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BMW M3 COMPETITION xDRIVE
New-generation super-saloon gains the option of an additional driven axle
For the first time in M3 history, this is one with four-wheel drive. Today’s M3 has 503bhp, so BMW wonders if the rear tyres might need assistance from the fronts. Something akin to an Audi RS, then.
In everyday driving, you’re barely meant to know the system is there: drive goes to the rear, just like in an ordinary M3. But if the back wheels slip, the xDrive system sends torque forwards, too. The amount diverted forwards varies depending on how the rear slips, but it can be selected by the driver, too. There’s Normal 4WD mode and Sport 4WD (which is slightly more rear biased), or, if the stability control is switched off, the xDrive can be bypassed so you just have rear-wheel drive, complete with that M3 system for rating one’s drifts.