When BMW said the next M3 would be powered by a “new type of six-cylinder engine,” some media outlets speculated that it might be a V6. We quickly dismissed the rumor and instead reported that the sports sedan would stay true to its signature inline-six. The “G84” will certainly not attempt a winning formula.
We spoke to M CEO Frank van Meel at the Japan Mobility Show about what the future holds for the gasoline-powered M3. Purists, rejoice: He confirmed our original report that the seventh-generation model will retain the inline-six setup:
“We will continue to use the in-line six-cylinder in the M3 in the future. We are sticking with the best combustion car in the segment, the iconic in-line six-cylinder.”
The V6 rumor never made much sense anyway. BMW has never sold a production car with a V6, so why start now? Developing an entirely new engine from scratch would be costly and poorly timed as the industry moves toward electrification. Investing in a V6 to only use it for a few short years just wouldn’t be financially worthwhile.
The sales ban on new cars with combustion engines planned for Europe until 2035 further limits the time window for such a project. However, BMW has experimented with V6 engines in the past. As journalist Jason Cammisa revealed in 2015 Road and rail column, the company secretly built and tested several prototypes. However, none of these came “close to the company’s noise and harshness standards.”
As for BMW’s reference to a “new six-cylinder engine type”, this sentence came from Mike Reichelt, head of the Neue Klasse, in an interview with Top equipment Earlier this year. We believe he hinted at an electrified evolution of the proven S58 engine. Don’t worry: it won’t be a plug-in hybrid.
BMW will probably give the 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged inline-six a mild hybrid system to meet stricter emissions standards, particularly Euro 7. The original M3 G84 version could produce around 525 hp, with the potential to reach 560 hp later in the life cycle. We hear that BMW plans to offer what could be the last petrol M3 generation exclusively with xDrive and an automatic transmission.
If our information is correct, which it usually is, the clock is ticking for the manual rear-wheel drive M3. Production of the current G80 reportedly ends in March 2027, meaning the order books could be closed in about a year. The next-generation M3 is scheduled to go into production in mid-2028, but not in Munich. BMW could build the 3 Series (G50) and its spicy M derivative in Dingolfing.
