2011 BMW M3 (E92) GT2 Pilots: A. Priaulx, D. Muller, J. Hand Team: BMW Motorsport Race: 15th overall (3rd in LMGTE-Pro class) at Le Mans in 2011 Spark - S2540 (resin)
Published 07/06/17
In 2007 BMW released the E92 generation of the famous M3, and in the following year the racing version of the car came out, the M3 GT2. The big difference from the previous incarnation of the M3 was a bigger V8 engine instead of the inline-6. Though based on the road-going M3, the GT2 racer was a a lot different from the civilian car. It was completely stripped and fitted with a wider and more aggressive carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) body with a big wing on the rear deck. The P65 engine was the same aluminum 3999 cm³ V8 used on the passenger cars, but tuned up to produce 500 hp. That allowed the car to sprint from 0 to 100km/h in very fast 3.42 seconds.
As an upgrade, for the 2011 season the car received a semi-automatic paddle-operated gearbox. At La Sarthe BMW fielded two M3, cars #55 (chassis #1103) and #56 (chassis #1106). Car #55 had to abandon, but GT2 #56 here managed a 15th place overall – 3rd in the GTE-Pro class. I’m a big fan of bimmers, and my collection was in dire need of the cars from Munich. And this M3 seemed to be a great one to start out with. As usual, a fantastic model from Spark, very well made with terrific detail level. Just as good as its rival, the Evora. I would dare say it’s one of those models good enough for every race car collection.