Photo: BMW
Over the last few years, enthusiasts in love with German engineering started noticing a shift in the way the AMG and M divisions are dueling. While the M division from BMW has been accused of going soft, their rivals have been making progress in a lot of areas, creating cars that are more visceral to drive than ever.
If one would’ve compared the cars the two companies used to make in the early 2000s he or she would’ve discovered that when it came to having fun and driving a really exciting car on track there was no replacement for an M ride.
BMW’s Motorsport division was hardcore, and they had the tools needed to be so. They had the E46 M3 and the E60 M5 later on, cars that had an acceleration pedal so sharp you’d be afraid of paper cuts every time you touched it.
Then came the E92 M3 that was sharp but a bit on the heavy side and less flamboyant, less mad. To top everything off, the F10 M5 introduced a turbocharged engine to the mix but that wasn’t the biggest issue fans had with the car.
The main problem came from the weight of the thing that offset the incredible performance offered by the twin-turbo mill. On the other hand, AMG seemed to steer on the other side of things.
It’s not that they made ultra-light vehicles but the way they tuned them turned the rides into sharp spears ready to carve bits of every track they rode on. On top of that, there were the Black Series models.
Those are the best of the best as far as their engineering goes, and they have been built in limited numbers to increase the appeal they have amongst fanatics. There was the C63 AMG Black Series model, for example, a version of the Coupe that had gone through a weight reduction program, had more power, better traction and handling.
The same principles were applied to the SLS AMG Black Series model, and it was a completely different beast. As it turns out, the new chief of the M division, Frank van Meel, wants to do the same for the M division.
In a recent interview for Vehicle Dynamics International, the ex-Audi man said that he thinks “it’s a good idea to do something like that, to do limited edition models like the Black Series, but in a BMW M way. We are actively looking into that.”
That’s definitely a hint at the BMW M4 GTS that will be unveiled at the latest next year. As he put it, “let’s just say you won’t have to wait another two years to see something.” You can check out the full interview in the pdf attached below.
BMW’s Motorsport division was hardcore, and they had the tools needed to be so. They had the E46 M3 and the E60 M5 later on, cars that had an acceleration pedal so sharp you’d be afraid of paper cuts every time you touched it.
Then came the E92 M3 that was sharp but a bit on the heavy side and less flamboyant, less mad. To top everything off, the F10 M5 introduced a turbocharged engine to the mix but that wasn’t the biggest issue fans had with the car.
The main problem came from the weight of the thing that offset the incredible performance offered by the twin-turbo mill. On the other hand, AMG seemed to steer on the other side of things.
It’s not that they made ultra-light vehicles but the way they tuned them turned the rides into sharp spears ready to carve bits of every track they rode on. On top of that, there were the Black Series models.
Those are the best of the best as far as their engineering goes, and they have been built in limited numbers to increase the appeal they have amongst fanatics. There was the C63 AMG Black Series model, for example, a version of the Coupe that had gone through a weight reduction program, had more power, better traction and handling.
The same principles were applied to the SLS AMG Black Series model, and it was a completely different beast. As it turns out, the new chief of the M division, Frank van Meel, wants to do the same for the M division.
In a recent interview for Vehicle Dynamics International, the ex-Audi man said that he thinks “it’s a good idea to do something like that, to do limited edition models like the Black Series, but in a BMW M way. We are actively looking into that.”
That’s definitely a hint at the BMW M4 GTS that will be unveiled at the latest next year. As he put it, “let’s just say you won’t have to wait another two years to see something.” You can check out the full interview in the pdf attached below.
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