Considering the historic racing aspect of Monterey Car Week, the annual get-together seemed like a natural venue for BMW to exhibit the Concept M4 GTS, a higher-performance street-legal track day edition of the company’s popular sport coupe.
The key innovation in the GTS is a water injection system that works like an intercooler, chilling the hot compressed air from the turbocharger with a spray of water. Evaporation of that water draws heat from the air in the engine’s intake, giving it denser air to breath so it can make more power.
The company isn’t listing specifications for the benefits of the system, but does point out that BMW has been running such a system on the safety cars it provides the MotoGP racing series and that those cars have seen a “significant output and torque boost.”
The M4 GTS will be visually distinguished from regular M4s by its use of organic LED taillight technology, which the company promises will provide “full-surface and homogeneous illumination.”
“While the BMW M4 Coupe embodies the ideal combination of motor sport genes and unrestricted everyday usability, the BMW Concept M4 GTS previews an emotionally powerful and exclusive special model conceived with an eye for trailblazing technology and a keen focus on the race track,” explains Frank van Meel, Chairman of BMW’s board of management. “Despite its outstanding track ability, it is still fully road-legal. This is racing technology for the road in the truest sense.”
The concept car wears an adjustable rear wing and front aerodynamic splitter with its Frozen Dark Gray Metallic finish and Acid Orange highlights.
Additional details will be released later, possible at September’s Frankfurt Motor Show. For up-to-the-minute industry coverage, follow the @MaximRides twitter feed.
Photos by BMW North America