Just when you thought the BMW M4 GTS was Munich’s top-dog on a race track, a special-edition newcomer arrives to up the ante, at least on the heritage front. The track-focused M4 DTM Champion Edition combines the looks of the brand’s race car and performance of the GTS road car into the ultimate M4 for Bimmer fans.
“We have the pleasure of honoring Marco’s performance by producing a BMW M4 DTM Champion Edition in 2016 to mark his winning the DTM driver’s title,” said BMW M president Frank van Meel, in a statement. “Never before has one of our edition models been so closely linked to motor racing.”
An M4 GTS served as the 2016 DTM safety car.
At the heart of the BMW M4 DTM Champion Edition is a modified version of the 3.0-liter twin-turbo straight-six used in the M4 GTS. Using the same water-injection technology, BMW has cranked output up to 500 hp from 493 hp in the GTS. Torque stays steady at 443 lb-ft. Performance compared to the GTS is the same — it’ll sprint from a stop to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds, on to an electronically limited top speed of 190 mph (this figure is still being confirmed).
Otherwise, the M4 Champion Edition is very similar to the GTS as far as nuts and bolts. It shares the same carbon-fiber hood, roof, rear diffuser, instrument panel support, and full titanium exhaust. The brakes remain a standard carbon-ceramic affair, housed within star-spoke Orbit Grey matte wheels and hefty Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 265/35 R19 tires at the front and 288/30 R20s at the rear. The three-way mechanically adjustable coilover suspension remains on the menu as well.
Where the Champion Edition differs is in the looks department, in the form of additional foiling to better resemble the DTM race car. Other details, like the front splitter and front wheel-arch aero components, are exposed in naked carbon fiber. The real appeal is in the Alpine White paint scheme complete with classic BMW racing livery — the only available offering.
Although this essentially amounts to a barely tweaked M4 GTS at the end of the day, it’ll be all the rage for fat-wallet BMW diehards. Don’t expect it to be offered here in the U.S., but it’s already on sale in Europe for an undisclosed price. In the U.S. the sold-out M4 GTS retailed for $135,195, so we’re going with the “if you have to ask, you can’t afford it” approach for the DTM Champion Edition.
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