Already in its fourth generation, the BMW M3, the high-performance sports car developed by BMW M GmbH on the basis of the BMW 3 Series Coupé, demonstrates impressive sportiness – regardless of whether the BMW M3 Coupé for the road, the BMW M3 GTS for club racing events, or the BMW M3 GT at endurance races and GT classics.

The series version’s eight-cylinder engine with 4.0-litre capacity already produces 420bhp. The BMW P65 engine, which was derived from this unit and powers the BMW M3 GT, has been further improved within the regulations. The eight individual throttle valves receive their intake air via a system made of carbon fibre with load-charge optimised ram tubes. The mechanics have been adjusted to meet the extreme demands of GT and endurance racing: as a result, the BMW P65 has a steel crankshaft, forged skirt pistons, high-performance steel conrods and a dry sump lubrication system. This allows the engine to achieve 500bhp. Thanks to demand-controlled auxiliaries and cylinder cut-off, as used in the BMW EfficientDynamics technology package, the BMW M3 GT is redefining the boundaries of consumption.

The functions of the BMW P65 engine are managed by an ECU408 electronic control unit, developed in-house by BMW Motorsport. This unit uses two high-performance micro-processors to control the individual cylinder injection and ignition, as well as the engine data memory system, among other things. The ECU408 monitors the “Quick Shift” function of the six-speed sequential gearbox on the BMW M3 GT, which suppresses the ignition when changing gear, thus allowing even faster gear changes. The compact transmission unit is positioned on the rear axle to allow optimal weight distribution. The drivers are assisted by a mechanical limited slip differential and traction control.

Weight optimisation plays an important role for the development of a racing car. What has started with an intelligent lightweight construction and the use of a carbon fibre roof in the road model, the BMW Motorsport engineers consequently continued in the BMW M3 GT. The use of high-tech carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) played a crucial role in the car achieving a weight of 1,245 kilograms (in ACO specification). As well as the roof of the BMW M3 GT, the front and rear aprons, bonnet, boot lid, rocker panel, doors, front wing, rear wing and flared rear wheel arches are also made of carbon fibre.

The aerodynamics of the BMW M3 GT were fine-tuned for the 2011 season using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and the BMW Group's modern wind tunnels. The result is a new aerodynamics package with even greater efficiency than last year's version.

Fact box.

*All data referring to ACO specification.