When the BMW M Division decided to wrap modern BMW M4 mechanicals in a shorter, slightly lighter shell, and then to retune what resulted to suit even keener enthusiast tastes than the bigger M4 serves, it hit on a winning recipe for the current BMW M2 sports coupe. The sense of technical inferiority that hung around previous generations of this car was banished; and, while the car grew (and grew heavier) as a result, it gained a sense of integrity, maturity and completeness as a modern M car that earns it a very high-ranking berth in this chart.
The M2 now uses a slightly detuned version of the same turbocharged straight six that powers the M4, and has a healthy 453bhp to call on. Driven exclusively by its rear wheels, and available with a six-speed manual gearbox if you want one, this car is a simpler, purer driver’s car than bigger M cars, and retains just enough compactness to appeal in a way that the company’s bigger saloons and estates can’t. It’s fast, balanced, involving and communicative – yet also versatile, capable, and very instantly driver-configurable, as characterises modern M cars so uniquely.
Pricing that will allow you to escape from the showroom having spent less than £70,000, if you choose to, seals the appeal for a car that has a right-sized compromise of just enough power and space, at just the right price – and no shortage of vivid driver reward.
Read our BMW M2 Coupe review
3. Lotus Emira
Pros: supremely poised chassis, talkative steering, and driver involvement like little else
Cons: four-cylinder version’s engine is a little unworthy; still isn’t as easy to live with as a 911 or 718 Cayman
The last hurrah for ICE power at Lotus, the Emira certainly has a lot resting on its shoulders. And the good news is that the Norfolk newcomer gets so much right, from its junior exotic looks through to a chassis that maintains the decades-long tradition of Hethel handling greatness.
There are some novelties for a Lotus, too, such as an interior that delivers previously unheard of levels of luxury and quality, plus all the latest gadgets and gizmos. It’s decently practical too, proving easier to get into and out of than the old Evora and packing handy storage. This is an everyday-usable sports car.