It’s awards season, when every publication has its own version of car of the year. The BMW M4 CSL has been involved in most of them, but it’s had a hard time scoring any wins, for a couple of reasons. But how does it do in Road & Track’s Performance Car of the Year?
Reactions to the BMW M4 CSL have been largely consistent among journalists and media. Most reports seem to feel that its performance and track capabilities are impressive and thrilling. However, there are also often questions about whether it’s actually fun or engaging in the same way that BMWs of yore always were. So what does Matt Farah think?
On track, in the video, he has very good things to say about it. Farah seems impressed it the changes BMW made to turn the M4 Competition into the CSL. Which isn’t uncommon to hear from media members who’ve driven it on track. The track is where the M4 CSL was designed to live, so it’s no coincidence that that’s where it feels most at home. It’s frighteningly fast, immensely grippy, and surprisingly responsive, which makes it an absolute track weapon. But the real question is whether it’s good to drive on the road.
Yes, the BMW M4 CSL is a track-oriented car but so was the E46 M3 CSL and that car was also fantastic on the road. It had nuance and subtleties that made it feel special and unique, even when you drove it at low speeds. It was a car that felt special, not just fast and that’s a hugely important distinction to make. However, I fear it’s also a distinction the M4 CSL fails to make. Which is especially damning when you consider the cars it has to go up against, such as the Porsche 911 GT3.
For around $140,000, Matt Farah thinks that you can feel its worth on track. But, traditionally, CSLs haven’t only been track queens and were meant to also be driven on the road. And I’m not entirely sure the BMW M4 CSL is particularly good at that
[Source: Road & Track]
