Tuesday 20th February 2018

BMW M4 Convertible '30 Jahre Edition'

Yes, we really have had three decades of M3 drop-tops - BMW is in the mood to celebrate

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It's fair to say that the convertible version of the BMW M3 has never been the choice of purists. Sure, you would receive greater aural access to a sensational engine, but that benefit was offset by the increased weight of the roof mechanism and the resultant dynamic squidgyness.

Nevertheless, 2018 marks 30 years of BMW selling to the world convertible versions of every M3 and M4 yet produced. Ergo like the saloon, it is drawing attention to the occasion with a 30 Jahre Edition. Like you all dressed up for your 30th birthday night out, it's fundamentally the same thing as everyone is used to, but more expensive and jazzier than usual.

Based on the M4 Convertible Competition Pack, the 30 Jahre has 450hp and therefore the same vital statistics: 4.5 seconds to 62mph, 155mph flat out, 406lb ft from 1,850rpm and a redline at 7,600rpm.

What's new for the 30 Jahre, then, is mostly cosmetic. Colour choice is limited to a pair of heritage colours, Macau Blue evoking the E30 and Mandarin II reminiscent of the E36's Dakar Yellow. The interior continues the colour scheme established outside, so perhaps yellow isn't the best idea after all.

'30 Jahre Edition' features on the headrests and the door sills, with a limited edition plaque - just 300 of these M4s will be made - emblazoned on the passenger side of the dash. Because limited editions must feature plaques, right?

There's no word yet on price or UK availability for the 30 Jahre yet, but we'll hope to update you with that information soon. It's probably worth bearing in mind that the M3 equivalent of this car was £82,675 when it launched in 2016, so we would expect a similar premium for this M4; perhaps more so, in fact, because there were 500 M3s globally available. (Although if you missed the saloon, seven of the 30 UK cars are currently in the PH classifieds, starting at £64,990).

Finally, should the 30 Jahre be the car that's reminded you an M4 Convertible is what you really want, early cars are now available from £35k. Competition Pack cars begin at £45,000 and, for something really odd, this Comp Pack with a manual gearbox is £47,000...

 

[tosh.brice]

You imply that the yellow one has a yellow interior but don't show it. Other web sites show a black interior

[Over over under steer]

Personal preference alert...

For road use I'd always go for the convertible version of a sports car. I prefer the heightened exposure to the elements which just makes the drive feel like more of an event. I accept that there might be some compromise to chassis rigidity but for road use I couldn't care less.

[julian64]

Having had a little experience of trying BMW cabs and hard tops I wouldn't say there is a little difference between the two. I would say its like driving a completely different car dynamic wise. I'm afraid I would never pay the premium for a 'sporty' cab, just buy a standard cab because the 'sporty' money is wasted

[Jordan210]

tosh.brice said:

You imply that the yellow one has a yellow interior but don't show it. Other web sites show a black interior

It has yellow stitching. Thats it by the look of it on the high res photos.

Also I don't think Yellow is available in the UK

"With a choice of two body colours for the BMW M4 Convertible Edition 30 Jahre - the Macao Blue metallic pays tribute to the open-top high-performance car’s debut over three decades ago and the Frozen Dark Grey Metallic boasts a rich sporting heritage and is available exclusively in the UK."


Also not sure why Pistonheads say they don't have the price and availability

Limited to 30 units in the UK. • On sale from February 2018 and priced £76,675 OTR.

Edited by Jordan210 on Tuesday 20th February 10:13

[Tuvra]

I'm a fan of the BMW M4, however, the other day I was parked next to a Silverstone II Cab with the roof up and all I could think is "the roof line isn't right", I don't like it. Like the other poster here, I couldn't give a hoot about the loss of rigidity, added weight etc, to my eyes the roof totally spoilt the look so I'd never consider the cab. It's noticeable in photos but in the flesh its more obvious to my eyes:-


I'm sure the roof joints just draw my eyes to the area and spoils the "visual flow" of the car

[TooMany2cvs]

So is this BMW saying that, yes, the 3 and 4 are the same thing?

[GTEYE]

So basically what we're left with is a choice of Macau Blue or Frozen Silver - both of which I'm sure you could have as an Individual colour anyway.....

Oh and the plaque....

It's not really BMW's finest hour IMHO.

[Matt Bird]

Hi all,

We've been beaten to it, but just to say there's now a UK release for the 30 Jahre (the story was written off the international) which says that there will be 30 cars and they will cost £76,675. Colours are Frozen Dark Grey and Macau Blue. Apologies for any confusion!

Cheers,


Matt

[TooMany2cvs]

Matt Bird said:

We've been beaten to it, but just to say there's now a UK release for the 30 Jahre (the story was written off the international) which says that there will be 30 cars and they will cost £76,675. Colours are Frozen Dark Grey and Macau Blue. Apologies for any confusion!

So about a £10k premium (more or less, depending on box) over the normal comp pack.

[0ddball]

So a 30th anniversary edition of a car that hasn't been around for 30 years? M'kay.

[M1C]

Tuvra said:

I'm a fan of the BMW M4, however, the other day I was parked next to a Silverstone II Cab with the roof up and all I could think is "the roof line isn't right", I don't like it. Like the other poster here, I couldn't give a hoot about the loss of rigidity, added weight etc, to my eyes the roof totally spoilt the look so I'd never consider the cab. It's noticeable in photos but in the flesh its more obvious to my eyes:-


I'm sure the roof joints just draw my eyes to the area and spoils the "visual flow" of the car

Totally agree. The convertible looks nice enough with roof down and the open to the elements thing + extra sounds etc would be great...but with the roof up it just looks wrong.

The coupe is so much nicer

[GTEYE]

M1C said:

Tuvra said:

I'm a fan of the BMW M4, however, the other day I was parked next to a Silverstone II Cab with the roof up and all I could think is "the roof line isn't right", I don't like it. Like the other poster here, I couldn't give a hoot about the loss of rigidity, added weight etc, to my eyes the roof totally spoilt the look so I'd never consider the cab. It's noticeable in photos but in the flesh its more obvious to my eyes:-


I'm sure the roof joints just draw my eyes to the area and spoils the "visual flow" of the car

Totally agree. The convertible looks nice enough with roof down and the open to the elements thing + extra sounds etc would be great...but with the roof up it just looks wrong.

The coupe is so much nicer

The rear window needs to be less raked or it would never fold up into the boot.

I think they actually did a decent job - and whilst it may not look as rakish as the coupe - it was always going to have to be a bit of a compromise - it still looks better than a big expanse of folded fabric IMHO anyway.

Maybe I'm biased as I have an E93 cabrio - but you do get 2 cars in one - roof up its as refined as the normal coupe - but roof down in summer is quite special.

[Ares]

Not normally a fan of Dark Blue cars, but do like that. Remember it being a string colour option on the E30.


The Frozen Silver on the 30 Jahre saloon was a stunning colour and suited the car better than any other I've seen. Interesting to see what the frozen dark grey looks like.

[Plug Life]

Where's the i3 convertible?

[SEGTCSL]

GTEYE said:

So basically what we're left with is a choice of Macau Blue or Frozen Silver - both of which I'm sure you could have as an Individual colour anyway.....

Oh and the plaque....

It's not really BMW's finest hour IMHO.

BMW and Ford are masters in this sort of thing nowadays.

[unsprung]

"What's that? A 1000 Jahre Edition, you say?"

[Jual Mass Flywheel]

GTEYE said:

M1C said:

Tuvra said:

I'm a fan of the BMW M4, however, the other day I was parked next to a Silverstone II Cab with the roof up and all I could think is "the roof line isn't right", I don't like it. Like the other poster here, I couldn't give a hoot about the loss of rigidity, added weight etc, to my eyes the roof totally spoilt the look so I'd never consider the cab. It's noticeable in photos but in the flesh its more obvious to my eyes:-


I'm sure the roof joints just draw my eyes to the area and spoils the "visual flow" of the car

Totally agree. The convertible looks nice enough with roof down and the open to the elements thing + extra sounds etc would be great...but with the roof up it just looks wrong.

The coupe is so much nicer

The rear window needs to be less raked or it would never fold up into the boot.

I think they actually did a decent job - and whilst it may not look as rakish as the coupe - it was always going to have to be a bit of a compromise - it still looks better than a big expanse of folded fabric IMHO anyway.

Maybe I'm biased as I have an E93 cabrio - but you do get 2 cars in one - roof up its as refined as the normal coupe - but roof down in summer is quite special.

I think it's the boot on the cab. It seems much flatter and doesn't flow down from the rear screen.

[Joeguard1990]

Not sure what the actual colour code is called, but seen a competition pack M4 in the sparkly purple colour and it looked amazing with the alloys.

[PHMatt]

julian64 said:

Having had a little experience of trying BMW cabs and hard tops I wouldn't say there is a little difference between the two. I would say its like driving a completely different car dynamic wise. I'm afraid I would never pay the premium for a 'sporty' cab, just buy a standard cab because the 'sporty' money is wasted

So you think lopping the roof off an M4 makes it less sporty than a 318 SE hard top?

[PHMatt]

Tuvra said:

I'm a fan of the BMW M4, however, the other day I was parked next to a Silverstone II Cab with the roof up and all I could think is "the roof line isn't right", I don't like it. Like the other poster here, I couldn't give a hoot about the loss of rigidity, added weight etc, to my eyes the roof totally spoilt the look so I'd never consider the cab. It's noticeable in photos but in the flesh its more obvious to my eyes:-


I'm sure the roof joints just draw my eyes to the area and spoils the "visual flow" of the car

I would normally say that you should judge a convertible's appearance with the roof down. But I'm not sure the E93 nor this look as good as either the E36 or E46 convertibles did in their day.

I'd still choose to go topless though. Best driving experience, especially in modern cars with 6ft thick pillars all around blocking most of your views.