BMW M2 Competition Shooting Lasers is The Coolest Thing You’ll See Today

This is how the guys from BMW decided its best to promote one of their latest models, the M2 Competition: by having it attempt to break some records nobody heard of, set by equally anonymous people. That’s right, people, because there’s nothing trendier that pitting man vs. machine these days.

As part of a weird yet exhilarating communications campaign called “Same street. Different game.” BMW is showing the world how one its cars can cut through 87 straw mats with a blade or pop 63 balloons with a laser, each in under one minute.

The stunts you see below have been shot in Cape Town, South Africa. Both the laser and the blade attached to the car are real. As are the stunts performed by a professional driver and the results of the record-breaking runs.

The goal of the shots is of course not to show that a laser fitted on an M2 Competition can wreak havoc on unsuspecting balloons. On an M-shaped racing course, BMW wants you to see how the car and its 3.0-liter twin-turbo perform, how the two electrically-controlled flaps work, how the optional M Sport brakes avoid collisions.

For the record, the M2 Competition will be replacing the M2 coupe in BMW’s product roster. It comes equipped with a 3.0-liter twin-turbo, capable of developing 410 horsepower and 550 Nm of torque.

The unit is paired with either a six-speed manual or an M Double Clutch Transmission and provides 4.2 seconds acceleration from a standstill to 100 kph (0-62 mph) and a top speed electronically limited to 250 kph (155 mph).

But who cares about all that when the damn thing can shoot lasers?