2022 BMW 4-Series Review

LIKES

Powerful and responsive engines
Well-balanced handling
High-quality interior
Smartly executed infotainment
The M4, in all its glory

DISLIKES

Oy, that front end
Only M4 has a manual
Meager steering feedback

BUYING TIP

The 430i Gran Coupe has much to recommend, from its strong turbo-4 to its smartly absorbent ride—but our pulse still runs wild for the M4 Competition.

The 2022 BMW 4-Series pans for attention with a gaudy front end, while it brandishes brilliant powertrains and grippy, electronically augmented handling.

What kind of vehicle is the 2022 BMW 4-Series? What does it compare to?

The 4-Series badge sticks to a four-door sedan with a fast roofline, as well as a coupe and convertible. The sleeker companion to the 3-Series, the 4er competes with the Audi A5, Tesla Model 3, and Genesis G70.

Is the 2022 BMW 4-Series a good car?

The 4-Series scores a TCC Rating of 7.0 out of 10, before safety scores have been determined. The nose costs it points compared to the related 3-Series, but its drivability and technology still impress.

What's new for the 2022 BMW 4-Series?

New this year are a two-door M440i xDrive Coupe; the Gran Coupe four-door fastback, in 255-hp 430i and 382-hp M440i spec; 430i xDrive and M440i xDrive Convertibles; and a 503-hp M4 Competition Coupe xDrive. Ambient lighting and an upholstered dash have been dropped from some models, while lumbar support and gesture controls have been added.

Last year’s redesign of the BMW 4-Series brought with it a polarizing new look; after a year, we’re still not at peace with the tall, wide, flared nostrils of the latest version. Masking the front end, drawing gaudy attention to it, it’s at once the natural evolution of BMW styling trends, and the complete opposite of the discreet grille applied to its cars and SUVs of a decade ago. It’s bracing, and not in the right ways. Inside, it’s quietly dramatic, with angular modules of digital displays banked inside layers of leather and wood, or even carbon fiber, trimmed with just the right amount of bright detail.

The broad 4-Series lineup includes a 255-hp turbo-4, a 382-hp twin-turbo inline-6, and stronger M-grade versions of that engine with either 473 or 503 hp. The slowest car still cuts to the 60-mph quick in less than six seconds; the fastest, in less than four. Base 4-Series cars can rack up 34 mpg highway while they hone down the rougher edges of the pavement through a strut-and-multilink suspension; the star of the family, the M440i, does deep knee-bends into vicious corners with grace and irons out potholes like an industrial steam press. M4 editions may be too stiffly sprung and too tightly confining for some, with their performance run-flat tires and carbon-fiber sport seats; we’ll take their driving turn, thanks.

The 4-Series sports a distinctive layout from the 3-Series, with its own shifter and console. Very supportive sport seats fit most front passengers, while Gran Coupes do the best job of transporting two more people; Convertibles are less useful in almost every metric, of course. Trunk space ranges from a small 12.0 cubic feet to a tiny 9.0 cubic feet—but those inconveniences are easy to dismiss when perched on cooled, nappa-leather-clad seats and surrounded by gray-stained open-pore wood.

The IIHS and the NHTSA haven’t crash-tested the 4-Series yet, though the similar 3-Series earns the IIHS’ Top Safety Pick. All models get automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitors, and automatic high beams. Options range from a head-up display and a surround-view camera system to adaptive cruise control with good lane-centering control.

How much does the 2022 BMW 4-Series cost?

It’s $46,095 for a 430i Gran Coupe with synthetic leather seats, a sunroof, and an 8.8-inch touchscreen with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. All-wheel drive costs $2,000; top options include leather, wireless smartphone charging, heated and cooled front seats, and an adaptive suspension. Pick the $59,195 M440i Gran Coupe for brilliant speed and finesse, or the brutal $79,995 M4 xDrive Competition edition for unflappable grip and lime-yellow paint.

Where is the 2022 BMW 4-Series made?

In Germany.

Styling

An overwhelming grille mars the 4-Series’ front end.

Is the BMW 4-Series a good-looking car?

BMW has gone off the deep end with the latest 4-Series. A distinctively large grille on the 3-Series takes on epic proportions on this model. Note “epic,” not “heroic.” It’s needlessly overstated, muted only in the darkest paint colors, and ultimately, robs the 4-Series of a point that its delightful cabin reclaims. It’s a 5 here.

The grille calls out BMW’s heritage in a glaring and gaudy way, and where states require a front license plate, even that callback gets obliterated; the plate looks like braces on teeth. With even more venting to feed its big twin-turbo engine, the M4 version gets even more complicated. It doesn’t glide through the air, it gnaws into it. Down the rest of its body—coupe, sedan, or convertible—the 4-Series has classic proportions with a long hood and short decklid. It’s a shame.

The 4-Series cabin plays off an angular theme to provide the antidote for the overwrought front end. BMW fits digital touchscreens and gauge clusters discreetly into a dash ribbed with wood or metallic or even carbon-fiber trim. The gauges have irregularly shaped dials, but that’s easy to overlook, given everything else. Classic BMW black-on-black interior decor suits it fine, but the lighter beige interiors—and on high-end models, electric-yellow or tangerine leather and suede—transform it into a vibrant clubby space, perfectly accented with metal trim bits and the soft glow of its wide-angle touchscreen.

Performance

BMW pairs its brilliant engine lineup with nearly brilliant handling.

The 2022 BMW 4-Series has excellent powertrains and superb balance, but it lacks steering feel. It gets an 8 out of 10 based on the most popular model, the 430i, with its quick turbo-4 adding one point and excellent handling adding two.

Is the BMW 4-Series 4WD?

It’s rear-wheel drive, but all-wheel drive can be configured on each version: 430i, M440i, and M4.

How fast is the BMW 4-Series?

Even the 430i models can claim some performance cred. Their 255-hp 2.0-liter turbo-4 hooks up with a clever, quick-witted 8-speed automatic to drop 60-mph sprints in just 5.5 seconds with rear-wheel drive, 5.3 seconds with all-wheel drive thanks to superior traction. Convertibles are slightly slower, as are Gran Coupes, both due to weight.

The base 4-Series handles much like a 3-Series, since they share their essential layout. The 4-Series has more reinforcements for its body to make up for its less rigid structure, and to offset the more sporty state of tune applied to its steering, suspension, and brakes. With quicker turn-in than the 3-Series (in two-door form), the 4-Series boosts the near-brilliant moves of the 3-Series, retaining its neutral feel and light body roll.

There’s a magnitude of difference with the M440i, and it begins with a luscious 382-hp 3.0-liter turbo-6 that twists out 360 lb-ft of torque. Through the same 8-speed automatic, with rear- or all-wheel drive, these cars can snap off a 0-60 mph time of 4.3 seconds. Rippling with engine-muscle, and equipped with paddle shifters that let drivers tap its musicality on demand, the M440i plays varsity to the 430i’s JV-league moves. Equipped with adaptive dampers, an M Sport differential, M Sport brakes, and variable sport steering, it’s a car with few obvious flaws. That steering setup is one of them: it lacks in feedback for a car of its significant prowess and speed, though it tracks true through heavy weighting even as it threads through tightly essed back roads. The M440i’s suspension damps out highway imperfections well, even in Sport mode, filing down the rough edges off the road without interfering with the plucked-string feel of its suspension tune and pistoning only lightly over even large bumps.

The M4 plants its feet even more firmly. Its 3.0-liter twin-turbo-6 flares up 473 hp in standard spec with a 6-speed manual, or 503 hp in Competition trim with an 8-speed automatic and optional all-wheel drive. The M4 rifles to 60 mph in 4.1 seconds while the M4 Competition outguns it, in 3.8 seconds. In the very similar M3, the ferocious engine and flypaper-grade stick give the ultimate version of these cars the fearsome roadgoing qualities of exotic cars just a generation ago. Bigger, heavier, and more electronically complicated, they’re no longer the direct descendants of the lightweight and nimble M cars of the last century: they’re supercars to that era, stunning performers still today.

Comfort & Quality

Gran Coupes fit most 4-Series drivers best.

Variety is the 4-Series’ game, with seating for up to five people. In descending order of comfort for the back-seaters, the Gran Coupe and Coupe and Convertible all sport excellent front seats and a well-fitted interior, which earns two extra points. With another point for the trunk space in the most popular model, the Gran Coupe, it’s an 8.

Those excellent base seats have a wide range of power adjustments and movable lumbar adjustments, though they only get better as their synthetic leather swaps up for the real stuff and as they gain heating and cooling. The M4 cars can be fitted with carbon-fiber seats with limited adjustments and narrow room for hips, but they lock front passengers into place for the thrill ride ahead.

Convertibles have the least shoulder room in back, but the 4-Series Coupe isn’t bad for two big people. What looks like a confined space is more expansive than it seems, with 34.5 inches of rear leg room and just enough head room for tall passengers. It’s more difficult to gain entry than to get comfortable in it: the 4-Series coupe and convertible have long doors that turn parking-lot exits into embarrassing grabs for stability.

Gran Coupes are best of all. At 188.5 inches long, on a 112.4-inch wheelbase, they offer 34.9 inches of leg room in back and 36.6 inches of head room, just a third of an inch and one inch less than a 3-Series, respectively. Like the 3-Series, the rear outboard seats sit too far inside the door to leave much room for a third passenger.

The Gran Coupe and Coupe have a 12.0-cubic-foot trunk, while the Convertible manages just 9.0 cubic feet of space under its decklid.

Safety

The 4-Series taps the safety-tech pool for talent.

How safe is the BMW 4-Series?

The IIHS and the NHTSA haven’t produced crash-test data for the 4-Series yet, though the IIHS dubs the related 3-Series a Top Safety Pick. We’ll leave it unrated until we have more data.

Every 4-Series comes with automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitors, and automatic high beams. Options range from laser-matrix LED headlights to adaptive cruise control to a head-up display.

Outward vision isn’t bad in the roofed versions of the 4-Series. Coupes have a wide view of the road behind in their frameless rearview mirror; only at the rear quarters do the roof pillars intrude into the relatively unobstructed view.

Features

Myriad features and great service lift the 4-Series above rivals.

The 4-Series has BMW’s usual good standard features, with a raft of options scattered across three body styles and four powertrains across nearly a dozen models. It also has very good infotainment, and a 4-year/50,000-mile warranty that comes with free maintenance for 3 years/36,000 miles. That rings up a 9, with only a point for value left on the table.

Which BMW 4-Series should I buy?

We’re not going to commit to just one. We like the base $46,095 430i Gran Coupe, with its standard sunroof, synthetic leather seats, LED headlights and parking sensors. It also has an infotainment system with a standard 8.8-inch touchscreen (not all BMWs have touch input this year, due to the chip shortage), wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and control via voice, steering wheel, or a rotary dial, as well as available gesture controls. Want to spend more on a different body style? It’s $47,545 for the 430i coupe, $55,045 for the convertible, and another $2,000 for all-wheel drive.

Study the options list for the essentials and the hard passes. Leather, heated and cooled front seats, and a wireless smartphone charger can be had on the base versions, as can a bundle with a limited-slip differential, 19-inch wheels, an adaptive suspension, and M Sport brakes.

We love the M440i, which costs $58,190 as a coupe or $59,195 as a Gran Coupe; it’s $2,000 more for all-wheel drive. Here, BMW offers a Driving Assistance Professional Package, which includes adaptive cruise control and active lane control; an adaptive suspension; Harman Kardon audio; summer tires; adaptive LED headlights; a head-up display; and a padded dash.

How much is a fully loaded BMW 4-Series?

The M4 costs at least $72,995, and $79,995 for the xDrive Competition edition—but it can easily pass $100,000 with touches like carbon-ceramic brakes, carbon-fiber seats, brightly hued paint, and the available driver-assist and technology packages.

Fuel Economy

The 430i’s frugal; the M4, thirsty.

Is the BMW 4-Series good on gas?

The base 430i—in all body styles, whether Coupe or Gran Coupe or Convertible—scores a 5 here thanks to its EPA ratings of 25 mpg city, 34 highway, 28 mpg combined.

The same figures hold for the M440i Coupe, but with all-wheel drive, it’s 23/32/26 mpg for the coupe and 23/31/26 mpg for the convertible.

The 430i xDrive Coupe and Convertible models get 23/33/27 mpg, while the all-wheel-drive M440i xDrive Gran Coupe checks in at 22/29/25 mpg.

The M4 gets an EPA rating of 16/23/19 mpg for both base and Competition Coupe models. It’s 16/23/18 mpg for the xDrive Competition Convertible, 16/22/18 mpg for the xDrive Competition Coupe.

All 4-Series cars require premium gas.

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About Wanni Arachchige Udara Madusanka Perera

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