The 2023 BMW M2 is upon us. As a matter of fact, the German luxury automaker already began teasing the M2 as it went through rigorous track testing at Salzburgring in Austria. Its launch is scheduled for October, with the M2 hitting showrooms by April 2023. This got us wondering whether the M2 will benefit from the brand's M xDrive all-wheel drive (AWD) system, just like the M3 and M4, but unfortunately, that won't happen for the M2.

When BMW Blog asked engineers and executives from the company whether an M2 with M xDrive was in the works, they said that such a configuration for the M2 isn't in the pipeline. Don't expect it to make an appearance at some point in the M2's life cycle either, because an AWD M2 is absolutely not coming for this G87 generation.

The reasoning behind the reluctance to offer AWD for the upcoming 2023 M2 is simply because of weight. With the new M2 migrating to the brand's CLAR (Cluster Architecture) platform, which already underpins the M3, M4, M5, and various other rear-wheel drive (RWD) BMWs, the M2 is expected to gain a bit of weight.

The BMW M240i already tips the scales at 3,519 lbs, with the xDrive variant pushing that weight up to 3,871 lbs. The added weight wouldn't be a huge problem for the M240i since that car is an M Performance vehicle that still takes into consideration everyday comfort and usability.

On the other hand, the BMW M2 is a true M car that is mainly a track weapon that will compete head-to-head with the likes of the Porsche 718 Cayman and other lightweight two-door coupes and sports cars. In this segment, every pound matters, and while the M2 can be usable on a daily basis, it still needs to fulfill the role of being the best two-door sports car (or coupe) out there.

The reluctance to offer AWD will definitely put off buyers living in snowy areas, but more importantly, the weight penalty of adding AWD will be an even bigger detriment to the M2's core audience. And let's be honest, the M2's already balanced handling and RWD layout is already the perfect recipe for offering thrills out on the race track.