The M3 isn’t a dedicated sports car. Nevertheless, BMW M was able to turn a luxury sedan into a more than decent track weapon. Sport Auto’s official test driver Christian Gebhardt had the opportunity to push the super saloon to its limits during a hot lap of the Nürburgring. A new onboard video allows us to see the whole shebang, completed in 7 minutes and 27.19 seconds.
Riding on Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, the M3 CS painted in the exclusive Frozen Solid White shaved off about 11 seconds from the lap time achieved a few weeks ago by the same driver with the M2. At the same time, it was around 7 seconds faster than the M3 Touring that Christian tested at the Nordschleife last year.
It’s an impressive feat for a car weighing 1,765 kilograms (nearly 3,900 pounds) in European specification and one that’s far from an exotic model. The M3 CS’ lap time wasn’t too far off from the Maserati MC20’s. The Italian supercar crossed the finish line in 7:25.26 with the same driven behind the wheel.
It’s not the fastest BMW tested by Christian at the Nordschleife. That role goes to the M4 CSL with a lap time of 7 minutes and 17.08 seconds. Consequently, the M3 CS was roughly 10 seconds slower. However, that’s to be expected since the CSL is a hardcore coupe with two seats. The M4 CSL is around 140 kg (308 lbs) lighter, so the performance gap on track was predictable.
BMW M is weeks away from introducing the new M4 CS. We reckon it’ll be a smidge faster at the ‘Ring than its sedan counterpart. It too will be sold exclusively with xDrive whereas the CSL came only with a rear-wheel-drive layout. Don’t hold your breath for a manual gearbox since the limited-run special edition will have just two pedals.
Source: Sport Auto / YouTube
