They reasoned that the car was powered by a brand-new V8, so it was basically a prototype, not a production-based racer. As BMW was testing the machine, rivals got wind of the project and complained to the organizing board, arguing that it shouldn’t be allowed to race in the GT class. With this engine under the hood and an extensively upgraded body, the new M3 GTR was ready in only a few months, but a big problem emerged. Displacing 4.0 liters, the new unit dubbed P60B40 (or P60, for short) could make 444 hp (331 kW) at 7,500 rpm and 354 lb-ft (480 Nm) at 5,500 rpm. The result was a lightweight, all-aluminum, naturally aspirated V8 with a dry-sump oiling system, flat-plane crank, four valves per cylinder, dual overhead cams for each bank, a strong, double-chain drive, and mechanical bucket tappets. In 2000, BMW introduced an all-new M3, and to boost its marketability in North America, the M division’s management decided to create a thoroughbred race version that would carry the torch from the E36 M3 GTR and compete in the American Le Mans Series against arch-rivals Porsche.Įarly analyses determined that the production M3’s S54 inline-six was far from ideal for this endeavor, so rather than extensively modifying it, M engineers chose to exploit the lackluster rulebook and develop a new engine from scratch. Unquestionably the most famous member of this select group was the E46 M3 GTR Strassenversion (Street Version, in German). Although the second and third generations were no longer homologation specials from the get-go, BMW M’s involvement in racing led to the creation of heavily-modified M3 race cars and, in some rare cases, road-legal conversions developed strictly for homologation purposes. This trend changed during the 1990s when newer, more upscale M-badged cars, exclusively tailored for the street, started emerging.ĭespite this new strategy that was employed to satisfy the market’s demand for upscale performance vehicles, modern iterations of the legendary M3 kept their connection to the motorsport world alive. Whether it’s the 3.0 CSL, M1, or the very first M3, the vast majority of early BMW M models were created for both road and track supremacy.
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