[stein_325i]

Originally Posted by Law

You have a point about the nomenclature, but it would be unfair to the legacies of the E12 M535i, the E28 M535i, and especially to the E24 M635CSi to draw direct comparisons to something like a modern X2 M35i, even if the nomenclature of the latter is inspired by the former.

We'll start with the heavy hitter, the M635CSi, which was through-and-through, a full-fledged M-car. Let's make sure we understand its history so that this car is not misunderstood as a touted-up 635CSi (it wasn't, it was the E28 M5's two-door sibling).
It was powered by the M88/S38 motorsport inline six that descends from the BMW M1 supercar (and ultimately from the 3.0CSL if you keep tracing back the lineage) and sent power to the rear wheels through a Getrag 5-speed and a limited slip differential.
In some markets, it was badged simply as an M6, which more accurately reflects what it really was IMO because it was the GT Coupe counterpart to the E28 M5.



Skip to 2:30 to see Formula One champion Nelson Piquet get behind the wheel and share his thoughts on the M635CSi/M6.

Now the E12 & E28 M535i get brought up a lot and obviously there are different opinions surrounding this. Given that the M535i first came out some 40 years ago (when the market was vastly different on nearly every level), there's many points that can be argued for and against the case that these are the predecessors to today's "quasi-M" products.
On the one hand, yes, they were not full M cars, did not have motorsport engines, and were 'only' slightly upgraded and performance-enhanced versions of their more plebeian sibling models.
But on the other hand, they were slightly more special and were produced not necessarily to fill market niches, but to test the waters and pave the foundation for the actual full M-Cars that would come later. For example, the E12 M535i had properly special & unique upholstery and equipment such as Recaro seats & BBS alloys and E28 M535i 's that were equipped with manual gearboxes were dogleg transmissions, not exactly a soccer mom's car!
Of course, one could also argue that a transaxle CUV platform that can hang with yesteryear's sports cars is indeed an incredible feat.

So take it for what it's worth but I just thought it was worth bringing to light some of the details surrounding the E12, E28, and E24 since oversimplification of their legacies would be a grave injustice to them (especially the M6).

Great post. One point I always make about the new "M-Performance" cars is that its simply all marketing. The M340i is nothing but a 340i that comes with the M-Sport package standard, and uses the M badge to compete with the C43 and S4 which also have used their brand's cache. That's not to say these aren't great cars, because they are (well... maybe not the X2 or 2GC which should stay far away from M badges) but cars like the M635i were actually modified greatly compared to their regular counterparts. Aside from a cooling package, the M340i features many of the same options and equipment as the 330i when fully equipped and drive very similarly, just with different powertrains, which has how it always was, before the M badge made its way on the back of the car. I've driven a 330i and M340i both fully optioned and other than the powertrain and steering (30i actually gets the newer and better rack) they do not feel different.