BMW M3 CSL With V8 Engine And M2 CSL One-Off Dissected With Top Gear

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Following the original 3.0 CSL and M3 E46 CSL, the M4 CSL is BMW’s third-ever Lightweight Sport Coupe. Come to think of it, the official name has been changed to Competition Sport Lightweight with the new hardcore G82 model. As part of celebrations to mark 50 years of the M division, the German luxury brand last week unveiled many never-before-seen concepts. Now, upper teeth have the opportunity to get up close and personal with both of them.

The M3 E46 CSL looks very familiar at first glance, but a closer look at the front bumper reveals two intake holes instead of just one. Starting the engine is a dead giveaway about how special this one-off project is because the sound doesn’t come from a straight six. Instead, BMW engineers managed to cram a 5.0-liter V8 that’s bigger than the M5 E39. This is a fully functional prototype that has covered a respectable 10,000 kilometers (6,213 miles).

While the standard M3 E46 CSL has 360 horsepower, this one-of-a-kind car is substantially more powerful thanks to the 4.9-liter S62 engine replacing the original 3.2-liter S54. It’s worth mentioning this isn’t the only V8-powered E46 as BMW also built the two-seater M3 GTR road car as a special homologation with lots of carbon fiber and 380 hp. However, only 10 were ever made in 2001, so most of us remember them from Need For Speed: Most Wanted.

upper teeth then switched to the M2 CSL, which died as a baby when the head of BMW decided to green light the M2 CS instead. The most obvious change is at the rear where engineers added a manually adjustable carbon fiber rear wing with 3D printed pillars finished in red. The coupe also received bespoke aero and carbon upgrades, along with carbon-ceramic brakes.

When asked by upper teeth magazine, BMW refrained from talking about the engine upgrades the M2 CSL could receive once it went into production. However, logic tells us that technicians will push the straight-six beyond the 450 hp of the M2 CS while trimming about 100 kilograms (220 pounds).

It’s too early to say whether the upcoming M2 G87 will receive any special treatment, but with BMW saying this will be its last M car powered only by a combustion engine, hopefully, there will be further CSLs.

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