Quote:
Originally Posted by Dalko43
The intent behind this thread wasn't to argue about history, it was to discuss the reason why BMW chose the M6 over other, seemingly more practical platforms, like the M3/M4 and Z4 for IMSA racing. I acknowledge the M6's S63 offers its own unique advantages, but outside of that, I'm somewhat mystified why BMW is trying to race a M6 against more race-oriented platforms like Corvettes and 911's.
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If you really want to understand why they M6 was chosen, you can ignore all the racing heritage stuff. That is, by my perception, just you trying to justify that the M4
should have been their choice. Personally, I'd agree with you. I'd rather see the M4 racing in the IMSA series, because I'm just not that big a fan of the current M6.
That's just my preference though. The difference between my preference and reality is that there are quantifiable reasons why the M6 was chosen, and I acknowledge those reasons. I'm going to list them (again) below. These are facts. They're not opinions. They can't be disputed. They're just facts.
Fact 1: The weight of the production M6 is irrelevant in the IMSA SportsCar Championship series. The minimum weight of the cars is part of the GT3 spec. Manufacturers are free to strip the cars down replace parts with CF to the minimum weight threshold. All the manufacturers do this.
Now you can argue that the car is dimensionally larger, but dimensions don't have that much of an impact. Any difference in frontal area and Cd are minor compared to the impact of the aero package. We're talking fractions of a percentage point in the context of GTLM car aero.
Fact 2: Current homologation requirements would require BMW to run the 3.0L S55 block as a base for their racing engine. This would have given them the smallest displacement engine in the entire series by 500cc. The example of the S65 in the Z4 is an exception, not the rule. The regulations were "fixed" after BMW managed to homologate the Z4, so they couldn't simply shoehorn the P63 in to the M4.
Could BMW have raced with a 3.0L I6tt engine package? Sure. The P63 produces up to 585 HP though, and it is designed to do so for 24 hours on end. Lap after lap, after lap. To do the same with just 3.0L of displacement would have been a lot more expensive. The M6 is actually
less expensive than the Z4 GT3. That's important if you want GT racing to grow. Other manufacturers are chasing the same trend. Porsche's latest GT3 spec 911 is less expensive too. Gotta keep up.
At the end of the day, the M6 isn't the GT car I wanted to see from BMW, but I looked for answers and I found them. I've shared those answers with you. If you still think that the M4 would have made a "better" GT car, then that's your opinion, and you're certainly entitled to it, but the facts I've outlined above make it really hard to build a solid rational argument against the M6.