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Here are the highlights:

This year the M3 and its brasher two-door M4 sibling will regenerate at September’s Frankfurt motor show. They’ll both go up in price a tad, but so does power (to 474bhp) and torque (to at least 480lb ft). That’s 30bhp more than the Audi RS4/5 can muster, and eclipses the Mercedes-AMG C63 saloon (though it’s shy of the uprated 503bhp C63 S).

The extra power was a given. What was less clear was how many wheels the new M3 would put it through. The answer: either two or four. Base versions of the new M3 will be purely rear-wheel drive, while pricier M xDrive all-wheel-drive variants will include the same 2wd toggle mode as the M5.

More enticingly, BMW is planning entry-level M3 and M4 variants, sold as reduced-to-the-max drivers’ cars. The internal nickname is M3 and M4 Pure, which sums up their role as no-frills, back-to-the-roots extensions of the range. They’ll have a little less power than the plusher models, 454bhp rather than 474bhp, but they’ll be the only M3/M4 variants without the otherwise standard eight-speed automatic transmission, and M xDrive system will be off limits too.

Instead the Pure versions (production name still tbc) will use a six-speed manual transmission, and their rear-wheel-drive layout will be complemented by a quicker-acting electronically controlled diff lock.

To underline their position as totally immersive hardcore slide-masters, the Pure editions are set to get restyled aprons front and rear, their own wheel design, an optional standalone signature paintjob (unconfirmed for the UK), special fabric and alcantara upholstery, colour-coded cabin trim and bespoke instrument graphics. Slightly cheaper and focused, the Pure versions could have what it takes to become the M division’s real McCoys.

The Pure is the only M3/M4 offered with a manual gearbox because BMW has no stickshift that can handle more than 480lb ft – which higher-grade versions will exceed. Said torque comes from a twin-turbo 3.0-litre straight-six dubbed S58, the most sophisticated in-line six-cylinder unit ever conceived by the M division. It’s fitted with water-injection to cool the high combustion temperatures, and with a new petrol particulate filter to placate emissions watchdogs.

As for the M3’s two-door M4 sibling, the M4 cabriolet switches from metal to soft top when it launches late next year. Over time, M division intends to launch three additional go-faster M4s. The M4 Competition (expected 2021) benefits from more aggressive boost pressure, higher compression ratio, a more voluminous intake manifold and a less restrictive exhaust to pump out 503bhp, thus matching the C63 S AMG.