"There's no way this M3 is going to crash, just look at how slowly the driver is approaching the corner... I've been misled by the title!". It wouldn't be unnatural to think this after checking out the first moments of the piece of footage showcasing the Nurburgring ordeal of this E46-generation BMW M3.
Sadly, though, if you give the driver a few extra seconds, you'll notice the M3 violently losing the rear end at what appears to be street cycling speed.
The one behind the wheel seems to pull a half-way countersteer effort and chooses to not use the throttle to bring that posterior back in line. Instead, he slams on the brakes, which only aplifies the rotation. And it doesn't take long before the Bimmer performs the dreaded guardrail kiss.
Fortunately, the limited velocity meant that both the driver and the passenger were unharmed. In fact, we can see the one riding shotgun getting out of the vehicle and evaluating the damage.
The driver also does this, but in a more elaborate matter, as it seems he's trying to negotiate with a Ring marshal over the damage on the metallic protection element (this can be pretty expensive to replace, with the costs being supported by the faulty drivers).
Factor in the (probable) summer tires and the driver's apparent lack of reaction, plus the poor line throgh Brunnchen 2, which might just be YouTube's favorite corner and you end up with a recipe for disaster.
For the record, the Renault Clio RS chasing the M3 seemed to have no problem with the weather conditions, with the FWD hot hatch moving along at decent pace.
The one behind the wheel seems to pull a half-way countersteer effort and chooses to not use the throttle to bring that posterior back in line. Instead, he slams on the brakes, which only aplifies the rotation. And it doesn't take long before the Bimmer performs the dreaded guardrail kiss.
Fortunately, the limited velocity meant that both the driver and the passenger were unharmed. In fact, we can see the one riding shotgun getting out of the vehicle and evaluating the damage.
The driver also does this, but in a more elaborate matter, as it seems he's trying to negotiate with a Ring marshal over the damage on the metallic protection element (this can be pretty expensive to replace, with the costs being supported by the faulty drivers).
So, what caused this ridiculous, slow-mo accident?
Well, as you'll notice in the video, the track was soaking wet. And despite the adventure having taken place on the first Sunday of May, the capricious Green Hell weather means temperatures were close to zero, as the uploader of the video explains in the description of the clip.Factor in the (probable) summer tires and the driver's apparent lack of reaction, plus the poor line throgh Brunnchen 2, which might just be YouTube's favorite corner and you end up with a recipe for disaster.
For the record, the Renault Clio RS chasing the M3 seemed to have no problem with the weather conditions, with the FWD hot hatch moving along at decent pace.