[mmic77]

This rendering is nothing official. And Auto Bild as a source? Complete BS.

[Nomana]

Look nice though

[Habber]

Cue the guys with the:

My lease is ending in 2021 and need to decide fast what to do....

[hwalk]

Ouch...finally, time to get a Porsche.... But it's only Autobild which has no big reputation in Germany...

[shortseller]

Trying to out style the current ZO6 is a bad idea, Chevy has already won there.

[shortseller]

Originally Posted by hwalk

Ouch...finally, time to get a Porsche.... But it's only Autobild which has no big reputation in Germany...

Was thinking the same direction, after 20+ years of ownership, what a shame. I hope the rendition is not accurate!

[JibSTir13]

Interesting speculation/render.

Rear end looks Audi-inspired.

[Killed by Death]

Its like a car version of a mullet haircut, business up front / ugly in the back.

Sweet wheels

[Aaaaaaaaa]

But will it have a CF driveshaft?

[shortseller]

Originally Posted by pheerlx

But will it have a CF driveshaft?

Likely not based on the comments here along with info issued by BMW

[Pic18]

I cant find a digital copy at the moment, but this is basically the exact same rendering that Car Magazine (UK) had on the cover a month or so ago, although I thought they stated awd was still a possibility. I have the magazine on my coffee table so I will confirm later.

[dinonz]

Originally Posted by shortseller

Likely not based on the comments here along with info issued by BMW

Not necessarily - if they plan the tunnel to be big enough to fit the particulate filter, or indeed design somewhere else to put the filter, there's no reason it can't return...

[04S]

Originally Posted by JibSTir13

Interesting speculation/render.

Rear end looks Audi-inspired.

Originally Posted by JibSTir13

Interesting speculation/render.

Rear end looks Audi-inspired.

Reminds me of a Giulia

[97supratt]

I thought the next M3 was a hybrid platform?

[BMW M3 CRT]

It is "only" a rendering the G80 M3 could look like and nevertheless it reveals an important detail of the new M3, but apparently no one has noticed it yet !?
With the F80 M3 the special and unique (HDZ) M Engine was gone - with the G80 M3 it will probably mean - according to today informations, to say goodbye to the special body of the M3, ie the axle geometry of the M3 fits under the normal 3-series body, so that the typical M wide fenders and therefor the next special M characteristics can be dispensed with.

[jmg]

Looks generic and soul-less. I hope it doesn't look like that. I really like the F8X look, and I'm looking forward to a evolutionary change, not a watering down.

[jmg]

Originally Posted by BMW M3 CRT

say goodbye to the special body of the M3, ie the axle geometry of the M3 fits under the normal 3-series body, so that the typical M wide fenders and therefor the next special M characteristics can be dispensed with.

I hope that's not true. The exaggerated fender is one of the reasons I like the M3 over the M4 and one of the reasons the M5 is underwhelming to me. Aerodynamics and road rash be damned.

[Blksnowflake]

Those the ugliest taillights on the planet.

[PackPride85]

Originally Posted by mkoesel

And in fact, an early 2021 release as MY2022 is probably more likely yet.

Just as the the F80 trailed the F30 by over two years, the same situation is probably going to happen for the G80 as compared to the G20. Remember, the last E90 M3 was built in late 2011 as an MY2011, and the F80 did not arrive until early 2014 as an MY2015. That’s a gap of just over two calendar-years, and in fact a three model year hiatus. With the last F80 M3 known to be coming in late 2018 as an MY2018, we can expect that there will be no MY2019, MY2020, nor MY2021 while we wait for the successor to drop in early 2021 as an MY2022.

In the past I’d mentioned the chance of the M3 coming closer on the heels of the 3 Series. While this has technically been a possibility with every generation, it has yet to happen. Unfortunately, based on comments recently from SCOTT, I don’t expect to see this change with the next generation. So, while I would not yet completely rule it out, as things stand now the odds do not look good.

The M5 and M8 seem to be bridging that gap a bit sooner though? With the new M5 coming roughly a year later and the M8 possibly at the same time?

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by PackPride85

The M5 and M8 seem to be bridging that gap a bit sooner though? With the new M5 coming roughly a year later and the M8 possibly at the same time?

Exactly - and that's a good thing. Unfortunately, there's another factor with the M3/M4 and the X3/X4 M. That is, the "3" depends on the "4".

The M5 was has always been independent from the M6 from a design/release standpoint, and plus there will not a be another M6 any time soon. The M8 is also its own thing, and there is no M7 product it would share with anyway. The M3, on the other hand, shares development with the M4, including parts of its front end which are furthermore shared with the 4 Series. Therefore the M3 waits for the M4, and both of those wait for the 4 Series which will trail the 3 Series by about one and a half years for the upcoming generation just as it did for the current one.

As a point of fact, we already know that the F97 X3 M will wait until after the G02 X4 is released next year, coming simultaneously with the F98 X4 M in early 2019 for MY2020. That's over two years down the road from the recent G01 X3 debut (just now arriving in dealerships). Whether these new M SAVs will share front end parts like the M3 and M4 do is not known, but they don't necessarily have to for their development costs and timeline to be shared. As far as I know, the X5 M and X6 M have't shared front end parts in either iteration, but they have released together. So, we can conclude that the M3 and M4 will likely come together once again as well (not guaranteed, but a pretty good bet).

[shortseller]

Originally Posted by dinonz

Not necessarily - if they plan the tunnel to be big enough to fit the particulate filter, or indeed design somewhere else to put the filter, there's no reason it can't return...

Maybe it's a better selling point for BMW to keep it exclusively to the gts model?

[dinonz]

Originally Posted by shortseller

Maybe it's a better selling point for BMW to keep it exclusively to the gts model?

I don't think so, because that's not a model that appeals to everyone - probably certainly not one that appeals to M3 drivers who for whatever reason specifically chose a 4 door with 4 seats. 2 seaters don't appeal to everyone.

Likewise stripped down track cars don't appeal to everyone either.