Posted on Wednesday 19 March 2008
BMW prides itself on having some of the most dynamic and involving vehicles on the market today, but its fleet is still lacking a genuine sports car. Some may argue that BMW already offers the 507hp V10-powered M6 Coupe, but to the purists the M6 is an overweight four-seater GT that compromises performance for comfort.
Last year there were rumors BMW was developing a new super-sports car to rival Audi’s R8 and Mercedes’ upcoming SL Black Series, and now German magazine Auto Zeitung is once again reporting that a successor to the original M1 supercar is coming in 2012.
Latest news is that the car will feature a full carbon-fiber chassis plus a number of other weight saving technologies including carbon-ceramic brakes, forged magnesium wheels, Kevlar bucket seats and a carbon-fiber bodykit.
According to the source, the new car will feature a front-mounted V10 engine with a pair of turbochargers bolted on. The motor will be built from a completely new design and include an Infineon ECU developed by BMW’s F1 team. Engineers are hoping for a final output of 625hp, which in the car’s ultralight body could possibly take it close to speeds of up to 400km/h.
An entry-level version of the car will be offered with BMW’s new twin-turbo V8 engine and is rumored to cost around €150,000. Expect to pay up to €300,000 for the range topping force-fed V10 version.
400 km/h with 625hp? I seriously doubt that. But good luck anyway!
Why front engine????? I really wish that they’ll instead make a light weight MR chassis with a NA V10 or NA V12. Honestly, around 550bhp from V10 will be enough if they can keep the weight down
How much horsepower did the McLaren F1 have, Raptor?
I don’t see why 400 kmh is an unreasonable target top speed. The McLaren F1 would do close to that speed with top speed with a similar amount of horsepower.
As far as the car is concerned it sounds like an absolute cracker. If BMW manage to get it right it will be awesome and if they get it wrong it will be a disaster. BMW seem to be a bit of a Marmite company in that way i.e. when they get things right they get them really right and when they get them wrong they get them really wrong. I hope that this one is the former and not the latter.
ok, first of all, it must be noted that this isnt their 5L V10. this is an “all new engine” theyre talking about. cause 625 hp from a 5L is nothing. ferrari can easily do that without forced induction. so how big is a V10 twin turbo that makes 625hp? well, hell, ford could do that with 4L and an ecoboost system. so if bmw is looking at a true sports car, something to get the M1 crowd swooning… look for a twin turbo version of the 3L v10 used in F1. thats right. I’m going to predict a very small engine like that. if not the exact engine. obviously not reving at 19 million RPM, but you get the idea.
If BMW… took an old F1 technology that was BANNED because it had TOO MUCH POWER… and put it into an ALL CF car, and called it the M1… well all Bangle would have to do is not make it look like an AMC Gremlin and it will sell like a hungry stock trader on black tuesday
Mclaren F1 had 627hp and went 386.7 km/h (240.1 mph).
For the next 15 km/h, you need another 100 or even better, 200 hp.
I think 400 kmh probably is a bit of a bit push, but top speed isn’t the msot important thing.
Why do you think they would develop a completely new engine for the car, Chris? You have to think about other issues such as reliability when building the car. People would be very happy with a quarter of a million pound BMW that was constantly breaking down.
Another point is that the lag will probably be worse the more you try to squeeze greater horsepower numbers out of a small displacement engine.
raptor; just because the only cars that have gotten to 400kmph have been 1000+ hp monsters, doesnt mean you need 800 hp to make it to 400 kmph.
and shortroot is right. people will dream of owning this car for the top speed but the people buying it likely wont give a flying crap about the top speed.
“The motor will be built from a completely new design and include an Infineon ECU developed by BMW’s F1 team.” i’m going to take a stab at it, but if theyre going to make a “sports” car, you can expect it to be an all new, and very small engine. like i said, the 5L v10 is already making 500 HP. its a very large and very heavy engine, that has no right being put in an M1 successor. and for 300k, from BMW, you can expect them to give you a 3-4L V10 with twin turbos that have almost no lag (theres plenty of ways to get around lag). if theyre using their F1 ECU supplier, then the similarities may not stop there.
remember, the 5L v10 was developed from BMW’s experience in F1
this is all speculation so far, correct? i really dont think it will ever come to fruition
good point ohmy, its all hearsay. its not like the Audi R4, which we know is coming out in 2012, because of the released product plan.
I agree with “ohmy”.
BMW always toys with the public on the cool-looking concepts, but instead, will roll out the red carpet out for the X3, that Z hardtop coupe, and the M6. They couldn’t even get it right when they announced the CS concept! Who wants another high-powered sedan? They already have the 7-Series. Like I said on BMWs earlier article…If they revamp the 8-series as their so-called Audi and McLaren fighter, then they’ll have a chance
This car might be called Z7 or Z9. A rear engine won’t hurt it.
Nice car.what a lookl & V10 engine
very very power full car
400kph (248.6 mph) is very possible. Its what BMW is know for, making more from less. Also, with there perfection of balance and suspension this could be a top super car hands down. I am desperate to see what this beast will look and sound like.