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It's AC Schnitzer's amazing take on the BMW M240i, and we love every bit of it.

Based in Aachen, Germany, the AC Schnitzer is a third party tuning company that specializes in transforming BMW, MINI, and BMW motorcycles. The tuning house is named after one of its founders Herbert Schnitzer who, together with Willi Kohl, founded the company in 1987. It has roots with Schnitzer Motorsport, but it's a fully independent company both commercially and legally. However, the other party in this marriage, BMW, doesn't need an introduction.

The Munich, Bavaria-based German multinational automotive manufacturer BMW (Bayerische Motoren Werke AG) has been making luxury vehicles and motorcycles since 1928. The BMW M (motorsport) family, to which the M240i belongs, was created to jumpstart the Bimmer’s racing program. The nameplate eventually graduated to mass market higher trim models, giving birth to the renewed M Performance BMW nameplate in 2012, facilitated by a lineup that includes the diesel-powered M550d, X5 M50d, and the gasoline-powered M135i.

The marque has since accompanied each model lineup, including the i4 and iX, with an M Performance variant. BMW described the 2022 M240i coupe as radically sporty, revolutionary, and independent. The result of an AC Schnitzer/BMW marriage is a BMW M240i injected with high-performance drugs, albeit in subtle ways. We say subtle ways because the BMW M kept its original personality, despite the retuned engine, adjusted suspension, and enhanced aerodynamics. It's a drugged-up BMW M car without the intoxication.

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Don’t let the looks and the “M240i” badge on the trunk lid fool you into throwing this car in the same basket as the 2014 to 2021 first-gen BMW 2-Series. The all-new BMW M240i xDrive coupe is anything but that. It’s not just the MSRP that jumped up dramatically. The new M240i equally offers a jump in performance and overall value.

Leading the charge is the platform change. While the first-gen M240i was exclusively RWD in some markets, the updated model now rides on BMW’s Cluster Architecture (CLAR) platform, meaning it’s now AWD. It’s also bigger; 96 mm longer and 64 mm wider than its predecessor, and yet 4 mm lower to the ground. The wheelbase is longer too – 51 mm longer than that of its predecessor. The result is a more aggressive-looking M240i coupe as the profile is both lower and wider, enhanced by the bodacious front and rear wheel arches.

There’s also the hood with its kenspeckle power bulge, which actually compliments the ever-expanding kidney grille, leaving the front fascia looking meaner and more muscular. Another question people mostly ask is the difference between the BMW M2 and M240i. For that, our first port of call is the oomph. Yeah, the M2 actually has more of that – 405 horsepower versus the M240i’s 382 horses, although we’ve seen unofficial speed tests that saw the latter outgun the former.

However, what the M240i has over the M2 is the AWD we mentioned earlier. With that, the new M240i is more confident in times of traction trouble, which explains why it could shame the M2 in a drag race despite its fewer horses. Summarily, the BMW M240i is a fun-sized, entry-level BMW 2-Series that packs a big thrust. It is only available as a coupe, and it has a younger sibling – the 230i, offered with either RW- or AWD.

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It’s amazing that AC Schnitzer would take a calculated shot at the newest BMW 2-Series G42 chassis, injecting it with more horsepower, bolstering it with a reworked suspension, and cladding it with custom wheels. Such a combination is an obvious attempt at creating a daily driver M240i that’s just as capable, if not more, on the track. The car has also been aerodynamically optimized to create a functional downforce. We don’t know about pricing yet, but the AC Schnitzer performance kits and individual pieces should be available by August.

Over 35 years of experience came to bear on the Schnitzer-executed BMW M240i performance upgrades. As if the M car isn’t exciting enough, the daring minds at AC Schnitzer thought it would be swell to squeeze 420 horses and 443 lb-ft of torque out of the turbocharged 3.0L inline-6. With the regular M240i producing 382 horsepower, the AC Schnitzer M240i boasts a 12 and 17 percent increase in horsepower and torque made possible by a modified exhaust and intake system, plus the tuning house’s control unit.

You can hear the satisfying sound of the engine through the carbon-fiber exhaust tips linked to an AC Schnitzer's custom stainless-steel exhaust system. The car already had BMW’s adaptive dampers to ensure the suspension delivers improved performance in various road and driving conditions. But the tuner switched that for the Nürburgring-tested pre-valved shocks.

It also utilized lowering springs to drop the front and rear 20 – 25 mm, all of which accounted for the tuned-up M240i's lower center of gravity and improved agile profile. Even so, the car wouldn't look as pouncy as it does without the custom AC4 Flow-Forming 20-inch wheels with a staggered 245 front/255 rear tire setup.

Improved aerodynamics is equally a focal point of the retouched M car. To achieve this goal, the revised bodywork and dimensions are a great start, but the tuning house complemented this with a front splitter and a 2-piece rear spoiler. The addition not only adds downforce at each end, but also promotes the car’s unmistakable presence.

Inside, large swaths of the interior received the AC Schnitzer tune-up, and it includes the custom 365 mm leather and Alcantara-wrapped steering wheel. Thanks to AC Schnitzer's long relationship with BMW dating back to the '80s, the firm knows its way around a bimmer, allowing it to execute outstanding work as it seamlessly integrating the aftermarket aerodynamic pieces to the original body and paintwork. The result is a drugged-up, but not intoxicated BMW 2-Series.

Philip Uwaoma, this bearded black male from Nigeria, is fast approaching two million words in articles published on various websites, including toylist.com, rehabaid.com, and autoquarterly.com. After not getting credit for his work on Auto Quarterly, Philip is now convinced that ghostwriting sucks. He has no dog, no wife- yet- and he loves Rolls Royce a little too much.