Defining a muscle car is extremely difficult. You could say it has to be a heavy, blocky, powerful, fast front-engine and rear-wheel-drive car. By that definition, though, the Bentley Turbo R is a muscle car. Sure, some Buicks and Pontiacs got pretty plush but never anything on that level.
However, we can safely call the BMW 2-series a muscle car. It meets all those standards and a couple more. On top of all that, it has a better fuel economy than virtually any of its competitors at their respective levels of performance.
This is how Munich makes a pony killer that sips gas and kicks ass.
The Bavarian Muscle Workout — Low-End Power
Like its main competitors — the Mustang, the Camaro, and the Challenger – the 2-series offers multiple levels of trim, depending on your performance needs. At every such level, the 2-series’ fuel economy is superior. First, a couple of basic stats.
The base model, the 228i, uses a 2-liter straight-4 that makes 240 hp and 255 lb-ft. The brawnier M235i uses a 3-liter straight-6 which makes 320 hp and 330 lb-ft, (with all the torque available at a shockingly low 1300 rpm). In the M2, this engine gets tuned to 365 hp and 343 lb-ft.
All of these engines hit their peak torque at fairly low revs – 1450 to 1300 rpm – which gives them acceleration out of proportion with their displacement. They will do 0-60 from 5.5 to 4.2 seconds, and the quarter-mile from 14.1 to 12.7 seconds, depending on trim. A six-speed manual is available, but the eight-speed automatic barely dents performance and is better for mileage.
What’s A Muscle Car, Really?
A word on the definition. The only way to get remotely respectable fuel economy with a 60’s muscle car would be to get one of the anemic six-cylinder engines, and even then the numbers worsen with time. Besides, even a 2006 Subaru Forester XL can humiliate a 60’s Hemi and draw even with the original Camaro ZL1 at the drag strip. This article, then, looked first for a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive car that meets the standards of modern muscle cars. What to use as a benchmark?
The obvious candidate would be the Ecoboost Mustang. It can do 0-60 in 5.3 seconds and the quarter-mile in 13.9 – and it’s the successor to *the* muscle car nameplate. It also gets a respectable 32 MPG. If there was going to be a challenger, it needed to do better than that, and preferably be capable of smoldering burnouts, donuts, and powerslides. As a general rule, the more MPG it could get the better.
From a performance perspective, the Audi RS3 and Mercedes-Benz AMG A35 or CLA45 are good candidates. Unfortunately, they’re four-wheel drive, so it’s harder to drift them properly. Eventually, though, we found our winner.
Screaming Performance And Screeching Tires
The 2-series has the numbers, and it meets our intangible criteria as well. It’s a rear-wheel-drive car that can slide effortlessly; Chris Harris used an M235i in the above drifting instructional video. The styling is brawny and the exhaust arrangement is symmetrical, one on each side of the car. Motor Trend noted the back end had some manageable “liveliness” but the car offered track performance comparable to the shorter and lighter 1M. Jeremy Clarkson called it the best M car.
The 228i is rear-wheel drive, but battles to skid or burn out. That said, so does the Ecoboost Mustang – and the 228i can equal it on all other criteria while getting 27 MPG. Meanwhile, the significantly quicker M235i can drift and equals the Ecoboost’s fuel economy at 25 MPG. The M2 gets 21-22 MPG, the even faster M2 Competition 20 MPG - not spectacular, but superior to their performance equals.
On a track, the M235i is slightly slower than the comparable models but noticeably faster than the Ecoboost and can keep pace with previous-generation V8s. The M2 is equal to or quicker than anything short of an SS or Hellcat. Furthermore, while the 2-series was slightly more expensive than its competitors when it came out in 2014 (and 2016, for the M2), used examples are in the same price range as a used Mustang GT or Camaro SS.
Bulking And Cutting: Two Steps For A Lean Muscle Machine
First, the easy math. The 2-series’ whole range of engines is turbocharged, which improves fuel economy. The 2-series is also lighter than most of its competition. All of the V8s are much bigger displacement than the straight-6 in the M2, explaining the discrepancy in fuel economy at the upper end of the performance range.
It’s not completely straightforward, though. Why does the 228i get better fuel efficiency than the Camaro 1LE straight-4? That car is also turbocharged, has an identical displacement, and boasts start-stop tech and direct injection – and it’s only about 70 pounds heavier.
The 2-series has a slightly better drag coefficient; 0.3 and 0.33 for the 228i and M235i respectively vs. roughly 0.35 for the Mustang. The 2013 Camaro had a drag coefficient of 0.37; subsequent models may be as low as 0.35 but GM has not released updated numbers. The M2 has a 0.35 c/d as well, but as previously mentioned its engine has a much smaller displacement and is turbocharged.
BMW’s TwinPower tech also uses the battery to spool up the turbos before the throttle is applied, meaning less lag i.e. less wasted effort trying to get the turbos spinning and helping the engine. This improves acceleration and fuel economy. Wheels magazine notes that the Camaro, by contrast, suffers from noticeable turbo lag. Fuel economy is also affected by boost pressure; stock boost on the 228i averages about 8-10 psi while the Camaro goes all the way up to 20psi, making it less efficient.
The BMW Knows How To Sip Because It Has To
In order to meet emissions regulations, there is a trend towards smaller petrol engines supported by turbochargers or a hybrid system. As the 2-series proves, this approach can apply even to something as flashy as muscle cars. The 2-series might not have the hallowed eight cylinders, but on most metrics, it’s the equal of anything that does.
Sources: 2addicts.com, Auto Evolution, Car and Driver, Conceptcarz.com, The Drive, Edmunds, EnginesWork.com, Fastestlaps.com, Fueleconomy.gov, Grand Tour, Hagerty’s, Kelley Blue Book, Motor Trend, Road & Track, The Spokesman-Review