i think to make a car that light weight, they'd just have to ditch the rear seats.
they could have easily made a new Z4 coupe with a fixed roof and hit that range.
a 228i actually is pretty close. they are like 3300 lbs. and if you tore the seats out got no moonroof, and got manual seats you are right there. there was a rumor early on tha tthe M2 might have been a very tuned 2.0 turbo N20 and lighter, but I guess they went with the n55 instead which is quite a bit more weight
They could make that Z4, but I don't think that's part of the BMW strategy going forward. They definitely have a new vision, and are targeting a different crowd. 228i is not bad, the N26 is a decent engine for a turbo 4.
Also, looking at the trend for high performance cars in this class, it's moving towards AWD, and automatic exclusively. I'm glad BMW still offers RWD and manuals. Audi and MB's have tech and luxury, adding weight. The M division needs to make a GTS out of the M2, M3, M4 models for a more enthusiast focused car.
No, too little. 300 HP, that's seriously underpowered!
...that's what the HP-fanboys will cry, at least.
300 HP is decent, especially when you have something lighter. I think these folks tend to forget sports cars back in the day didn't have much power, and they were also a bit lighter. Take a look at the Alfa Romeo 4C - RWD, Turbo 4 putting down 237 hp/258 lb-ft tq and weighs 2465 lbs. It's not high horsepower, but it rockets to 60 mph in a quick 4.1s, not bad at all.
seems like almost no one can make it for anything remotely close to a reasonable price.
i dont get why subaru and toyota dont just do it. every 300+ hp car is well over 3000 lbs because they tend to be luxury and have a lot of luxury things. and all the non luxury cars dont have enough power.
the closest thing to what you are asking for is a cayman or boxster S, but then its absurdly expensive. or a bunch of overpowered FWD cars.
i guess something like a alfa 4c maybe, but its not even remotely close to practical
Yep, we are definitely seeing more tech and luxury in lower end manufacturers. Cayman and Boxster are nice expensive options, even the 4C starts at $54k (although our local dealer wants close to $70k for one, and at that point you might as well go Cayman)