This is it: it's for real and it's official. After a week of hype, leaks and increasingly shrill speculation around the cybergarage, BMW has released some tantalising details - along with a promo video and some rather underlit studio pictures - of the Concept M4 Coupé, which will be seen in public for the first time later today among the classic sports cars on show at the prestigious Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in Monterey, California.
The concept, finished in a metallic gold paint called Aurum Dust that was mixed specially for this car, has the classic 'kidney grille' BMW face, with black grille bars echoing the double spokes of the signature M alloy rims and a modern, LED-powered interpretation of the traditional twin round headlights.
CLASSIC PROPORTIONS
The profile is all about classic proportions, with a long bonnet, set-back greenhouse and short front overhang set on a long wheelbase with strongly-outlined wheel arches, over double-spoked M alloy rims and carbon-ceramic brakes, and a sweeping carbon-fibre roofline to emphasise that - in Beemspeak anyway - M stands for performance.
It also has the real-world advantages of reducing the weight of the body-shell and lowering the centre of gravity.
M-TUNED S55 STRAIGHT SIX
The lowest point of the roof flows smoothly into a bootlid-mounted spoiler that not only adds downforce to the rear wheels but also length to the roofline and volume to the body above and behind the rear wheels.
The Concept M4, we are happy to confirm, is a runner, with an M-tuned 335kW/550Nm S55 biturbo three-litre straight six under that intimidating power bulge; here's hoping it goes into production in 2014 with as few changes as possible.