It is a strictly two-door car with a longer wheelbase than before. If you want more than two doors on your M car, we suggest you look at other M cars, such as the M4. Are you a fan of red callipers? You can have them for an additional £275. A carbon fibre roof is available as an optional extra, but it forms part of a £10,000 track package which also includes a couple of benefits, such as reducing the car's weight by 6 kg and lowering its centre of gravity.

Rear Design & Boot Space

If you like the busy front end of the car, you'll certainly love the equally busy rear. There are lights going off in all directions, a sporty diffuser and dual, black-finished exhaust tips. You get 390 litres of boot space, which is slightly more than in a Volkswagen Golf. Of course, if you fold the seats forward, you get even more space. The car sits on an attractive set of double-spoke alloys, which are also available in silver. To accommodate the plump rear end, the rear wheels are slightly bigger than the front ones. The front wheels are 19 inches, and the rear wheels are 20 inches.

The wheels are wrapped in Yokohama Advan Sport V107 tyres, developed in close collaboration with BMW. According to Yokohama, the tyre offers high levels of reactivity, providing precise steering and driving stability when cornering, even at high speeds. The tyre has also received an average rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars from drivers on DriverReviews.

Yokohama Advan Sport V107 Tyre Talk Banner


Interior Design & Technology

When it comes to the steering wheel, you can choose between leather and Alcantara. To show that this is the latest version of the M2, the wheel has a slightly different shape to that of the previous generation. A red marker at the top of the wheel indicates the centre, a feature commonly found in high-performance cars. This visual guide shows which direction the front tyres are pointing, which can be useful at high speeds. The wheel offers plenty of driver involvement with two M buttons (as before), which act as shortcuts to your preferred settings for features such as dampers, steering, engine mapping, brake pressure and traction control. As if that weren't enough, the wheel is also heated. However, the button that was once used to activate this feature has been removed, and the wheel must now be heated via the main screen. Alternatively, you can simply ask the car to do it for you via the onboard assistant.

A crisp head-up display is slap bang in the middle of your forward vision. It projects key information, such as speed or sat-nav directions, so you can keep your eyes on the road. Then there's the curved touchscreen, which has an excellent response time and is extremely quick. If you prefer dials and more hands-on control, BMW has kept the iDrive wheel, which you can twist and click to access everything.

Wherever you look in the cabin, you will see splashes of the M colours. Vicki says that, of the options available, she would prefer the carbon trim seen in our video, but there are a couple of others. You can choose from anthracite or Rhombesil Anthracite, which has a more obvious pattern. As for the seats, you can either have the standard sports seats or the dramatic looking yet comfortable carbon bucket seats that you see in our video. BMW reckon that around 90% of M2 buyers will opt for the eight-speed automatic gearbox. This is why, according to Vicki, the driving position is perfectly optimised for a two-pedal car. However, if, like Vicki, you would opt for the six-speed manual gearbox, the three pedals would be slightly offset, and you would become very familiar with the hump in the seat base as you manoeuvre your legs to press the pedals.

Picture of the carbon bucket seats in the BMW M2 Coupé

On the Road: Engine Performance & Power

The three-litre, turbocharged engine is almost identical to the one that powers the larger M4. If you would like to read our review of the BMW M4, click here! Improvements have been made to the throttle response compared with the previous generation, making it a little quicker to accelerate from a standstill to 62 mph. However, this improvement is only 0.1 seconds: the manual version does it in 4.2 seconds, while the automatic version does it in 4 seconds. Power has increased by 20 bhp, giving you an impressive 480 bhp. Torque remains the same at 550 Newton metres for the manual, but if you love torque, go for the automatic, which has 600 Newton metres. Alongside these impressive performance figures, metrics appear on screen to show you how much torque and power you are using each time you accelerate.

Comfort & Handling

Despite its chunky and perhaps clunky appearance, Vicki tells us that the steering wheel is appealingly light and delicate, particularly at low speeds when driving around town. However, she does say that she would like a little more feedback from the front end through to her hands. She goes on to tell us that the Porsche Cayman GTS gets this exactly right. When it comes to chassis feedback, she reports that she can feel it through her feet and the seat. She says that the M2 just wants to dance through corners, swinging its weight around remarkably well for a car that weighs about 1,700 kg.

Vicki’s Verdict

“I love manual gearboxes because they keep you involved in the whole experience and for me that is the reason why I am in this seat”.

A sportier M2 CS Competition Sport is also available, but Vicki says the M2 Coupe is fast and fun enough, and quite practical too. What’s not to like?!

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Front end of the BMW M2 Coupé at a video shoot