2021 BMW M3 and M4 Competition, now with all-wheel-drive

Much has been said about the new grilles of the BMW M3 and M4. But if you can get past that, the high-performance sedan and coupe have a lot to offer. The entry-level models are potent enough as it is. With a 0 to 100 km/h time of just 4.2 seconds, you wouldn't call the all-new M3 and M4 underpowered at all.

Of course, there are those who want more, so BMW released the Competition models alongside the standard models. The Competition-spec M3 and M4 can do the 0 to 100 km/h run in just 3.9 seconds. But if that's still too slow, BMW has a simple solution for that. For them to build the fastest M3 and M4 to date, they added xDrive all-wheel-drive to both Competition models.

While power is still the same, the sedan and coupe launch off the line quicker than their respective two-wheel-drive counterparts. We're not talking about a few tenths here, either. BMW claims that the xDrive-equipped M3 and M4 get to 100 km/h faster by four-tenths over the rear-wheel-drive versions. That gives these performance cars a 0 to 100 km/h time of just 3.4 seconds. If it went any faster, it would be on par with the M5 and M8. Of course, BMW wouldn't allow that to happen.

What makes this feat even more impressive is that these xDrive models carry a lot more weight than the rear-drive versions. For reference, the M3 Competition tips the scales at 1,809 kilograms, hardly a lightweight sedan. With all-wheel-drive, BMW claims better stability and road-holding over the two-wheel-drive variants. The all-wheel-drive models do not receive any upgrades under the hood, either. That means the 3.0-liter, twin-turbocharged inline-sixes in both cars still put out 510 PS and 650 Nm of torque.

But what if you want the straight-line acceleration of the all-wheel-drive models but still want to send it sideways? Like the M5, the tuned xDrive in the M3 and M4 Competition has the ability to shift to rear-wheel-drive only. That means you can get the best of both worlds, says BMW.

There's no denying that the stats are impressive. So if you still can't get over its nose but want that kind of acceleration, at least you can jump off the line faster than ever.