The BMW M3 might not have a V8 engine inside anymore, but that doesn't mean it's going to be slow by any means. And today, it will get yet another chance to prove that by going up against a Mercedes-AMG C 63. This old rivalry has sparked plenty of controversies before, and fans of each brand will support their favorite no matter the circumstances. Still, there's one quick way to settle this, and it involves a quarter-mile (402 meters) stretch of tarmac.
Right off the bat, it seems that both cars are no longer as they left the factory. With several upgrades on each side, performance figures are now up to about 800 horsepower for both the BMW and the Mercedes-AMG.
While the current torque figures aren't mentioned during the video, we can always check the factory stats for a basic comparison. The BMW's 3.0-liter twin-turbo inline-six engine is factory-rated at 406 lb-ft (550 Nm) of torque. Meanwhile, the AMG is running a 4.0-liter, twin-turbo V8 with 480 lb-ft (650 Nm).
So we feel it's safe to assume that even after all the upgrades, chances are that the BMW is at a disadvantage when looking at torque figures. But it does have something up its sleeve to compensate: it's about 220 lbs (100 kg) lighter than its opponent.
And that should count for something, at least during the rolling race challenge. But the standing quarter-mile is up first. The Mercedes-AMG is off to a great start, but it loses the lead after a matter of just seconds. By the time the BMW wins the race, its opponent is roughly a car length behind. But the gap will only get bigger for the second run.
Looking at their respective time slips, the M3 needed 11.08 seconds to finish the run while recording a trap speed of 141 mph (226 kph). Its opponent was 0.44 seconds behind, with a trap speed of 137 mph (220 kph).
By the looks of it, the Mercedes-AMG just can't catch a break, and its weight disadvantage has it pinned down for the rolling race. It's a clean victory for the M3, whose owner will probably never stop gloating about this victory whenever he encounters a Mercedes owner.
The things Dragos enjoys the most in life are, in no particular order: cars, motorcycles, diecast cars, and drifting. He's seen (and driven) many vehicles since he started his writing career back in 2009, but his garage currently houses a 1991 Mazda RX-7 FC3S Turbo II and a 1999 Suzuki SV650-S. Full profile
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