BMW E30 M4: Vintage Aesthetics With Modern M Performance
Within the automotive realm, the BMW E30 M3 is hailed as one of the greats. In its heyday, the S14’s 200-ish horsepower pushed the lightweight (circa 2600 pounds) Beemer to win several trophies and accolades. However, in today’s world of 300-horsepower hot hatches and blisteringly quick EVs, owners of the 80s homologation special might find themselves struggling.
As a solution to this first-world problem, a tuning shop in Dortmund, Germany, decided to Frankenstein a turbocharged straight-six into the E30 chassis. Out goes the high-revving 2.3L inline-4, and in comes the S55 3.0L from an F8X M4. What you now have is the vintage E30 M3 body rocking modern M Performance underpinnings. This, of course, is not new. But seeing it on BMW M’s official Instagram page makes it a bit special.
BMW M introduces us to the photo of a white-wheeled, dressed-up M3 captioned—The E30 M4, followed by “No, that isn’t a typo.” The build is perhaps the most extensive and possibly among the best documented. Admittedly, the restomod— courtesy of JP Performance—is quite an old build. A quick look at JP’s YouTube channel should give you some context about the timeline as well as the list of mods and upgrades done to the platform.
BMW
JP Performance Takes the E30 Restomod Game to Eleven
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that this E30 M4 restomod (or any restomods, for that matter) is far from a walk in the park. Funnily enough, though, JP Performance did not stop with just the engine. The team engineered a race-bred push-rod suspension for the E30 chassis and carried over half of the F8X M4’s interior.
While the exterior is mostly E30, the interior has a neo-retro vibe. Since the F8X generation isn’t burdened with screens, the carryover doesn’t seem too out of place. You get the M4 steering wheel, shifter, and instrument dials, while the door cards and dashboard remain E30. The restomod also inherits the M4’s 7-speed DCT transmission and internal wiring, but features custom cooling hardware and aftermarket Recaro seats.
In this day and age of Singer 911s, Tuthills, and Manhart M3s, this E30 M4 might just slip under the radar. However, what JP Performance has done to the E30 chassis is undeniably cool. A lot of it is down to the build, but BMW M officially acknowledging it does add to the coolness. Although it has to be said, it’s not the first time BMW M has been seen throwing around the “E30 M4” label.
