Even with a brand-new 3 series just released and the plastic wrapping just coming off of the new X5 and halo-car 8 series, there’s no rest for the wicked.
When your top competition is one of the world’s oldest automakers and you’re playing catch-up against a lineup with 14 distinct classes to fill every little market niche, you have to be a little obsessive.
Queue the mid-season refresh. For 2019, the refresh is a thing in a big way. We’re getting new engine options, enhanced technologies and additional colors, just to name a few of the seasonal updates. So if you just bought a BMW, pat yourself on the back because pining for a new one can start today!
The 3er Gets new Powertrains
Even with the hot new 8 series turning heads in the media, BMW’s reputation is fully invested in the 3-series.
The new G20 car has only been out for half a year, but it’s getting expanded powertrain options such as the coupling of the new 374hp turbo six-cylinder and BMW’s xDrive all-wheel drive system.
This model will wear the name M340i xDrive, and will be the must feature-laden 3er short of the full-on M car, which is currently without AWD.
For bimmerphile environmental enthusiasts, the lineup expansion also includes the 320i xDrive, the 330e hybrid model, which combines the 320’s four-cylinder powertrain with an electric motor for extra grunt and efficiency, and a version of the 330d diesel-powered car that includes the xDrive system.
Topping things off are new M Sport suspension upgrades available through BMW dealers and a gaggle of new paint and interior options. Not bad.
A Baby M5 for Your Driving Pleasure
The last few iterations of the 550i have held sleeper super-sedan status thanks to impressive power and none of the harshness that comes with the M car’s sporting intentions.
A newly developed V8 makes its way into the current 550 and narrows the gap with it’s M sibling to just 77 horsepower, producing 523hp and 553lbs-ft. of torque. This might cause a lot of potential M buyers to consider whether at nearly $400 per pony and with no difference in torque output, 523 is enough Bavarian horses.
Other BMW Things
There’s also a minor refresh in M land with the M4 coupe and convertible now offering the competition package as standard. That means increased output from the S55 six-cylinder of 450hp, a sports exhaust, upgraded seats to hold you in while you hoon your M car as one does using the Active M differential included in the package and breathed-on Adaptive M suspension with specially tuned dynamic stability control.
You also get BMW drive recorder on all models, so you can show your hoonage off on social media after downloading it from your car, or even submit evidence in the case of an accident using the feature that auto-saves 20 seconds before and after a collision.
If you’re the type that’s more excited about batteries than rip-snorting German horsepower, you should be happy to know that electrified BMWs will now make a sound to alert pedestrians that you’re approaching. So you can no longer sneak up on unwitting Mercedes drivers, for that you’ll need to join the Prius Illuminati. But now then, who would lower themselves to the ranks of driving a Toyota?