808-HP Trans Am Underestimates 600-HP M3 in Head to Head Race

A new episode of "This vs That" is about to reveal something that most of you already know by now. When going into battle, you should never underestimate your opponent. It doesn't matter if you're in a boxing ring or at the drag strip, you should always give it all you've got. Going into this race, you would tend to think that an 808 horsepower Pontiac Trans Am won't have any issues taking out a 600 horsepower BMW M3.

But let's have a closer look at the specs of these two cars, shall we? This 1970 Pontiac was hand-built by its owner, and it was on display at the SEMA Show back in 2019. It's packing a massive 400 ci (6.5-liters) LSX engine, and a G-Force GF4A transmission. We're talking about an RWD setup, and this thing weighs in at 3,165 lbs (1,435 kg). The complexity of the build is nothing short of stunning. Even more so as this is the work of one man who is passionate about building cars, without having a dedicated space for this activity.

Looking at the 1995 BMW 3-series, you wouldn't think much of it. This was built with Time Attack in mind. The driver isn't the owner of the car, but he brought it out as his NSX is in dire need of a new engine. This being the United States of America, a small inline-six-cylinder engine just wouldn't fly. So a 7.3-liter LS engine was swapped in, so you could say that this is a BMW with the heart of a Chevrolet Corvette. This car is lighter at 2,700 lbs (1,224 kg), and it also has a Samsonas Sequential Transmission.

As these cars are both RWD, the decision was made that they would start at 10 mph (16 kph). Of course, we get to see a close-up presentation of each one, and then the people onsite get to cast their votes. Four of the crew members voted for the Trans Am, while three voted for the M3. With these cars being quite evenly matched, it's difficult to predict how things are going to play out. This is going to be a relatively short race, as they've only got a 1,000 ft (304 meters) stretch of tarmac ahead of them.

As they go full throttle they're neck to neck. But the Trans Am misses a gear and gets dropped behind, with no chance to make a comeback. So it's 1-0 for the BMW. As always, there are two more runs before a winner is decided. I've got to say that this is one of the closest, most exciting drag races I've seen in a while. Thank God that there were cameras all over the place because we get to see a photo finish. And this time, the Trans Am wins by a bumper!

So it's all down to the last run of the day. Now, the G-Force gearbox isn't all that bad, and I've seen it being used in quite a few drift cars over the years. But you can't deny that a sequential gearbox is still going to provide better results in terms of shifting speed. By the end of the run, the LS-powered BMW crosses the finish line in first. The gap isn't that big, but you know what Dominic Toretto used to say: "It doesn't matter if you win by an inch, or by a mile. Winning's winning!"