How Hardcore is Hardcore? BMW M4 GTS
In a nut shell, very.
BMW has seemingly taken cues from the Porsche RS school of design: more power, less weight, less interior features, back seats replaced with a half cage, track day rubber, a dual clutch automatic transmission and a nutty paint scheme. Very good. Additionally, unlike the garden variety M4 model, the GTS is a limited production run, 300 units are coming to the United States, and the price tag reflects that, coming in a whopping $135,000, that is, if you can find one without a ludicrous dealer markup.
Obviously, a BMW 4-series is no 911, so from there the differences are apparent. The BMW 4-series is the coupe version of the 3-series sedan, and not a no-compromise, dedicated sportscar, but it seems like no one told that to BMW, which is touting the M4 GTS as the ultimate performance variant BMW on sale today. On the topic of “no compromises” the M4 GTS features 3-way adjustable coilover suspension, with low-speed compression, high-speed compression and rebound adjustment. Sure, a $5000 set of aftermarket dampers could get you there, but wait, there’s more. The adjustable aero, in the form of a large front splitter and GTS rear wing are standard equipment, and produce appreciable downforce. The video below makes it painfully apparent that there is a reason the splitter is adjustable, especially for street use, ouch. The final touch lies in how BMW’s M division choose to extract 493 horsepower from a 3.0L twin-turbo straight-6: water-methanol injection. Utilizing a small tank in the trunk, the M4 GTS features a secondary injection setup in the intake tract that shoots a fine misting of water, or water-methanol into the intake tract to cool the intake charge, allowing for much high boost pressures at the top of the powerband. Water-meth injection is a somewhat common trick used in the aftermarket community, albeit, usually for straight-line racing and not road racing, but is proven to drop intake charge temperatures like no other.
The tech talk is one thing, but the driving impression is another, how does the new M4 GTS get along with Motor Trend’s Jason Cammisa, a known Euro-car enthusiast, and supporter of “raw” driving machines. Let’s see:
via Motor Trend
