While our favorite Bavarian automaker builds an awful lot of super-sweet rides, they can't seem to get a grip on the whole sports car thing. Seeing an E39 M5 still makes our day, but in the back of our mind we know it is but a big-engine shoved into a 5-series and all the limitations that follow. Yeah, the M1 was a purpose-built sportscar, but it was never a world beater and was as Italian as it was German. And while a green 850CSi will be parked in our driveway one day, it's luxo-barge with a killer engine, not a track star. The Z8? No, not really. You'd have get a pre-War 328 to find a true Bimmer runner. But all that is about to change. According to rumor, BMW's new halo car and R8/911 killer is being developed entirely by the boffins at M. Saving weight is priority #1 as the car must not exceed 1,400 kg. Which incidentally is about 60 pounds less than a Z06. Power is going to be in the 550 horse neighborhood and will either come from a hopped up V10 or a twin-turbo version of the soon-to-arrive M3's V8. Styling is said to be inspired by the oh so popular CS concept and the engine will be up front as opposed to midship. We're not entirely sure why, but the notion of a twin-turbo V8 in a 3,000 pound car is making us spectacularly happy.
More details on BMW's upcoming super-sports car [via Motor Authority]
Related:
New BMW Supercar, the M10, Coming in 2009? Tuner Version Already Planned?; Shanghai Surprise: BMW CS Concept [Internal]