Splash on some colour and some forged 19- or 20-inch wheels and you’re looking at the next BMW M4 Convertible.
Patent images lodged with the European Union Intellectual Property Office were shared by user M Performance on the i4Talk message board.
They reveal the 4 Series Convertible has received the same visual enhancements as its coupe sibling to become an M4, including a quad exhaust set-up, more aggressive front and rear bumpers, and horizontal bars for the dramatic new grille.
Like the regular 4 Series drop top, the M4 will also feature a fabric folding roof. This allows BMW to cut some weight and therefore potentially improve efficiency.
It also allowed BMW designers to pen a slightly sleeker roof line than the outgoing model while also freeing up some boot space.
In the regular 4 Series convertible, cargo volume is up by 80L with the roof down and 15L with it up for a total of 300L and 385L, respectively.
The new fabric roof is 40 per cent lighter than the outgoing model’s roof and can be operated at speeds of up to 50km/h, taking 18 seconds to fully open or close.
It’ll be the first M4 to use a soft-top instead of a retractable hard-top. BMW has used a folding hardtop since the 2007 E93 M3 convertible, the M4’s predecessor.
BMW has promised a more athletic driving experience with the regular 4 Series drop-top, with 4.0 per cent greater torsional rigidity and wider tracks, and we expect similar enhancements for the hi-po M4.
The M3 sedan and M4 coupe offer a choice of a twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder engine in two states of tune, though BMW has yet to confirm what the convertible will be available with.
For the base M3 and M4 models, the twin-turbo six produces 353kW of power and 550Nm of torque, and is mated to a six-speed manual and rear-wheel drive.
M4 Coupe 
4 Series Convertible 
In Competition trim, it’s bumped up to 375kW and 650Nm but the manual is replaced with an eight-speed torque-converter. The Competition is available with a choice of rear- or all-wheel drive, and rides on 20-inch wheels rather than the 19-inch rims on the standard car.
With BMW’s announcement it will finally make an M3 Touring, that leaves just two body styles in the extended 3 and 4 Series family that have yet to get the full M treatment: the long-wheelbase 3 Series sedan for Asian markets and the 4 Series Gran Coupe.
Of the two, the 4 Series Gran Coupe is much more likely to spawn an M4 variant but this has yet to be confirmed.
