Sunday 23rd July 2017

Alpina B4 S: Driven

Unimpressed by the current BMW M4? The Alpina alternative might be just what you need

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It's a fact that I find both sad and odd that I've not driven a current BMW M4 I really liked. Sad because I've been a huge fan of most previous generation cars, odd because I think the not so very different M2 is one of the finest M-cars ever made. But there it is.

By contrast, I loved the rival Alpina B4. Of course, it was more comfortable, but you'd expect that from a brand whose boss is on the record as saying it identifies more closely with Bentley than Porsche. What I didn't expect was how much better it was to drive, especially on or near the limit where instead of snatching, grabbing and skidding as the M4s I've driven have been prone to do, it just gently yawed into rather elegant, easily controlled slides. In fact, it was less aggressive in its every action and, to me at least, all the better for it. All it lacked was a bit of get up and go.

No need to change the outside, was there?

S-Express
No longer. The B3 and B4 are dead, replaced by the B3 S and B4 S. On the 'if it ain't broke' basis Alpina has left the chassis of these cars unchanged, and turned its attention instead to leveraging a bit more steam out of the N55 motor, already uniquely modified for Alpina by BMW to accept a twin-turbo installation. The B4 S gets bigger turbos, a forged crankshaft, 20 per cent more cooling capacity for the water and 35 per cent more for the oil. This raises power from 410hp - a bit less than a standard M4 - to 440hp, which is a little more. More pointedly torque rises from an already punchy 442lb ft to a simply enormous 486lb ft. An M4 has just 406lb ft, and that's significant. The Alpina is heavier than the M4 but that's more than offset by all that torque spread liberally around the rev range.

With cars like this, it's all about the balance of power to grip. Cars where one overwhelms the other are rarely satisfying to drive and if the B4 had a fault it was that its chassis was so delicious it completely outshone the engine. I'd say the B4 S has now established near perfect equilibrium.

In fact, this is a textbook case of additional power actually appearing to improve still further a car's chassis, when in fact all it's doing is allowing the driver easier access to the depths of talent that were already there. The result is actually the reverse of what you might expect: instead of appreciating the extra power and not really noticing the chassis because, hey, it's exactly the same as the last one, what actually happens is that you get used to the power almost immediately and spend the rest of the time relishing the way it brings the chassis alive.

Good before, borderline brilliant now

Torque of the devil
The torque's the thing, along with pretty impressive throttle response for a turbo engine blowing a lot of boost. Alpinas are highly resistant to understeer because it's a trait boss man Andy Bovensiepen loathes, and the little B4 was already the most neutral of the lot. And it can stay that way if you like, or you can draw upon that now vast reserve of torque to nudge the back a bit whereafter the choice is yours: just reduce the lock a fraction and rocket upon your way, or use your foot instead and slide for as long as you want to slide. And so far as I could see on the racetrack where I drove it, it is as viceless as its predecessor.

I really liked the B4 S, largely because of how well it executes the Alpina doctrine of adding driving pleasure without detracting from everyday usability and by never mistaking fun for fast. Bovensiepen is the first to say that even with its extra power and torque a B4 S would not lap a track as fast as a standard M4. The rather more important question is which car would you enjoy driving more while doing it? For me, even the old B4 was better than the M4 in this respect and the B4 S therefore even more so. In short and by staying focused on what it does best, Alpina finds itself with another winner on its hands.

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ALPINA B4 S COUPE
Engine: 2,993cc, straight-six twin-turbo
Transmission: 8-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 440@5,500rpm
Torque (lb ft): 486@3,000rpm
0-62mph: 4.2sec
Top speed: 190mph
Weight: 1,690kg (including driver and fluids)
MPG: 35.8
CO2: 190g/km
Price: £63,000

[philmots]

I love these, so much class imo.

That's a really healthy torque figure for a petrol lump, is an LSD standard now on the S?

I'll have the saloon, in blue, with the silver stripes please.