Remember when I called the BMW M4 one of the most tuner-friendly cars in the market today? While that’s still true, there’s also an alternative truth to it and that alternative truth is this: the BMW M4 may no longer be the favorite BMW M model among aftermarket tuners. A case can be made that the M2, the M4’s younger brother, has that distinction. It’s hard to argue against that assertion because the M2 presents a strong and compelling case. Unlike the M4, the M2 has only been around for a little over a year and yet, there are already a good number of tuners that have developed and unveiled programs for the small performance coupe.

One of these tuners is RevoZport, who some people might remember presented a program for the BMW 1M Coupe back at the 2012 SEMA Auto Show. But that’s in the past now because RevoZport has turned its attention to the M2 with a program that includes, among other things, engine upgrade program that helps elevate the coupe’s output to the vicinity of 500 horsepower.

Yes, there’s such a thing as a 480-horsepower BMW M2 that achieved that figure with only software engine upgrades to speak of. Remember that figure for later on because it beats out a significant number of competing tuners and comes close to matching what other tuners did using more components at their disposal.

Beyond the impressive power gains, RevoZport’s new kit for the M2 also focuses on a sophisticated aerodynamic body kit that helps improve the coupe’s cosmetic and aerodynamic characteristics. It might not look the part based on the photos you see, but this M2 means serious business. RevoZport made sure of that and the results are all there, waiting to be enjoyed by anybody who’s willing to get it for their BMW M2s.

Continue reading to learn more about the BMW M2 Raze by RevoZport.

Exterior

RevoZport’s Raze program is bred for a single purpose: performance. You can see that off the bat with an aerodynamic kit that isn’t shy about showing itself off.

Up front, there’s a three-way adjustable splitter that has its own cooling vents. These vents aren’t just there for design purposes; they’re there to help channel cold air directly to the brake discs. The same can be said for the vented hood and the canards that were added around the front bumper vents. They may look cool from an aesthetic perspective, but they’re also functional since they help send channel air to and from the radiator and oil cooler, respectively. Move to the side and you’ll notice door sills that extend all the to the rear wheel arches while the rear section of the M2 is the beneficiary of a GT spoiler and a vented diffuser that aids in shuffling heat from the exhaust muffler. All together, the exterior upgrades have multi-purpose functions and it helps that when they’re installed, they make the BMW M2 look like a bred-and-bruising performance car.

What other tuners are offering

Yes, the list of tuners with tuning programs available for the BMW M2 runs long and deep. You might even say that there’s too many of them already, but that argument can also turned and flipped to say that more available kits means more available options choose from.

One particular tuner that makes a compelling case for its M2 tuning kit is Evolve Automotive. It may not have the name recall of some other established tuners, by Evolve made a good account of itself when it launched its “GTS” tuning kit, which comes with cosmetic enhancements like a vented hood made from carbon and kevlar, a roof that’s also made from carbon, and a new set of 18- or 19-inch 6Sixty Design Emblem forged wheels.

Note: side-by-side photo of the BMW M2 by Evolve Automotive and the BMW M2 by Hamann.

If Evolve’s offering isn’t to your liking, you can also turn your attention towards Brabus, a far more popular tuner that has itself created a unique niche of its own in the tuning scene. Included in its program for the BMW M2 is a new splitter with extra inlets, side sills, a revised rear bumper, a small diffuser, and a trunk lid spoiler that comes with its own tiny winglets on each side. Even better, Hamann’s got massive upgrades in store for the M2’s wheels in the form of a set of 20-inch chrome blue Anniversary Evo wheels.

All these tuners present different stylistic and aerodynamic interpretations for the BMW M2. As with most cases in this business, no kit is significantly better than the other; ultimately, it’s all a matter of customer preference.

Interior

The tuner drill with the interior of the BMW M2 should be obvious by now. Unless a customer opts to go the route of getting packages from BMW or tapping BMW Individual entirely, it’s going to be a challenge to find an aftermarket company pay clear focus and attention to improving the M2’s interior.

Hardly a surprise then to see that even RevoZport has opted to ignore the cabin of the performance coupe. It’s hard to blame them for doing so, especially if the focus of this tuning endeavor is to present a kit that helps the M2 look meaner, perform better, and driver faster. You can run through the list of tuners for the M2 and you’re not going to get as many options as you would if you just went directly to BMW.

Note: interior photo of BMW M2 with M Performance Parts

On that end, the German automaker does have a number of interesting options. One option worth looking into is scoring whatever packages are available for the M2. Take the M Performance Pack for example. Name notwithstanding, the package also comes with a number of very useful interior options and accessories, including a flat-bottomed racing wheel with paddle shifters, red-illuminated gauges, and the option to choose between leather, Alcantara, or carbon fiber as wraps on the dashboard and other pieces of equipment.

The other option is BMW Individual and by now, I think we all know where that road leads to. Colors, trims, and whatever pieces of sportiness or luxury are at customer’s disposal with BMW Individual. It’s likely a big reason why tuners have become very conservative in creating interior programs for their tuning kits. They know that they’re competing with the automakers themselves in this regard and far more often than not, the automakers have the upper hand because they offer more than what tuners are capable of offering.

Drivetrain

Now we come to the most important aspect of RevoZport’s tuning kit for the BMW M2. Like most of its contemporaries, RevoZport opted to go smooth and easy on the BMW M2’s 3.0-liter inline-six engine, knowing full well that a standard output of 365 horsepower and 343 pound-feet of torque is already good enough to propel the coupe to go from 0 to 60 mph in 4.2 seconds before topping out at 144 mph.

Sure, others like Dahler & Dahler and Manhart Racing were more adventurous with their kits, but by and large, the software upgrade route has been the preferred method of a lot of tuners for the M2. RevoZport also belongs in this group and together with a new intake system and a free-flow lightweight titanium exhaust, the tuner was able to squeeze out an impressive 480 horsepower, an increase of 115 horses over the coupe’s standard power figure. RevoZport didn’t say how the power gains reflect the coupe’s performance numbers, but taking into account the significant increase in output, a sprint to 60 mph should take less than four seconds and a top speed of around 186 mph should be within reach provided that the coupe’s speed limiter was removed.

What other tuners are offering

If for some reason RevoZport’s offer of extra muscle isn’t to your satisfaction, there are other options to consider. This is especially important for a car like the BMW M2 because a good number of tuners have already developed kits for the sports coupe. That generally is what happens when a car is as good as it’s been hyped up to be.

For this, we need to divide the offerings into two categories. The first are tuners who followed a similar template as RevoZport and focused a lot of its attention on enhancing the inline-six’s software attributes. The results vary from tuner to tuner, as you can see in the table below.

Note: *estimate

As you can see, RevoZport beats out everybody else in this regard, a nice feather in the cap for the German tuner. On the flip side, even with its ability to get the M2’s inline-six to reach 480 ponies, it still falls short of what other tuners have done. These companies opted for more comprehensive work involving adding and/or replacing the coupe’s turbochargers, and the results, understandably so, are far more impressive than an engine tune.

Note: *estimate

Depending on the option you get, one thing is clear about the BMW M2. It’s versatility is arguably one of the most underrated things about it. It may not have the natural power of the M4, but for its size, the things it’s capable of are no less impressive. On top of that, the ability of some tuners like RevoZport to get close to 500 horsepower on a simple engine tune speaks to the kind of untapped potential the sports coupe has.

Note: *estimate0}

There's no set total for the price of the entire RevoZport program, but the tuner does have a number in mind for those who may be interested in availing its Raze aerodynamic kit. That number adds up to $13,810 and it includes components like the aforementioned vented hood, side skirts, and GT spoiler. As far as the engine upgrades are concerned, it's probably best if customers contact RevoZport directly to get a proper quotation.

Pricing

Competition

It’s a testament to the popularity of the BMW M2 that we’re seeing so many tuners take time to develop kits specifically for the sports coupe. Even a tuner like G-Power who’s best known for programs for higher-scale BMWs took the time to offer not one, but two different engine tuning modules for the M2. Both the Bi-Tronik 2 V1 or the Bi-Tronik 5 V1 modules bring out the exact same output of 410 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque, but the fact that they’re even being offered in the first place is the real coup here. And for what they’re worth, the pair of modules don’t disappoint as they help the M2 sprint from 0 to 12 mph in just 14.5 seconds before zooming off into the horizon until it hits 180 mph.

Read the full review here.

BMW M2 by AC Schnitzer

Since we’re talking about BMW tuners, I think it’s important to mention the tuning contributions of AC Schnitzer, considered as one of the foremost authorities when it comes to aftermarket work for some of Bavaria’s most prized models. Like some of its colleagues, AC Schnitzer’s work on the M2 revolves around modifications of the software variety with the result resting at a power increase of up to 420 horsepower, a nice bump up from the engine’s standard output of 365 ponies. The increase isn’t much compared to RevoZport, but it still gets the job done.

Read the full review here.

Conclusion

At this point, I think it's become important to keep tabs on all the programs available for the BMW M2. Having another one from RevoZport isn't going to make the choices any easier, but at the very least, this program has the distinction of being able to offer the most power out of all the tuners that are going the software upgrade route for the coupe's engine. That in itself is reason enough for RevoZport to feel good about itself.