2014 BMW M4 Convertible review by WhatCar?

Here’s an excerpt of the 2014 BMW M4 Convertible review by WhatCar?

What’s the 2014 BMW M4 Convertible like to drive?

Plant your right foot hard and you’d be pretty hard-pushed to notice the small difference in the official figures between the faster M4 and this convertible, particularly from a rolling start. The engine pulls strongly from around 1800rpm all the way to its redline, and is eager to rev.

The noise that accompanies the rabid acceleration will split opinion. One thing’s for sure, there’s plenty of it, but with the roof closed the majority of it comes through the M4’s speakers. Fold the roof away, though – which takes 20 seconds and can only be operated at less than 8mph – and the exhausts take over, bellowing loudly on full throttle and emitting fierce cracks on gearchanges.

Our test car was fitted with BMW’s optional (£2645) twin-clutch automatic gearbox, which provides instant, undetectable changes when left to its own devices, and always seems to be in the right gear, no matter what the driving situation.

Use the wheel-mounted paddles for manual changes, and there are three stages of severity available. It’s best left in its calmest setting, where the changes are nearly as sharp, but the shifts feel less violent from behind the wheel – in the quickest mode the auto ’box really thumps home each new ratio.

As with its gearbox, the M4 convertible’s steering also has three settings – ‘Comfort’, ‘Sport’ and ‘Sport Plus’. Across all three the steering feels quick and precise, and you get a good sense of when the front tyres are struggling. Sport mode is the best compromise: Comfort feels a little light, and there’s too much unnecessary artificial weight in Sport Plus.

The adaptive suspension gets the same level of adjustability. In its hardest setting, the sense that you’re carrying extra weight around is quite evident, especially in tight corners. Even so, the convertible still manages to control its body mass well when changing direction sharply. The huge grip on offer and trick rear differential also provide plenty of confidence when trying to push on.