Back in August 2021, German magazine Sport Auto lapped the Nurburgring in 7 minutes and 30.79 seconds behind the wheel of a BMW M4 Competition. They’ve now returned to the famous Green Hell to find out whether the xDrive-equipped model is indeed faster. In both instances, the cars had Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires to even the odds.
Sport Auto’s talented driver Christian Gebhardt knows his way around the Nordschleife, having lapped the ‘Ring extensively in recent years. He drove the RWD M4 last year and came back with the AWD model in a bid to improve his previous lap time. That he certainly did as the all-paw coupe completed the lap in 7 minutes and 28.57 seconds. Consequently, he shaved off a substantial 2.22 seconds. If you haven’t seen last year’s attempt, we’ve attached it at the bottom for the sake of comparison.
Coincidentally, the M4 Competition xDrive proved to be just as fast as the previous-generation M4 in the hardcore GTS specification. In October 2015, the limited-run coupe with its innovative water injection lapped the Nurburgring in 7 minutes and 28 seconds. However, it’s important to point out the GTS’ lap time came straight from BMW.
The M4 CSL Should Improve The Nurburgring Lap Time
We’re expecting the lap time to be improved by the M4 Coupe Sport Lightweight since the CSL arriving in May will drop over 100 kilograms (220 pounds). In addition, BMW M engineers are likely to extract more power from the S58 engine beyond the Competition’s 503 horses. It’s wildly believed the M4 CSL will be sold exclusively with an automatic transmission and RWD. There are also mumblings of an M4 GT/H as a CSL-esque special edition with a manual.
As for Sport Auto’s Christian Gebhardt, he previously lapped the ‘Ring in 7 minutes and 29.57 seconds driving the M5 CS. The skilled driver needed 7:53.26 with the ALPINA B3 and 7:42.99 with the M2 CS. Other lap times with BMWs worth mentioning include the M8 Competition’s (7:32.79) and the M5 Competition’s (7:35.90).
Source: sport auto / YouTube
