- BMW has unveiled the new M3 Touring 24H race car.
- Model was originally conceived as an April Fool’s joke.
- It’s based on the M4 GT3 EVO and has up to 590 hp.
April Fool’s Day is right around the corner and automakers will likely celebrate with some humorous ‘announcements.’ These are typically forgotten almost as soon as they’re revealed, but that’s not the case with BMW.
Quite the opposite as the company is turning last year’s joke into a race car that will compete at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring. As BMW explained, the reaction to their social media prank was “overwhelming” as it “reached more than one million users and generated over 1.6 million views.”
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This pushed the company to develop the new M3 Touring 24H, which actually wasn’t much of a stretch as the automaker had previously considered a racing version of the wagon in 2022. Thanks to this earlier work, BMW was able to create the new race car in just eight months.
As you’d expect, the model is essentially an M4 GT3 EVO wrapped in a M3 Touring body. This means the wagon is 7.9 inches (200 mm) longer and 1.3 inches (32 mm) taller than the coupe. The model’s larger size presented a number of aerodynamic challenges, but the company addressed them by using a newly developed swan-neck mount for the rear wing. They also tweaked the design and location of the wing itself.
Other highlights include a carbon fiber reinforced plastic body, a roll cage, and non-functional rear doors. The model also has 18-inch wheels that are backed up by a high-performance braking system.
Power comes from a 3.0-liter M TwinPower Turbo six-cylinder engine developing up to 590 hp (440 kW / 598 PS) and 516 lb-ft (700 Nm) of torque. It’s connected to an X-Trac six-speed transmission.
The car will be fielded by Schubert Motorsport and compete in the SPX class. It will be piloted by a team a drivers that includes Jens Klingmann, Ugo de Wilde, Connor De Phillippi, and Neil Verhagen.
Klingmann remarked, “The fact that we took our fans’ reactions to an April Fools’ joke as an opportunity to actually make the BMW M3 Touring 24H a reality speaks to our closeness to our community and our enthusiasm for motorsport.” He added, “Our goal is to put on a great show for the spectators at the Nürburgring and to finish the race as far up front as possible. I am convinced that we can achieve a top result.”
