BMW M continues its 50th-anniversary festivities by finally introducing the Hybrid V8, its official livery, and its drivers. The vehicle was shown to the public at the Petersen Museum in Los Angeles, and it will participate in its first-ever race at the Rolex 24 held at Daytona International Speedway. Here’s everything you need to know.
You could be inclined to think this vehicle is previewing a new halo supercar for the Bavarian automaker’s high-performance division, but it’s not meant to give us any hope in this regard. While they surely can retain this option and maybe grace the world sometime in the future with a brand-new M1, BMW M developed this spicy race car only for the track. All we’re left with is the upcoming BMW XM – an SUV that is poised to become the brand’s most powerful series vehicle thanks to an electrified V8 powerplant.
The Rolex 24 kickstarts International Motor Sports Association’s (IMSA) WeatherTech SportsCar Championship 2023 season. The BMW M Hybrid V8 will be there with its enlarged kidney-shaped nose to sniff out the competition and suck enough air to keep the vehicle planted to the ground. It’s also going to keep the new engine at the right temperature. The race car will compete in the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) class.
Sporting a new four-stroke twin-turbo 4.0-liter eight-cylinder engine that has a regulated output of 640 hp (649 ps) and approximately 479 lb-ft (650 Nm) of torque, the 5.1-meter long and 2.1-meter-wide race car features, as BMW calls it, an “avant-garde” livery which displays the emblematic color scheme known by almost any fan of the German brand.
Even though the BMW M logo originally featured purple in the middle of the three stripes, over the years refinement turned it into a darker blue. All three tones and shades are found on the sleek race car, while purple has been discreetly introduced into the mix. Michael Scully led the BMW Group Designworks team that created this triangular pattern and says they’ve also focused on not adding too much weight.
BMW fans and connoisseurs might also recognize a tribute Hofmeister kink that has been introduced in a reinterpreted form. When looking at the vehicle, there’s also a noticeable lighting signature that’s been made possible by nano-active optical fiber laser LED lighting. It looks good and reminds everyone of the upcoming BMW M models without adding unnecessary weight.
BMW M Motorsport Head Andreas Roos said they’re still testing out the vehicle and added that it’s their job to “make it fast,” after Dallara, BMW M Team RLL, and RMG took care of the assembling, developing, and testing. However, the executive is confident they’ll be ready by January when the racing debut is scheduled to happen.
The drivers who are going to race with the BMW M Hybrid V8 in 2023 are Connor De Phillippi, Philipp Eng, Augusto Farfus, and Nick Yelloly. Colton Herta will be there at the debut to show support for the team. He won in 2019 at Daytona by racing the M8 GTE in the GTLM class.
Finally, the BMW M Hybrid V8 will join the 24 Heures du Mans in 2024.
Car shows on TV and his father's Fiat Tempra may have been Florin's early influences, but nowadays he favors different things, like the power of an F-150 Raptor. He'll never be able to ignore the shape of a Ferrari though, especially a yellow one. Full profile
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