Kay Segler, once the brand chief at BMW’s Mini operations, has been in charge of the high-performance M division for more than a year now, and it appears he’s making good on his promise to sharpen the in-house tuner’s offerings.

Over the past few years, the M division strayed from its hard-core enthusiast origins. The first examples were the V-10–powered M5 and M6. While both were undeniably quick and capable, the clunky and unsatisfying automated manual gearboxes that the M division tried to jam down the throats of buyers let M fans down. Eventually—perhaps grudgingly—a three-pedal manual made its way into the M5 and the M6, but, ironically, it simply didn’t work all that well in those cars (you couldn’t fully shut off the stability control, for example).

And then came the sport-utility vehicles: the X5 M and the X6 M. While they might be among the brashest and quickest SUVs on the market, they signify perhaps the greatest break with the M division’s long-held principles of lightweight, high-revving, naturally aspirated engines coupled to manual transmissions. In one fell swoop, the X5 M and the X6 M broke all of what had been commandments.

In May 2009, the big chair at the M division was dusted off for Segler, an affable and successful marketer during his time as brand chief at Mini. We thought an old-school engineer might have been a better choice to bring the M division back to its roots, and there was some concern that Segler’s marketing background might tempt him to exploit the brand instead of refocusing on its core values. But two upcoming models developed under Segler have us thinking that he may not have been a bad choice after all.

Later this year, Segler’s M division will launch the M3 GTS. Limited to 150 units, this lighter and more powerful M3 will get a 4.4-liter version of the M3’s 4.0-liter V-8. Power rises from 414 horsepower to 444, and torque grows from 295 pound-feet to 325. Despite an added roll cage, the GTS coupe weighs 150 pounds less than a similarly equipped M3. Our only beef is that a traditional manual gearbox is not available. Instead, the M DCT seven-speed dual-clutch transmission is standard.

Otherwise, the GTS is seriously hard-core. To shave pounds, BMW switched to titanium mufflers, used a lightened center console and door trim, and has gone so far as to delete the rear seats and the air conditioning. The rear and rear-side windows are lightweight polycarbonate. There is no audio system; there is no meaningful sound insulation. You know what’s next: The GTS won’t be coming to the States. In Europe, the M3 GTS will cost 115,000 euros (about $140,000, which is more than twice as much as a standard M3).

Rest of the story can be found here >> BMW's M Division Goes Back to the Future - Feature - Auto Reviews - Car and Driver

 

It certainly does seem like a step in the right direction.

 

That's cool. I hope they don't do away with the SUV M's, instead I would LOVE to see a naturally aspirated version with a manual gear box in the X5&6.

 

I am confident M will right the ship. Although I really don't have a problem with them putting an M badge on an SUV as long as the SUV is insane-0. Not really a big deal. But please do make the M5 and next gen M3 better than before!