One of the most revered engines BMW ever put its stamp on is, without a doubt, the S85 5-liter V10. According to the Motorsport division from Munich, this mill was created using Formula 1 know-how from back in the days when the Germans actually raced in the sport. However, times moved on and forced induction made naturally aspirated mills feel ancient.
Well, today we get a glimpse of how close an atmospheric engine can come to a turbocharged one, admittedly of different displacements. In the video below we get to see a BMW E63 M6 at work, going up against a more than redoubtable rival, a Porsche 911 Turbo S, admittedly in convertible guise.
Any Porsche with the word Turbo written on it is certified to be a ballistic car. The top of the range version is the Turbo S for any model, the epitome of Porsche straight line performance, if you will. This particular has 560 HP coming from its turbocharged 3.8-liter engine as well as 700 Nm (516 lb-ft) of torque. Those figures allow the drop top to reach 100 km/h (62 mph) in 3.1 seconds from standstill.
On the other hand, the BMW is not stock. It was fitted with what the uploader calls an air ram which basically feeds additional cold air into the engine. On top of that the ECU was upgraded as was the exhaust. However, since we’re dealing with a naturally aspirated engine here, the power increase should prove to be modest. In stock guise the 5-liter V10 used to make 507 HP and 520 Nm (384 lb-ft) of torque. With all these upgrade, chances are it reached 550 HP still lagging behind the Porsche. Even so, the race is closer than anyone would expect, considering the specs of these two monsters. Check it out.
