BMW Preparing New 475-Horsepower Engine For X3/X4 M And M3/M4

Khodrocar - Sources familiar with BMW’s agenda have disclosed a new powerful gasoline engine is in the making and it will be put to good use in a multitude of models, starting off with the X3 M. Codenamed "S58,” the six-cylinder turbocharged unit won’t be a completely new engine as it will be more of an evolution of the existing S55 3.0-liter mill you’ll find in the M3 and M4.

While the M3 you can buy today pumps out a meaty 444 horsepower when fitted with the optional Competition Package, the new engine is expected to up the power ante to somewhere in the region of 470 or up to 475 hp. But first, the S58 will find its way inside the engine bay of the highly anticipated X3 M set to take on the likes of Mercedes-AMG GLC 63 and the Audi SQ5. Logic tells us that its coupe-ified counterpart, the X4 M, will be blessed with the same engine.

Things could get a bit more complex in the case of the next-gen M3 as a different report indicates it will take advantage of a mild hybrid system lifting total power to as much as 500 hp. Besides packing more punch, the new M3 – and its M4 coupe and convertible siblings – will make a more generous use of carbon fiber to shave off weight and consequently boost performance furthermore.

Expect the S58 to premiere as early as next year in the first-ever X3 M, with the X4 M to follow shortly. Believed to get an optional xDrive all-wheel-drive system, the new M3 is slated to debut around the end of the decade and it probably won’t take too long before its two-door cousins will be out.