Exclusive first look at the BMW M4 GT3 racing car
Last week was held in Monterey, California for the annual Car Week events. While the main event takes place on Sunday at the famous 18 hole at Pebble Beach, there are plenty of exciting sites to visit throughout the week.
One of them is the Laguna Seca circuit. Courtesy of BMW of North America, we headed to the famous track to witness the unveiling of a new racing car. For the first time, the BMW M4 GT3 landed on American soil before its first race on January 22 at the 24 Hours of Daytona.
Design changes
The new racing car will replace the current M8 GTE and M6 GT3 in various racing championships around the world. The new racing car is built on the backbone of BMW M4 competition. Testing started last year and he already has over 14,000 test kilometers to his name.
Below is a video showing this racing car:
The goal of the M4 GT3 was to significantly reduce life cycle costs and maintenance expenses compared to its predecessor. There are also some notable differences from its predecessor, the BMW M6 GT3. The new M4 GT3 is 45 millimeters longer, 6 millimeters narrower and has a 16 millimeters longer wheelbase.
A more powerful engine
The biggest change, however, comes under the hood. While the older M6 GT3 used a 4.4-liter P63 V8 with up to 580 hp, the new M4 GT3 uses a 3.0-liter turbocharged P58 inline-six engine that can reach 590 hp.
The new engine therefore saves around 40 kilograms of weight compared to its predecessor and features significant changes compared to the S58 engine on which it is based.
