Photo: BMW
When BMW announced that one of their future M models will use water injection to cool combustion temperatures, we guessed it was going to be the rumored M4 GTS. We knew that the car was coming per our insider but not a whole lot of details.
Then we saw the Germans testing an M4 without rear seats, with a roll cage inside and better aerodynamics and we knew that the GTS wasn’t just a wet dream. Another step in the development of this whole story came when BMW unveiled the MotoGP safety car for this year.
They proudly announced that alongside all those crazy stickers and the full M Performance works, the car will also be using the water cooling devices that were supposed to be used in the GTS. Click! That’s the M4 GTS in disguise we (and the rest of the world) thought.
Now, we get some sort of confirmation from a person that actually drove the thing. Automobile Magazine somehow managed to secure a chance to ride aboard this unrelenting model and the editor that sat in the driver’s seat claims to have some insider info.
According to them, the upgraded S55 engine would put down 500 HP and 443 lb-ft (600 Nm) of torque but that’s just a small part of the package. The GTS name would be dropped since both Mercedes-Benz and Porsche are using it, and it would be too common. Instead, BMW is thinking of using one of their acronyms, respectively CSL.
Back in the day, CSL stood for Coupe Sport Lightweight, and that’s what the new M4 will be like. The weight will be dropped by some 220 lbs (100 kg), and that’s including the 22 lbs (10 kg) taken by the water pump and tank for the injection system that cools things off.
In order to do so, the rear bench will be removed, the front seats will be made of carbon fiber and a lot of other useless luxury items won’t be available. That means that this will be a true driver’s car.
It will also have an AMG GT S rivaling sprint time somewhere under 4 seconds to 100 km/h (62 mph) which will be impressive all on its own. The only question that remains is what kind of price tag it will have. In order to be competitive, it will have to be cheaper than the $130,000 Merc, and that’s hard to do.
Sure, looking at the current price tag of the M4 which is roughly half of that, it seems incredible but since the E92 M3 GTS was $145,000, it’s totally possible that a rare CSL M4 would cost at least that much. Let’s hope that out of the 750 units BMW plans to make one will reach us as well.
They proudly announced that alongside all those crazy stickers and the full M Performance works, the car will also be using the water cooling devices that were supposed to be used in the GTS. Click! That’s the M4 GTS in disguise we (and the rest of the world) thought.
Now, we get some sort of confirmation from a person that actually drove the thing. Automobile Magazine somehow managed to secure a chance to ride aboard this unrelenting model and the editor that sat in the driver’s seat claims to have some insider info.
According to them, the upgraded S55 engine would put down 500 HP and 443 lb-ft (600 Nm) of torque but that’s just a small part of the package. The GTS name would be dropped since both Mercedes-Benz and Porsche are using it, and it would be too common. Instead, BMW is thinking of using one of their acronyms, respectively CSL.
Back in the day, CSL stood for Coupe Sport Lightweight, and that’s what the new M4 will be like. The weight will be dropped by some 220 lbs (100 kg), and that’s including the 22 lbs (10 kg) taken by the water pump and tank for the injection system that cools things off.
In order to do so, the rear bench will be removed, the front seats will be made of carbon fiber and a lot of other useless luxury items won’t be available. That means that this will be a true driver’s car.
It will also have an AMG GT S rivaling sprint time somewhere under 4 seconds to 100 km/h (62 mph) which will be impressive all on its own. The only question that remains is what kind of price tag it will have. In order to be competitive, it will have to be cheaper than the $130,000 Merc, and that’s hard to do.
Sure, looking at the current price tag of the M4 which is roughly half of that, it seems incredible but since the E92 M3 GTS was $145,000, it’s totally possible that a rare CSL M4 would cost at least that much. Let’s hope that out of the 750 units BMW plans to make one will reach us as well.
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