BMW M4 DTM – WORLD PREMIERE – 480 horsepower

The new challenger makes its debut: Preparations for the start of the BMW M4 DTM’s first season enter the finishing straight.

he submission of the necessary papers for the aerodynamic homologation of the 2014-spec DTM cars to the Deutsche Motor Sport Bund (DMSB) also marks the end of a busy, and yet exciting, period for BMW Motorsport. Development work on the BMW M4 DTM, which will compete in the forthcoming DTM season, has been in full swing in recent weeks and months. As of today, it is no longer possible to make modifications to fundamental areas of the car, heralding a new phase of preparations for the start of the season in Hockenheim (DE) on 4th May. The forthcoming tests will primarily focus on optimising detailed aspects of the total package and understanding how to exhaust the full potential of the BMW M4 DTM.

The new car will make public appearances out on the track at the official ITR tests in Budapest (HU, 31st March – 3rd April) and then at the final test in Hockenheim (DE, 14th – 17th April). Like last year, the official presentation of all eight BMW M4 DTMs on 25th April in Munich’s BMW Welt will provide BMW Motorsport fans with a mouth-watering taste of what they can look forward to in the new season.

“Even before the BMW M3 DTM completed its final race last season, our development team was already hard at work on the 2014 car,” said BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt. “Preparing a new car for the DTM is a big challenge. In few other series is aerodynamics so important. Even the slightest detail can make the difference between success and failure. And this attention to detail shown by our engineers is apparent at first glance – from the elongated bonnet with its steeply sloping front and aerodynamically optimised wing mirrors, to the contoured roofline that is a characteristic feature of the BMW M4.”

Marquardt added: “For me, the BMW M4 DTM is an absolute highlight. Like its production counterpart, it looks fantastic and it also made a positive first impression at our tests. Unlike when we were developing the BMW M3 DTM for our return to the DTM in 2012, this time around we were able to call upon the wealth of experience gained over the last two seasons. Despite this, we still have a long road ahead of us – the opposition have continued to develop their cars in the meantime. It is important to continue gradually improving the new car and ensure we can get the very best out of it, in order to be able to compete on a par with our strong and experienced rivals right from the outset with the BMW M4
DTM. I am confident we will achieve this. Every DTM fan can already look forward to the first showdown in Hockenheim on 4th May: only then will we know exactly how competitive the BMW M4 DTM really is.”

READ MORE SOURCE: BMWBLOG