Watch: new BMW M2 takes on the Cayman GT4 and classic 1M Coupe

The BMW M2 is the smallest, least expensive M car. Only, this new one isn’t really that small (44mm wider than the old one at the front, and 18mm wider at the rear) and it’s certainly not inexpensive at a whisker under £70k. It is, however, the only remaining mainstream manual M car in the UK – and the 3.0-litre twin-turbo straight six’s power goes to the rear wheels only.

So is BMW’s 454bhp, rear-drive, manual-optioned M4-lite a recipe for success? Well, we brought along the best-in-class – and an old-time favourite – for a stick-shift showdown.