BMW is getting ready to make the M3 more hardcore… and its rear seats might be in the firing line.
The M3 CS has been snapped during testing, wearing a set of yellow daytime running lights and camouflage over the rear windows. Is BMW getting ready to kill the rear seats?
Maybe. A two-seat M3 would be the perfect rival to the Alfa Romeo Giulia GTAm, but it’s more likely the rear bench has been turned from a three- into a two-seater, in keeping with the treatment applied to the bigger M5 CS.
Like the two-door M4 CSL, the M3 CS will wear plenty of carbon fibre to save weight, and will pack a more aggressive aerodynamics package than the Competition.
The grille has a unique insert compared to the regular car, and those spindly wheels are likely to hide carbon ceramic brakes better equipped to stand up to the rigours of track work.
Unlike the CSL, there’s no overt ducktail spoiler at the back of the CS. It does, however, pack a subtle gurney flap atop the boot lid.
BMW is remaining tight-lipped around what’s under the bonnet of the M3 CS but it’s expected to be a reworked 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine with more power and torque than the regular M3.
For context, the regular M4 Competition produces 375kW of power and 650Nm of torque.
A BimmerPost forum member, who claims to compile leaks from within BMW, wrote that the M4 CSL will reportedly produce 402kW and send power to the rear wheels only via an eight-speed automatic.
The M3 CS will likely feature the same engine. It’s expected to be mated with all-wheel drive and an eight-speed automatic transmission.
The M4 CSL is on track to be revealed in May 20, 2022. The M3 CS is likely to follow shortly afterwards.
MORE: Everything BMW M3
