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I hear you when people who say M has been diluting the brand for the last few years. But we also have to him them credit for staying in and expanding the M brand. If an automaker focuses on catering to the enthusiast crowd, they will either fail, not be scalable or be affordable.
BMW adding more M trim to non-M cars is not a big deal. From a business standpoint, its fantastic they're getting so much traction and have marketed M as the "cool" trim to select. This also provides a channel for buyers to eventually jump into a true M machine.
M is still creating wholehearted M cars nonetheless. To hardcore enthusiasts, even new M cars may not fit their expectation of the original M ethos. But that is the trend for any hardcore car enthusiasts in every brand (Porsche, Mercedes, Toyota, etc). Luckily, that is why the preowned market for classic cars have skyrocketed in recent years.
My fascination with BMW and M started around the e92 era. More trending to the new M, of marketing and producing performance luxury vehicles. However, I am also a relatively rare breed of individuals who appreciate the mechanical aspect of the driving experience with some caveats. Based on knowledge, I would love to own a e30 M3 or e39 M5.
Personally, I am hot and heavy for the M2C and quite enjoy the inclusion of some new tech and safety features. M did it right in my eyes, sure there are some additional aspects we would all want. But in general, it works.
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