BMW M revealed the M2 Turbo Design Edition, a limited-run North American-only trim on the current M2 that pays direct tribute to the 1974-1975 2002 Turbo. Alpine White paint, hand-painted M tricolour stripes running the length of the car, and a black hood graphic that reads "turbo" only when the driver ahead of you looks in a rearview mirror.
The 2002 Turbo bit that matters
The original 2002 Turbo (E20, 1973-1975) was Europe's first turbocharged production car and shipped with a body kit and a mirror-writing "turbo" script on the front air dam. The script was there so slower cars would read it in their rearview mirror and move over. It was aggressive enough that BMW pulled the graphic from later cars after the 1973 oil crisis made "turbo" a political liability.
BMW is putting that mirror-writing "turbo" back on the front of the M2. The 2026 execution is hand-painted, not a decal, and it lives on the bonnet rather than the front air dam. Same joke, same directional purpose, 50 years later.
The spec
- Body: M2 Coupé (G87), Alpine White paint, hand-painted M tricolour stripes along both flanks
- Roof: M carbon-fibre roof with integrated M tricolour stripes
- Trim details: black hood graphic with mirror-writing "turbo" script, black M Shadowline exterior details, "M2 turbo" door sill plates
- Engine: 3.0-litre S58 twin-turbo inline-six, 473 hp, 406 lb-ft
- Transmission: 6-speed manual only, RWD
- 0-60 mph: 4.1 seconds (0-100 km/h 4.3 s)
- Top speed: 155 mph limited, 177 mph with the optional M Driver's Package
Standard equipment includes Adaptive Full LED headlights with M Shadowline trim, carbon-fibre interior trim, Live Cockpit Professional with head-up display, and wireless charging.
Manual only, on purpose
The BMW M2 has been available with either the ZF eight-speed automatic or a six-speed manual since launch. The Turbo Design Edition is manual only. The 2002 Turbo was manual only. That is a deliberate editorial choice: a tribute car that runs the same drivetrain layout as the original.
At 473 hp, the M2 already makes more than three times what the 170 hp 2002 Turbo made, and about ten times the peak torque. The car this Edition is tributing was a small four-cylinder homologation special. The car doing the tributing is a full-power rear-drive coupé. But the transmission choice matters.
Timing, pricing, distribution
BMW revealed the car at the 2025 Motul Petit Le Mans on October 10, 2025. Production begins Q1 2026, with deliveries starting early Q2 2026. MSRP is $82,900 in the US plus $1,175 destination, a $17,000 premium over the standard manual M2's $65,900 starting price. BMW has not published a production number for the Turbo Design Edition run, but it is limited and North American market only.
The basics
| 2026 BMW M2 Turbo Design Edition | |
|---|---|
| Reveal | Petit Le Mans, October 10, 2025 |
| Engine | 3.0L S58 twin-turbo I6 |
| Power | 473 hp / 406 lb-ft |
| Transmission | 6-speed manual, RWD |
| 0-60 mph | 4.1 s |
| Paint | Alpine White with hand-painted M tricolour stripes |
| Signature detail | Hand-painted mirror-writing "turbo" hood graphic |
| Market | North America only |
| MSRP | $82,900 + $1,175 destination |
| Deliveries | Q2 2026 |
See how the M2 lines up against its closest current rivals on our M2 model page.
***
Sources: The 2026 BMW M2 Turbo Design Edition (BMW Group US press release); BMW M2 Turbo Design Edition (BMW M magazine); 2026 BMW M2 Turbo Design Edition (Jalopnik); Limited Edition BMW M2 Turbo Coupe (BMW USA). Photography: BMW of North America.