BMW M4 vs. Porsche 911 Carrera S Test Drive: Could New M4 Hurry The Eternal 911?
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BMW M4 vs. Porsche 911 Carrera S Test Drive: Could New M4 Hurry The Eternal 911?

BMW M4 vs. Porsche 911 Carrera S Test Drive: Could New M4 Hurry The Eternal 911?

With a new six-cylinder twin-turbo engine with a thrust of 550 Nm. The BMW M4 probably accelerates faster than the Porsche 911 Carrera S. But will it also excel in the corners?

Every car enthusiast once dreamed of a Porsche 911. However, only a few were able to fulfill this dream. The difficulty in this case is that available alternatives are also rare. But they still exist. For example in the form of a BMW M4. Of course, the Bavarian one is also not cheap, but on the other hand, in Germany it costs more than 30 euros cheaper than the Porsche Carrera S - this corresponds to the price of the VW Golf GTI Performance.

The BMW M4 offers 431 hp.

And the BMW M4 has all the prerequisites to share the square with the 911: 431 hp. power, 550 Nm of torque and the highly regarded chassis expertise of M GmbH, even appreciated by the Porsche engineers. This is what we intend to study now.

Press the start button on the BMW M4. The standard biturbo-six barks almost like a racing bike - that is, in a surprisingly rough tone. The three-liter unit comes from the 435i, but has undergone almost a major overhaul: cylinder head, housing, connecting rods, pistons, crankshaft - everything is new. And of course two turbochargers instead of one. In combination with modified exhaust manifolds and a specially designed exhaust system, all this creates a non-conformist sound of a six-cylinder engine.

It is a pity that this acoustics is only partially transferred to the BMW M4 interior. In turn, the surrounding world is literally bathed in sound waves. Sometimes the three-liter engine roars like a boxer, then screams like a 180-degree V8 and then sends trumpets to the sky. But it would be good if all this reached the ears of the pilot, and not strangers.

The three-liter unit has sufficient traction. Of course, the two turbochargers must start to rev up at first, but even in the naturally aspirated filling phase, the inline-six engine pulls seriously, the transition is smooth and spurts forward to 7300 rpm. The seven-speed dual-clutch transmission (€3900) is always ready with the right gear. In Sport plus mode, the accelerator pedal reacts even too strongly - when driving in the city, jerks can only be avoided with great sensitivity. And one more thing: if you do not change the gearbox settings in third gear, you will have to put up with a rather cumbersome downshift.

Hockenheim BMW M4 in M2 mode

But we are already on the track in Hockenheim, or rather on the Short Course, having pre-configured the BMW M4 in the most sporty way. The steering wheel has two very useful buttons, M1 and M2, which can be freely programmed with the desired set of settings. Author's recommendation for normal road (M1): dampers in Comfort mode for better traction, ESP in Sport mode for slightly looser bridles, engine and steering in Sport position.

The M2 button is programmed with BMW M4 settings for Hockenheim: dampers and Sport plus engine, sport steering and ESP off. This requires a particularly sensitive foot on the accelerator pedal, but leads to the best result - otherwise the electronics are often forced to hold back and stop 550 Newton meters.

The BMW M4 rushes along the last straight, and the speedometer shows almost 200 km / h at the end. Hard braking, in which the already loaded front axle is subjected to even more pressure, and the rear axle is unloaded. ABS actively and continuously intervenes to ensure longitudinal stability. This reduces the braking efficiency, as the analysis of the measured data shows.

The BMW M4 requires a sensitive foot on the accelerator pedal.

Nordkurfe turn and whine the front tires. If you turn too late, you will overload them, causing you to turn around before exiting the turn. This is why we enter slower and exit faster. The most important thing here is a good dosage of 550 Newton meters, otherwise the rear axle will serve. If you take the throttle, the rear wheels "bite" again - relatively sharply, which requires the dexterity of counteracting the steering wheel. You can also stabilize a slight drift with the accelerator pedal, but this will affect the average lap speed. At Hockenheim, we need time to get used to the character of the BMW M4 and learn its special mannerisms. After the optimal lap, the stopwatch stops at 1.13,6:XNUMX minutes.

Can a Porsche model drop below this value? The Carrera S is fast, very fast. The car has been able to prove this in numerous sports car tests. But he also has something to lose - this is a half-century reputation of a true German sports car in its purest form. Can an engineering creation in which an ancient drive circuit has been continuously improved over many generations still be able to beat the competition? The duel begins with the measurement of acceleration. A wave of torque ejects the heavier 154 kg BMW M4 two tenths of a second faster, to the 100 km/h limit. A rematch in the road dynamics test: in the pylon slalom at 18 m, the lighter 911 has the advantage. Its rear takes more actively participate in the turn and go around the cones one idea faster. Stop difference is greater. In this case, the powerful boxer engine mounted at the rear is an advantage - it pushes the rear axle, the wheels of which are able to transfer more braking force to the road.

Command and execution

The match must be decided in Hockenheim. The first surprise of the Short Course: at first everything in the Porsche 911 falls into place much faster. I need just one detour to get used to - and now I can fly to the border. The second surprise: the Porsche model looks a whole class of cars smaller than the BMW M4. Moreover, he is only two centimeters narrower - it's all about subjective perception. The Carrera S communicates directly with the driver, executing commands faster and transmitting them with greater accuracy. The third surprise: unlike the M4, there is no understeer here. As soon as you enter a corner with the brake applied, the 911 gently pushes the rear out and allows you to position yourself perfectly.

No understeer on the Porsche 911

How things turn out now depends only on the personal style of piloting. If you accelerate smoothly but steadily, you'll hit corners in a remarkably neutral manner, and with a lap time of 1.11,8 minutes, you'll be faster than with a BMW M4. If you let off the throttle and then re-load the rear axle, you will skid around corners with a smooth drift. Slightly slower, in fact, but much more enjoyable – no 911 so far has allowed side-slip handling with such ease.

Whether the Carrera S will take turns so spontaneously and stop so consistently with its basic equipment even after a long lap is still in question. Because the test car arrived at Hockenheim, aided by options such as a swing-compensated sports suspension (€ 4034) and ceramic brakes (€ 8509). This adds up to the base price of € 105 with the € 173 dual-clutch transmission. But even the significantly worse value for money doesn't stop the Carrera S from outperforming the BMW M3511, albeit by just one point.

Text: Markus Peters

Photo: Rosen Gargolov

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