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L IKE MOST CAR ENTHUSIASTS, MY love of the automobile goes back to my childhood, when I could easily identify the make and model of most every vehicle as it drove by. To be fair, back in that era we had just four or five TV channels and phone numbers with no area codes and used memorable names for prefixes. It was a simpler time, and I wouldn't hold today's youth to the standard of standing on a busy boulevard and accurately identifying every machine that drove by, although one that's perennially easy is BMW. at kidney grille with a round badge is a dead giveaway, until very recently. A pair of tall, new bold rectangles have been showing up on various BMW models, replacing the seemingly timeless kidneys, and not everyone is pleased. When the new grille appeared on BMW 's M4 coupe in 2021, Car & Driver magazine posed a dog in front to block the image. But when my M2 showed up for testing recently, no pooch was required since the kidneys detour transportation e Ultimate Driving Machine PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF BMW GROUP BMW's second edition of the M2 delivers a premium experience BY BRIAN DOUGLAS were familiar. If you're paying strict attention, the grille slats on the M badged cars are horizontal and of course, not chrome finished. Function Follows Form Behind the M2's aggressive, performance-oriented face with boldly functional air intakes below and LED headlight scowls on each corner, a tightly tuned coupe is ready for serious motoring. e fun begins with the smooth, twin-turbo inline six that makes 453-hp and feeds either an 8-speed M Steptronic transmission or a 6-speed gearbox (for the purist). e bodywork, from air vents to rear fender flares and a carbon fiber roof (a reasonable $2,500 option), are all as functional as they are aggressive. And the M2's rear, a view most encountered by competitive motorists, sports a working air diffuser surrounded by four big exhaust pipes. e exhaust ranchandcoast.com 80 AUGUST 2023 RANCH & COAST MAGAZINE