IT sounds like M for Magic in the latest BMW model to carry the iconic initial.

Only 450 owners will be able to lay their hands on right-hand drive versions of the new 1 Series M Coupe when models scorch onto UK roads next spring.

But that lucky lot will be in for a treat because scorch really is the operative word for a car that pumps out 335bhp from its race-bred twin-turbo six cyclinder 3.0-litre engine.

The important figures are a whopping 500Nm of pulling power, 0-62 in 4.9 seconds, an electronically limited top speed of 155mph and a price tab of £39,990.

As the new entry point to M car ownership, the 1 Series M Coupe certainly looks the part, with its 19-inch alloys, widened wheel arches, dual twin tailpipes and large air intakes in the front bumper.

Twin corona bi-xenon headlamps and LED positioning lights are standard and available colours are Alpine White non-metallic, Black Sapphire metallic and the exclusive Valencia Orange metallic.

Sports seats in Boston leather feature Kyalami orange stitching in an interior modelled exclusively for this model. So you also get an M leather steering wheel and the M logo embossed in the front of the headrests.

And so confident is BMW of the 1 M's dynamics that its engineers expect it to be significantly faster around the famous Nürburgring race circuit than the previous generation E46 BMW M3.

BMW has also extended the EfficientDynamics treatment - including brake energy regeneration - to this model, resulting in combined fuel consumption of 29.4mpg and CO emissions at 224g/km.

The only transmission option is six-speed manual and standard kit includes two-zone air conditioning, cruise control, BMW Radio Business with MP3-capable CD player and six speakers.