Special Edition M3 Comes into Focus

Bimmer1 Nov 2nd, 2009 Link

“Apparently the idea was met with a lukewarm reaction by most US dealers earlier this year and thus federalizing the car for US sale was ruled out.”

Ha, I laugh every time I hear someone say that. I’ve been in this business for almost ten years and let me tell you that BMW has never taken their dealers opinion into consideration about what they can produce and sell. Do you really think dealers would have told BMW that the X6 would be a sure sale? No way. BMW knows better than the dealer without even talking to them. They are not walking into dealers and asking the sales managers, “So how’s about a more beefed up M3 like the ZCP E46’s?”. They honestly don’t need to do that and don’t care. Also, if this car is only available through the BMW Motorsport dealers then it is not a production car. Instead it’s a customer factory racing car that is being offered like the 320si, Z4M coupe, and 120d factory cars have been for the last few years. They are similar to the Porsche Cup cars that are not to be confused with the GT2/GT3/GT3RS. The GT2/GT3/GT3RS are production cars, whereas the cup cars are built only to race. They are far from street legal. Same thing applies here if this car is a GT/GT4 M3.

This is the real M3 GT4…

http://bmw-motorsport.com/ms/en/races/customer_racing/car/m3_gt4.html

…and the other cars (320si, Z4M coupe, and 120d) can be found here with the menu on the left hand side…

http://bmw-motorsport.com/ms/en/races/customer_racing/index.html?lity=hn_ms

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chris Nov 2nd, 2009 Link

Sounds incredible. DCT only is a surprise, though I guess it’s inevitable. Can’t wait to see this.

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Michael Nov 2nd, 2009 Link

This project more than likely began as part of the ALMS GT2 program. WIth the Corvettes now competing BMW was up against the proverbial wall with the lack of torque the cars put out- they had no issue with the HP numbers as the 4.0L liter could get up to 500 with no problems, but when restricted thanks to ALMS it could only breathe so much and thus not put out as much HP and be even less than effective with the torque numbers. This could be a simple homologation exercise to get some needed torque.

We surely will not know until sometime around January if this is the real reason for this car, as it will not be mass produced and never see the US shores in production form.

It is worth noting that like we reported a week ago many of the things learned by the ///M5 CSL project would be seen in this car- no rear seat, lighter seats, bigger brakes and a proportionately bored motor.

There are a few details that I tend to have varying opinion on from the M3post info- the brakes and suspension components (I heard KW and not Sachs and it is a BMW one off in house exhaust). The ‘Ring time is not official either so take that with a grain of salt at this point. If they sell a few dozen of these at the anticipated price-point I would be impressed.

-M

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Details Leaked on Hardcore M3 | WebRidesTV Blog Nov 3rd, 2009 Link

[...] If you’ve been eying spy shots from the ‘Ring, odds are you’ve laid eyes on this particular beastie. Rumors dusting up from the Bimmer-centric out there have called the thing a CSL successor, but that’s turned out to be wrong. Evidently, the serious M3 is a street-going version of the GT4 racer that’s been putting a hurt on the competition all over the world. The specs are tasty – 400 horsepower from a naturally aspirated V8, 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, six-pot Brembo stoppers and a weight savings of 220 lbs over the stock M3. Sounds good to us. The only downside is the car probably won’t show up in the states. [Source: BimmerFile] [...]

williamsnewjournal | Bimmerfile » Archive » Special Edition M3 Comes Into Focus Nov 21st, 2009 Link

[...] (365mm front, 345mm rear SLOTTED DISCS) Ceramic composite brakes optionally available. Weight reduction of 100 kg (220 lbs) compared to E92 M3, maybe even more. (due to the removal of the rear seat and the switch to lighter RECARO front … WIth the Corvettes now competing BMW was up against the proverbial wall with the lack of torque the cars put out- they had no issue with the HP numbers as the 4.0L liter could get up to 500 with no problems, but when restricted thanks …Next Page [...]