BMW carried out its first test of the year at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit in Spain this week, as work continued on the Class One-spec BMW M4 DTM ahead of the start of the German touring car season in May.
The test between Tuesday and Thursday (5 – 7 March) saw BMW engineers continue to work on the new car, with drivers Timo Glock and Bruno Spengler carrying out the on-track exercises.
The car features a new two-litre four cylinder turbo engine, which is capable of producing more than 600 horsepower. The Class One regulations require more cooling to be provided to the engine, resulting in a very different look to the front of the DTM car compared to recent years, as well as work to be done on the exhaust system.
Further areas of development include the front splitter, rear wing and a lowered diffuser at the rear.
“After the long winter, I could hardly wait to get back behind the wheel,” said German ex-F1 driver Glock. “I was very excited about our new turbocharged BMW M4 DTM. I have to say that it lived up to all my expectations.
“You can really feel the extra engine power and torque. The modifications to the aerodynamics mean that the car behaves differently.
“These are things that we, as drivers, must adapt to, and for which we must fine-tune our driving style. However, after my first days of testing, I can confirm that the new BMW M4 DTM is great fun.
“Although the weather was generally far from ideal, it was a very productive test. We made more progress with the development of the new car and will continue this work in April at the Lausitzring.”
Also in action was Canadian racer Spengler, who echoed Glock’s comments about the new car being enjoyable to drive.
“Although the unsettled weather meant the conditions could have been better, we were able to work through many points on our test programme and made further progress with the development of the car.
“It is great fun to be involved in the development of a car like this, as you can see the progress being made over the course of the winter tests.
“We still have a bit more work to do between now and the start of the season, but we will have plenty of opportunity for that out on the track at the Lausitzring test. We will go into greater detail there, in preparation for Hockenheim, and will continue to optimise the car for the opening races.
“The whole team has worked hard over the winter and done a great job to give us the best car possible. We now head to the Lausitzring for the final phase of preparations, then it is already time for the first races.”
The next DTM test, an official ITR session, will be held at the EuroSpeedway Lausitz from the 15th to 18th April, where all six BMW drivers will be in action.
