Not too long ago, BMW’s M performance division was focused purely on ‘core’ products, providing finely-honed performance versions of the German car-maker's mid-size 3 Series and large 5 Series. They were naturally-aspirated and manual.
The move towards self-shifting began subtly at first, the automated manual SMG transmission first seen on the Euro-market E36-series M3 in 1996 as an option for those wanting to ape the sequential-shift craze emerging in touring cars at the time.
By the time of the E60 5 Series and its two-door 6 Series sibling in the Noughties, the automated gearbox had become standard, with no manual option available outside North America. To broaden the customer base, M was diluted.
Then with the F10 came the turbo switch; something that BMW M had once sworn against. This path was as much about lowering emissions as drawing big output numbers and upping mid-range torque, making the M cars more manageable on a day-to-day basis.
Today, M still means massive, in terms of outright performance and specification. But its continued expansion has seen it introduce X5 and X6 M SUVs, adding over two tonnes of weight to the argument that M needs new niches to survive. And the broader appeal push appears to be working.
Speaking at the local launch drive of the new BMW M5 Pure and Nighthawk limited-edition, BMW Australia General Manager Corporate Communications Lenore Fletcher highlighted the initial strength of the latest X5 and X6 M SUVs since their launch in April 2015.
“Last year [2014] we sold 489 M vehicles in Australia. For the July year-to-date this year [2015] we have already sold 585,” Fletcher explained.
This figure was achieved before the full effect of the M3/M4 pricing drop announced in late July. While Fletcher would only suggest that the segment is “very competitive” when questioned on the price drop’s timing coinciding with the new Mercedes-AMG C 63's release, she did say the “response [to the drop] has been quite positive.”
“The key to enthusiast vehicles is that people are not just buying day-to-day, they are buying cars they are passionate about. There’s strong interest at release, then we see it tail off. The key behind this [price drop] was because we wanted to maintain that initial momentum. It’s pretty early days yet — only a couple of weeks have gone by — but initial reports have been positive that there has been new interest.”
With the cut-price M5 Pure priced from $185,000 plus on-roads – around $45,000 cheaper than the M5 – Fletcher was confident that M sales would continue to expand with the current range through to the end of the year.
“That price-point opens the M5 range to a new range of enthusiasts,” she said.
Meantime, BMW's M's arch-rival, Mercedes-AMG, has sold about 2500 vehicles Down Under to August this year – rivalling Porsche here and making Australia the world's top AMG market per capita – while the Audi Sport sub-brand has just been launched in Australia, which is expected to be among the top three markets in the world for Audi RS and R8 model sales next year.