Anybody who's ever driven an M3 or - Whoo-ee! - an M5 will know that the hard-core muscle-cars from BMW's M division do not readlily qualify as everyday transport.
They're wonderful on a track day and sublime on a Sunday morning blast through deserted twisties, but the ride is rock-hard, their foot-controls are over-sensitive and they're not fun to drive in heavy traffic.
But, long before there was an M5, there was the indecently quick but extraordinarily civilised 1980 M535i, which garnered such a following of its own that it remained in production alongside the M5 until 1987.
And that, says M division head Friedrich Nitschke, is an idea whose time has come again.
So, at the Geneva motor show in March 2012, BMW will be introducing a range of cars it calls M Performance - and the name is an accurate description. The cars are intended to have nearly all the sheer grunt of the flagship M cars but with civilised amenities such as back seats, springs that comply with bumps in the road instead of transferring them to your lumbar vertebrae, and user-friendly controls.
Nitschske says the cars will have engines not found on 'ordinary' BMWs, sharper handling and sportier styling.
“We are targeting our efforts at customers looking for more emotionality and more performance, but who don't want to forgo the everyday usability of their cars,” he said.
nd he promised that the line-up would be extended “to include a wide variety of model series, as well as both petrol and diesel-engined variants”.
The xDrive all-wheel-drive system would also play a significant role in M Performance cars, he added.
2011 was a very good year for the M division, he said, with the launch of the new M5 and the 1 Series M Coupé, the first M car in the premium compact segment.
And 2012 would be even better, with the world premiere of the new M6 and a whole range of M Performance models to look forward to - real-world cars with real muscle.
“Our aim with the M Performance cars is to continue the tradition of the M535i,” confirmed Nitschke.