Article Summary
- The lap time was recorded for the full 20.8-kilometer (12.9-mile) course.
- The M2 CS had Pirelli P Zero Trofeo RS tires, the same type of rubber used by BMW for the official run last year.
- Since 2015, Christian Gebhardt has performed similar tests with over 130 cars at the Nordschleife.
Following an announcement made earlier this week, Sport Auto has released footage of its hot lap with the M2 CS at the Nürburgring. The German magazine’s test driver, Christian Gebhardt, recorded a lap time ever so slightly quicker than BMW’s official run. The hardcore rear-wheel-drive coupe crossed the finish line in 7 minutes and 25.22 seconds for the full 20.8-kilometer (12.9-mile) course.
It narrowly beat Jörg Weidinger’s time. On April 11, 2025, the BMW M development engineer completed the lap in 7 minutes and 25.53 seconds. Still, it’s surprising to see a third party beat BMW’s own time in an identical car. The luxury brand still holds the fastest M2 lap at the Nordschleife, however, thanks to the regular M2 equipped with the new M Performance Track Package, which lapped the circuit in 7 minutes and 25.06 seconds.
Theoretically, a similarly equipped M2 CS could go even faster thanks to its extra power and lower curb weight. However, BMW hasn’t said whether it plans to return to the Nordschleife with the hotter M2 fitted with the M Performance Track Package. It’s also unclear whether the company wants to chase an even quicker time with the M2 xDrive, although we’re not convinced the AWD version would necessarily be faster than its rear-wheel-drive sibling.
All the M2 variants we’ve mentioned use the eight-speed automatic transmission, which makes the most sense when chasing lap records. A manual gearbox is certainly more engaging, but the Steptronic is ultimately quicker, regardless of how skilled the driver is at shifting gears.
Will A BMW M2 CSL Happen?
BMW is leaving the door open for an M2 CSL, which would shed even more weight than the M2 CS. It would make sense to remove the rear seats and extract even more power from the inline-six engine. The twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter mill produces 523 hp in the M2 CS, but the M4 CSL packs an additional 20 hp.
The bigger of the two coupes remains the fastest production BMW around the Nordschleife, with a lap time of 7 minutes and 18.13 seconds. Whether BMW would allow a potential M2 CSL to eclipse the M4 CSL remains an open question. Given the roughly seven-second gap, however, the M2 CSL has plenty of room to improve on the M2 CS’ lap time without dethroning its bigger brother.
With Audi signaling the eventual demise of its five-cylinder engine, the RS3 may no longer pose a serious threat to the M2 CS’ Nürburgring lap time. Ingolstadt’s hot sedan claimed the compact-class lap record in mid-2024 with a time of 7 minutes and 33.12 seconds before BMW obliterated it by 7.6 seconds with the M2 CS a year later.
Will owners ever go flat out on the Nordschleife to chase a lap record? That’s highly unlikely, but these benchmark runs give automakers valuable bragging rights, which can ultimately help drive sales.
