BMW 3.0 CSL HommageBMW shows a modern take on its classic 3.0 CSL model with a one-off creation that points towards possible lightweight production models
BMW’s iconic ‘Batmobile’ has been reinvented for the 21st century with this dramatic concept car, the BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage.
Revealed at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, the 3.0 CSL Hommage is a one-off recreation of the classic 3.0 CSL from the early 1970s, racing versions of which were nicknamed 'Batmobile' after their extreme aero packs were added.
While BMW insists that the concept is a one-off creation with no production future, Autocar understands that the concept does still hold some significance for BMW’s future production models.
Senior sources have revealed that the concept is a statement of intent for the BMW M division to build more extreme, lightweight models, which would be pitched as M’s answer to its great rival Mercedes-AMG’s Black Series versions.
This strategy is said to have the strong backing of new BMW M boss Frank van Meel, who recently joined the company from Audi’s RS division.
The first model built to this strategy is set to be the M4 GTS, which is being readied in close-to-production concept form at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in August ahead of a launch in the summer of 2016.
“The 3.0 CSL Hommage is a show car to test out some design features," van Meel told Autocar at the Nurburgring 24 Hours earlier this month. "We are looking into a response to the show car but for us it’s always to get the feedback on whether people think it’s really cool. It’s not an overall concept we are thinking to make.”
The 3.0 CSL Hommage is the third Hommage car from BMW in recent years, following on from the M1 Hommage from 2008 and the 328 Hommage which celebrated the 75th anniversary of the 328 racer in 2011. Like the 3.0 CSL Hommage, both the previous Hommage concepts were revealed at Villa d’Este.
The latest concept car is a large two-door coupe that is marginally bigger than an M6. It is 4997mm long, 2018mm wide and 1302mm high, with a wheelbase of 3190mm. For comparison, the M6 is 4898mm long, 1899mm wide and 1374mm high, with a wheelbase of 2851mm.
BMW hasn’t confirmed technical details of the car, other than the fact its rear-wheel drive and below the long bonnet is a 3.0-litre straight-six petrol engine in combination with an ‘e-boost’ electric motor to aid with acceleration.
Living up to its Hommage name, the modern-day 3.0 CSL concept car is constructed from an extensive use of lightweight materials, including carbonfibre-reinforced plastic, much of which is visible, and a material BMW extensively uses on its i and M cars. The original 3.0 CSL was some 200kg lighter than the 3.0 CS on which it was based thanks to an extensive use of aluminium in its construction.
The aerodynamic body of the new concept car is as dramatic as its forbearer’s. There are vast flared wheel arches with extensive aerodynamic sculpting to channel the air towards the rear of the car. The wheel arches house 21in alloys shod in 265/35 tyres in front and 325/30s at the rear. Other notable exterior design features include the extensive air intakes, the large fixed rear wing, roof spoiler, front splitter, and huge side exhausts.
In profile there is a nod to the roofline of the original 3.0 CSL, with a roofline that doesn’t flow into the back-end of the car.
A further nod to the original 3.0 CSL is the Golf Yellow paint finish on the Hommage, the same colour as the original was first finished in. A more modern feature on the model is its laser and LED headlights.
The interior is pared down and made almost exclusively of carbonfibre-reinforced plastic, save for some wood for the instrument panel, which is also a structural part. This wood is a reference to the wood interior of the original 3.0 CSL. Key driver information such as the speed, revs and gear selection is shown on a display on the steering column.
BMW design chief Karim Habib said: “For BMW designers like us, the BMW 3.0 CSL is a style icon. Its combination of racing genes and elegance generates an engaging aesthetic that continues to win hearts even today.
“The BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage celebrates many of those characteristic features but without copying them. Indeed, some of the parallels are not immediately obvious. We wanted people to sense the family resemblance rather than see it straight off.”
BMW Group design chief Adrian van Hooydonk added: “Our Hommage cars not only demonstrate how proud we are of our heritage but also how important the past can be in determining the future.”
That determining of the future will be seen with the M4 GTS. The M4 GTS will be inspired by both the 3.0 CSL Hommage and the M4 MotoGP safety car, which gets more extreme bodywork including a large fixed rear wing as well as significant mechanical changes. These include a water injection system for the engine intake, a feature which BMW said had production intent when it revealed alongside the safety car.
This was again confirmed to Autocar at the Nurburgring 24 Hours event earlier this month by van Meel, who added on the more general subject of special lightweight models: “We will do some projects in the future regarding small limited number editions because that’s one of our strategies.”
BMW also inadvertently hinted at the model’s imminent arrival by briefly having an M4 GTS available to order under the 4-series section of its US website last week.
The GTS badge has only been used once before, on an extreme version of the previous-generation M3 in 2010. This was a lightweight, stripped-out version of the M3 of which only 150 were built by hand.
However, BMW has no immediate plans to go one step further and develop an out and out GT3 road car, although it is an area of the marker the firm is observing. It recently revealed an M6 GT3 racer weighing some 500kg less than the road car on which it is based at just under 1300kg.
"We might take a look into that but we have a lot of other projects we are working on,” said van Meel. “We need to look and see if the market is big enough for that product."
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