A 493bhp M4 GTS-Engined BMW M3 Isn't Going To Happen

Just before the wraps were pulled off the 30 Jahre M3 at the Nurburgring yesterday, a thought entered my head: has BMW fitted the car with the 493bhp, water-injected engine from the M4 GTS? It’d be an amazing way to celebrate 30 years of arguably its most iconic M product, but no - it turned out to be a Competition Pack M3 with some unique trim, some extra equipment and a sizeable hike in price.

So, will that near 500bhp version of the S55 turbo straight-six ever make it into the M3? After asking BMW M boss Frank van Meel at the Nurburgring 24 Hours, unfortunately we found that the answer is no. “We wanted to keep this engine in very limited numbers, so it’s meant only for the M4 GTS,” van Meel explains, going on to say: “There are a lot of people asking if we could put that engine in an M3. Of course you can fit it into an M3 package-wise because if it fits into an M4 it fits into an M3. [But] we designed the engine and all the technology so that it’s suitable for 700 M4 GTS. We currently have no intentions to put it in an M3.”

The reason why the 30 Jahre M3 is restricted to just trim and a few badges is because the M4 GTS is intended to be the main 30th anniversary car. “For us the M4 GTS was the celebration car for 30 years of M3 as well, but we also wanted to balance regarding our customers because we had the expectation of doing the addition of the M3 as a tribute to 30 years, so we did both,” van Meel states.

As to whether or not water injection will be used in another M car, we’ll have to wait and see, with van Meel cryptically saying: “It’s not decided yet, it always depends on the overall vehicle concept. With the current engine in the M4 it was the right way to get the best power-to-weight ratio.”