BMW's lightweight, high performance concept car. Weighting 200 kg less than the standard BMW M3, this lightweight model has a power to weight ratio of 270 bhp per tonne compared to 229 bhp per tonne of the M3. This is an improvement of 18 per cent.
Carbon fibre has replaced the original materials used in the front air dam, the exterior mirror housing and roof, doors and rear lid. Racing-style bucket seats have also been introduced to reduce weight and carbon fibre reinforced plastic has replaced much of the centre console. A higher rear spoiler and rear end diffuser also distinguish this car from it production brother.
In addition the engine has been modified boosting maximum power to 350 bhp from 343 bhp for the standard M3. This concept model features BMW's Sequential Manual Gearbox (SMG), which incorporates Formula One gearshift technology.
The M3 CSL has already proved itself at the gruelling Nurburgring completing a lap of the northern circuit in less than 8 minutes, beating its production counterpart by almost 30 seconds.
Text and photos courtesy of BMW AG
