Alpina’s most direct swipe at a BMW M car yet produces an almost entirely convincing result As next moves go, this was not hard to predict. Hot on the heels of the spectacularly well received D3 diesel saloon and estate, Alpina’s has now turned its attention to petrol-powered coupé and convertible versions of BMW’s 3 and 4-series platform and this, the B4, is the result.It costs almost exactly the same as an M4, produces almost as much power from a same capacity twin-turbo 3-litre BMW motor, and has a kerb weight within a couple of bags of sugar of an M4 (when also fitted with a paddle-shift transmission).It also has a 0-62mph within a tenth of a second of an M4’s, you'd be forgiven for wondering if the biggest difference between them is the letter that starts their names. But as with all things Alpina, the devil remains in the detail.With its usual spectacular thoroughness, Alpina’s 50 development engineers (a statistically negligible number to any normal manufacturer) have taken a 435i donor car and gone through its engine, gearbox, cooling system, wheels, tyres, aerodynamics, steering and suspension.For a company making just 1500 cars a year, this is an extraordinary commitment.Power from the N55 motor rises from 306bhp to 404bhp, thanks in the main to the replacement of its twin scroll turbo with a pair of puffers, one small and one large, operating in sequence, not parallel. And while this is not quite so strong as the conventionally twin turbo 431bhp S55 motor in the M4, its 442lb ft of torque is more than commensurately stronger than the 405lb ft offered by the M4.It’s kept the eight speed ZF auto transmission (disappointingly and unlike the M4, no manual is available) but modified over 20 per cent of its components for faster, cleaner shifts.On the chassis side, everything – springs, roll bars, dampers, bushes, bump stops – have been changed, but the overall strategy was to increase the springing medium by 40 per cent while allowing more damping compliance in bumps and less in rebounds.Alpina’s iconic 20-inch wheels covered by Michelin Pilot Sports developed specifically for the car and vast Brembo brakes complete the picture. Note, however, that Alpina still does not provide a limited slip differential as standard. It needs it less than a D3 but it still needs it and, at £1890, it is eye-wateringly expensive.
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