Add drifting to the list of motorsports BMW M is involved in, as the Bavarian performance car maker is now supporting the Red Bull Driftbrothers in the Drift Masters European Championship. For the 2021 season, the Driftbrothers will be using the new BMW M4 Competition as the basis for their drift cars.
“BMW M has always stood for motorsports at the highest level and in all of its diversity, whereby we are also open to disciplines such as drift sports. The Red Bull Driftbrothers belong to the absolute top group of the scene in terms of driving skills and technology. The BMW M4 Competition is an ideal new competition vehicle for both of them to achieve success during the 2021 season,” says Markus Flasch, CEO of the BMW M GmbH.
Elias and Johannes Hountondji make up the Driftbrothers and not only compete in the Drift Masters Championship but also set the cars up themselves. Since working with the M4, the Hountondji brothers noticed that the new M car is shockingly well-equipped for extreme motorsport, right from the factory.
“We were very positively surprised just how much effort BMW M has put into optimizing the vehicle’s stiffness. Therefore, we were able, for example, to use most of the front end without modifications,” said Elias Hountondji.
Even more impressive is its engine. The new 3.0 liter twin-turbocharged S58 engine is capable of withstanding the rigors of motorsport, even drifting. It makes 503 horsepower to start but expect the Driftbrothers to crank things up just a bit.
“I have never seen an engine like the one in the BMW M4 Competition, a more or less thoroughbred racing engine in a road legal vehicle. The oil supply even functions at centrifugal forces of 1.5g and more. We consider this very important,” Johannes Hountondji said.
If ever driven an M car, you’d know that they make for excellent drift machines. Throw in the fact that this new BMW M4 has the most power of any M3/M4 to date and is still rear-wheel drive. So the Hountondji brothers should be very pleased with their new car.
