Only 700 2016 F82 M4 GTS units available worldwide - 3328 pounds curb weight, 7:28 Nurburgring laptime, and finally a hardcore M car

[Sticky]

The F82 M4 GTS is shaping up very well. The only downside is it will be fairly limited. 700 units for worldwide consumption? That means we expect less than half to come to the USA but for once you will not see BimmerBoost complaining as American M enthusiasts are still reeling from being passed over for the E46 M3 CSL and the E92 M3 GTS.

BMW finally decided to do the right thing and reward its largest market. About time BMW and we still are never going to forgive you for the E46 M3 CSL and E92 M3 GTS. That said, this is an epic M car.

Why? Because it takes performance seriously. It isn't an M badge thrown on an SUV that will never see the racetrack or some lame special edition that amounts to some new paint like the 'Championship Edition' E92 M3. This car actually gets real Motorsport division attention and not marketing division attention.

Let's start with BMW reducing weight. They claim 3328 pounds. Does that 33XX number range sound familiar? It should because BMW originally claimed 3306 pounds for the F80 M3 and F82 M4. BMW missed that target badly and the F80 M3 came in at 3562 pounds which can go up depending on options. Something tells us this time the car will weigh close to what they are claiming but US cars no doubt will weigh more than European counterparts due to side impact crash regulations.

Even if the US car is heavier expect a drop from the standard F82 M4. That is a very good thing and if BMW manages to shave some weight off the nose they can finally get the car to 50/50 front to rear weight distribution as it should be. The included water injection system will add weight though.

Which brings us to the motor. Yes, the car has a water injection system for the S55 motor as previously reported. With the cooling and octane benefit BMW raises power to 500 horses no doubt with more aggressive tuning. As you know the S55 engine in the F80 M3 and F82 M4 is underrated and already at the 500+ horsepower mark so does this mean this figure is closer to 500 at the wheels than at the crank? We think it has to be. It would have been nice to see something along the lines of larger turbocharger or some hardware changes to the engine like E92 M3 GTS and E46 M3 CSL saw but in the turbo era this is how it goes. If we were to nitpick the car the lack of S55 internal hardware changes would be the spot to nitpick.

You combine the higher power with less weight thanks to the CFRP parts and titanium exhaust system along with the improved aerodynamics adding substantial downforce and you get a 7 minute and 28 seconds Nurburgring laptime. This blows every production BMW out of the water. It is not even close.

The vaunted E46 M3 CSL managed a 7:50 around the 'Ring and the E92 M3 GTS in the hands of Horst von Sauma only bettered the CSL by two seconds. The F82 M4 GTS is 20 seconds quicker than the E92 M3 GTS. If that is not evidence of a lot less weight and underrated power (on a track like the Nurburgring that loves power) we do not know what is.

Not enough can be said about the BMW claimed Nurburgring laptime. It equals the Porsche Carrera GT in the hands of Walter Rohrl. If Porsche's own test driver and rally legend who knows the Nurburgring better than anyone can do a 7:28 in a vehicle of the Carrera GT's pedigree and the M4 can match that we finally have a serious BMW performance car that blows everything else BMW has ever produced out of the water to an extraordinary degree.

You can read the full details and specifications from BMW in their M4 GTS presentation below but it is about damn time we got a car like this. By we, I mean American enthusiasts first and then BMW enthusiasts worldwide. Unfortunately it may be a bit too little and too late for some but at least it shows BMW can still produce when the M division is allowed to put in the effort.

Unfortunately, the M division demonstrates this level of capability rarely these days. 'i' mean that.

[E90Company]

I like it. Fire extinguisher and roll cage from the factory is awesome. I just wish they did without the water injection. I'm sure it helps immensely especially with a boosted car however

[BlackJetE90OC]

Lets see if it can back up the Nurburgring performance in independent track tests. Do they have a video for the lap time up?

Not going to be cheap, pricing in UK and Germany has it coming in more than double the cost of a standard M4?

[Sticky]

Lets see if it can back up the Nurburgring performance in independent track tests. Do they have a video for the lap time up?

No it has not been proven yet. If accurate though... whoa.

Not going to be cheap, pricing in UK and Germany has it coming in more than double the cost of a standard M4?

Not worth double the money but that type of pricing rarely carries over. Should be sub $100k. Better be.

[Itsbrokeagain]

Supply and demand. Dealer markups are going to be ridiculous.

There are a few engine mods noted
...or are those standard for every S55?

[BlackJetE90OC]

Not worth double the money but that type of pricing rarely carries over. Should be sub $100k. Better be.

Yeah it is never a direct conversion. But pricing is released for UK(122k) and Germany(142.6k). In UK it is 2.14x a standard M4 and in Germany it is 1.96x a standard M4. It will be at least twice the price of the standard car in the US as well.

UK - standard M4 £57k, GTS £122k

Germany - standard M4 72.5k Euros, GTS 142.6k Euros

So... US - standard M4 $65k. US pricing will most likely start at $130k and climb with options. The clubsport package is going to be expensive too.

[Flinchy]

I just wonder why they made the rear wheels bigger than the front (diameter)

what performance benefit does it have?

[redux]

I hate it. Where's the wolf in sheep's clothing? It looks like it's been sprinkled with douche bag and Ed Hardy. Hopefully they give us an M3 CRT somewhere down the line, I'd drop six figures on something mimicking that.

[Covfefe]

Wonder how much it would weigh without the steel cage.

[Sticky]

There are a few engine mods noted
...or are those standard for every S55?

From what I understand the turbos, head, cams, pistons, rods, etc., are all the same as the standard S55.

[Sticky]

I hate it. Where's the wolf in sheep's clothing? It looks like it's been sprinkled with douche bag and Ed Hardy. Hopefully they give us an M3 CRT somewhere down the line, I'd drop six figures on something mimicking that.

Maybe the color scheme might not be for everyone but how is a 7:28 'Ring time not a wolf in sheep's clothing? It's offering tremendous performance.

[Alpina_B3_Lux]

It's great this car is made, even if it's absurdly expensive and - from what I've read so far - the weight benefit is only about 30kg. The suspension and aero tuning is well done, though, even if I'm not at all a fan of the optics of this car, but YMMV.

I know everyone's throwing around Nürburgring lap times all the time, and even more people who have never driven there then comment on those. Just some facts to consider:
- Car manufacturer's lap times can usually never be repeated by independent testers. That is due to the fact that they're driven by professionals who've done hundreds, if not thousands of laps in this specific car. For a record lap, the car is usually equipped with (often non-standard) new tyres, bespoke suspension tuning and very often a remap.
- One of the biggest factors of Nürburgring lap times in the past years has been tyre technology which has evolved a lot over the last 10-15 years. That also means that cars from the 90s or 2000s equipped with todays cup tyres would be substantially faster than when they were produced. That applies for example to the Carrera GT lap time which was mentioned here.
- Over the years, the Nordschleife itself has changed quite a bit - not the layout itself obviously, but the tarmac and the quality and texture of the surface which has been smoothed out quite a bit in the past years; this has also resulted in quicker lap times even if it is admittedly difficult to quantify. Further changes are expected resulting from the discussion about this year's accident with the GT-R (and hopefully the speed limits will be abolished by then).
- There are countless more variables that result in a specific laptime to consider if one really wants to analyse these in more detail. For example, the weather / humidity / air pressure / temperature can vary between different sections of it, the surface grip depends on whether races were driven on it recently etc., and obviously the driver is another unknown factor.

So while a Nürburgring lap time itself is certainly a good indicator of a car's track capabilities, and the reason why it's used by a car magazine as the German sport auto, it is impossible and evidently unreasonable to compare these lap times between different cars without the setup being at least somewhat standardised. Even more so between cars of different generations.

Just my 2c to this inflationary use of the Nordschleife times.

[DavidV]

Just my 2c to this inflationary use of the Nordschleife times.

I agree.
Even the time of day could significantly change what laptime is possible.

[Sticky]

One of the biggest factors of Nürburgring lap times in the past years has been tyre technology which has evolved a lot over the last 10-15 years. That also means that cars from the 90s or 2000s equipped with todays cup tyres would be substantially faster than when they were produced. That applies for example to the Carrera GT lap time which was mentioned here.

Certainly a very valid point.

[Sticky]

I agree.
Even the time of day could significantly change what laptime is possible.

Laptimes vary with conditions like anything else. The time provided is a barometer of capability.

[BlackJetE90OC]

Yeah I take ring times with a grain of salt. There are cars that have backed up their performance during independent tests on multiple tracks. Then there have been cars that have been hyped with incredible ring times, that have been a let down in independent testing. I am sure all the magazines will get their hands on a GTS.

[Sticky]

The thing is also the magazines seem to test differently than factory test drivers. I never Sport Auto doing what test driver's do.

[Sticky]

I'm just going to take a guess now and say the M4 GTS dynos 475 whp.

[Alpina_B3_Lux]

The thing is also the magazines seem to test differently than factory test drivers. I never Sport Auto doing what test driver's do.

That's for sure. But unfortunately people just throw all lap times in a big pot, stir it once and compare all the times in this mess. That doesn't have any real added value.

Sport Auto usually has only 2-3 laps in a car before they have to do the timed lap that will be published in their supertest. Nowadays they also try to get one or two laps in the industry pool sessions where the speed limits do not apply to see what the delta is to a lap without the speed limits. In any event, this is obviously lightyears away from the factory drivers who do hundreds of laps in that car. Also, Sport Auto does all the performance tests with a passenger in the car.

To make the Nordschleife laps comparable to some extent at least, they always do them with the same driver - at first this was Horst von Saurma, now it's Christian Gebhardt. Their intention is not to set record lap times, but to see what an experienced amateur driver can do with the relevant sportscar. Which at least IMO comes close to what potential buyers (who do not just collect cars and put them in a garage to get dusty) would look for in a car. At least those like me who also do regular track days.

[Sticky]

That's for sure. But unfortunately people just throw all lap times in a big pot, stir it once and compare all the times in this mess. That doesn't have any real added value.

Sport Auto usually has only 2-3 laps in a car before they have to do the timed lap that will be published in their supertest. Nowadays they also try to get one or two laps in the industry pool sessions where the speed limits do not apply to see what the delta is to a lap without the speed limits. In any event, this is obviously lightyears away from the factory drivers who do hundreds of laps in that car. Also, Sport Auto does all the performance tests with a passenger in the car.

To make the Nordschleife laps comparable to some extent at least, they always do them with the same driver - at first this was Horst von Saurma, now it's Christian Gebhardt. Their intention is not to set record lap times, but to see what an experienced amateur driver can do with the relevant sportscar. Which at least IMO comes close to what potential buyers (who do not just collect cars and put them in a garage to get dusty) would look for in a car. At least those like me who also do regular track days.

Good luck trying to explain this to people. They see a fast laptime from a test driver that is X and a slower laptime from a magazine that is Y and for them it's as simple as X > Y because any further analysis is beyond them.

[Alpina_B3_Lux]

Good luck trying to explain this to people. They see a fast laptime from a test driver that is X and a slower laptime from a magazine that is Y and for them it's as simple as X > Y because any further analysis is beyond them.

Well, one can only try. Most people are stupid, that's nothing new. I have no intention in participating in any such unreflected mediocrity though.

[cpwinch]

The interior is gorgeous. Not feeling the wheels to much but thats a simple fix. Very impressed with the weight and lap times. Cant wait to see what the dealer mark up is going to be :0

[BMW M4 Power]

I hate to say "I told you so" but the 350R's 7:35 time (which got destroyed) you guys kept sweating was clearly in reach based on what the stock car was achieving. Countless time attacks, weekends at Summit Point, VIR, and events at the Poconos I ran in taught me a lil more than "blind faith" on an internet forum as you suggested* ...I hope they do a Laguna seca hot lap with the GTS to see what kinda times it puts does on America's standard for track performance.

[BlackJetE90OC]

I hate to say "I told you so" but the 350R's 7:35 time (which got destroyed) you guys kept sweating was clearly in reach based on what the stock car was achieving. Countless time attacks, weekends at Summit Point, VIR, and events at the Poconos I ran in taught me a lil more than "blind faith" on an internet forum as you suggested* ...I hope they do a Laguna seca hot lap with the GTS to see what kinda times it puts does on America's standard for track performance.

My perception of Ring times has been forever altered.

Now that the 991.2 S does the Ring in 7:30. Your basic 911 S you see driving around everyday, 10x a day.

Ring times are beginning to be a bit unbelievable.

[Sticky]

I hate to say "I told you so" but the 350R's 7:35 time (which got destroyed) you guys kept sweating was clearly in reach based on what the stock car was achieving. Countless time attacks, weekends at Summit Point, VIR, and events at the Poconos I ran in taught me a lil more than "blind faith" on an internet forum as you suggested* ...I hope they do a Laguna seca hot lap with the GTS to see what kinda times it puts does on America's standard for track performance.

If you think the GTS is beating the GT350R on the track you're dreaming.