[ptgltw]

Holy hell. This car is an absolute rocket ship. 2019 m4’s coming up to me after I walk them in the straights asking what have I done to it. I get em in the turns also but that’s driver skill pretty much.

I tell them it’s stock engine and suspension.

Fellas. Don’t ever dream of ever owning the m2 CSR. The street car is the one.

Race car brakes. Seats. Harnesses, camber plates and go. This car is way to fast to be tracking without the proper safety gear.

Oh and running toyo RR. Getting used to those. They like much less pressure. Hot around 35 vs 41 for Hoosier r7

Full report coming next week. 2 more days of this left

[medphysdave]

This makes me want to buy a set of race pads for my next event instead of finishing off the stock pads. The stock pads are quite capable, but you gotta work them.

[aparedes]

Originally Posted by ptgltw

Holy hell. This car is an absolute rocket ship. 2019 m4’s coming up to me after I walk them in the straights asking what have I done to it. I get em in the turns also but that’s driver skill pretty much.

I tell them it’s stock engine and suspension.

Fellas. Don’t ever dream of ever owning the m2 CSR. The street car is the one.

Race car brakes. Seats. Harnesses, camber plates and go. This car is way to fast to be tracking without the proper safety gear.

Oh and running toyo RR. Getting used to those. They like much less pressure. Hot around 35 vs 41 for Hoosier r7

Full report coming next week. 2 more days of this left

Cant wait for more pics on the build and more detail report.!!

[ptgltw]

M2 CS "r" Initial Shakedown VIR 9 17 22

Car setup:

CF Buckets
Schirmer Seat Bracets
Competition Motorsports Rear bar
Lifeline harnesses
CSR Brake setup (stock rear and Alcon fronts)
Endurance Pads (forget from where I'll update this)
Akro mid pipe and exhaust (mainly for weight savings)
GC Camber Plates
18" Bimmerworld wheels (if you would like offset LMK)
Toyo RR (if you need size LMK)

Stock suspension
Stock Engine

I need to weigh car.

Alignment: Initial was all screwed up. Front toe was 9mm in! and -4 and -3.8 camber front.

After 5 hours of tracking this handful setup I got it aligned at Quantum and they had it ready for me 8 am Sunday.

-3 front
-2 rear

Front Total toe 1 mm in
Rear Total toe 1mm in

Now it handles like I remembered the chassis handling.

Issues: GC Camber plates not well made. Strut nut and adjustment bolts kept coming loose

Issues: I didn't get the car aligned until after Friday and Sat Sessions ( my bad )

Initial Thoughts:

Seating position: Much lower than stock but higher than Cup Car. It's perfect blend for street / track. I highy recommend this setup.

Speed in Straights:

Rocket Ship. I want to have this car dynoed. I was outpacing a S55 Dinan stage 2 or 3 in the straights and I know people are having a hard time believing its stock power. I just tell everyone it's about 450 wheel HP from factory and not 444 paper hp as I call it.

Lack of rear wing: This can be felt in the uphill esses at VIR. I'm entering the same speed as the CSR at 130 mph but not as confidant in the mid section and exit and entering about 8 mph slower.

Turn in: Super sharp. The car loves to be tossed in corners, caught and tracked out with minor corrections if needed.

Tires: Toyo RR vs Hoosier R7. Not as sticky initially but very consistant and plays a little more

Brakes: A little more nose dive under heavy braking but nothing the car can't handle and I can actually use this more to my advantage with trail braking / turn in.

Steering: I can't tell a difference

Noise: The M2 CS street car is a MUCH nicer place to be

Comfort: M2 CS wins here also

Results: I only got 2 good sessions in after the alignment and they were in traffic. I was playing with a GT2 RS and McLaren 600 LT

2:06.4 in the street car after a weekend.

2:04.2 in the cup car after 2800 kilometers.

I think this car has a 2:02 in her with me behind the wheel in 2023.

I run in the instructor group and the A group and happy to report all the variants of cayman GT4's graciously gave me point by's (and early at that) for the mighty M2 CS

Who did I give point by's to:

991.2 Winged GT3 car
GT2 RS
Modified 700 plus wheel HP BMW
Black Mamba (you know who you are)

Maybe another car I missed but these are the only point by's I remember giving after 3 days. I gave the Gt2 RS a very awkward point by on purpose. He took it, the instructor held out his hand and gave me the hang loose sign. That was an awesome moment.

Also a Blue C8 Vette was seen in the rear view. Someone came up to me in the paddock and said, that blue C8 is pissed! I said why? He said because he wants to know how that M2 is so fast

Sidenotes:

The M2 CS has a distinct and intimidating face when seen in the rear view. I got got look at for 4 hours as I trailered my friend Lotus home while he drove my M2 CS street car home. Just another advantage of owning a street car version. Trailer or drive, your option

Gas mileage: WORST EVER. I use 1/2 a tank and we all know the M2 holds next to nothing to begin with. I start with 3/4 tank and end with 1/4 tank after a 25 min session. This might work out to 3.75 MPG.

I'm typing this fast before work so I'm sure I missed things.

While I've never tracked an M3 or M4 of this generation I would imagine this car is more tossable in the corners and feels lighter on it's feet due to the shorter wheelbase. Could be wrong here, just taking a guess.

Any question? Some pics to come.

Oh yeah, Video to come at some point, I bought a Garmin Catylist.

[medphysdave]

How easy/quick can camber be adjusted with camber plates? I'd love the option to increase camber for track days, but want to return to street setting? Certainly adjusting camber impacts the other components. Must a full alignment be done for street/track or could you get away with just adjusting the camber plates?

Eager to know what camber plates you end up with.

It's great to hear how capable the CS is with only minor mods.

[ptgltw]

Originally Posted by medphysdave

How easy/quick can camber be adjusted with camber plates? I'd love the option to increase camber for track days, but want to return to street setting? Certainly adjusting camber impacts the other components. Must a full alignment be done for street/track or could you get away with just adjusting the camber plates?

Eager to know what camber plates you end up with.

It's great to hear how capable the CS is with only minor mods.

Super easy if you're looking for "round about" numbers.

Mark your camber plates for the two different settings:

A mark for street setup

A mark for track setup.

You can do this if you have a jack and an allen key.

The adjustment is all done up top.

[medphysdave]

Originally Posted by ptgltw

Super easy if you're looking for "round about" numbers.

Mark your camber plates for the two different settings:

A mark for street setup

A mark for track setup.

You can do this if you have a jack and an allen key.

The adjustment is all done up top.

Great to know! Did you switch to 18" wheels after going to alcon up front or still running 19"? It's good to see that a front break swap is all that's needed. Might keep my eye out for an Essex set. They are right here in Charlotte so I should probably swing by at some point.

[ptgltw]

Originally Posted by medphysdave

Great to know! Did you switch to 18" wheels after going to alcon up front or still running 19"? It's good to see that a front break swap is all that's needed. Might keep my eye out for an Essex set. They are right here in Charlotte so I should probably swing by at some point.

Sorry forgot that mod

Yes 18” Bimmerworld TA5 forged wheels

Saved a bunch of weight also and super strong

[m dizzle]

Fun build! Nice to see others tracking their M2 CS!

I recently sold mine, but I have a spare 2 series trunk (its alpine white) that I was planning to skin and mount a wing on for the track so I didn't mess up the stock trunk. I'm over in Sterling VA but let me know if you want to try and add a wing to your car without messing with the stock trunk!

[ptgltw]

Originally Posted by m dizzle

Fun build! Nice to see others tracking their M2 CS!

I recently sold mine, but I have a spare 2 series trunk (its alpine white) that I was planning to skin and mount a wing on for the track so I didn't mess up the stock trunk. I'm over in Sterling VA but let me know if you want to try and add a wing to your car without messing with the stock trunk!

Thank you but no thanks. I had the chance to buy a deck lid with an oem racing wing but frankly that's overkill for what I'm doing and I like keeping things stock appearing.

[sdhotwn]

Interested to hear your thoughts on the catalyst. I really like mine and understand what it is and what it isn't.

[ptgltw]

Originally Posted by sdhotwn

Interested to hear your thoughts on the catalyst. I really like mine and understand what it is and what it isn't.

It's so damn cool. After I got mine, 2 of my friends went to the VIR store and bought them out, lol.

As for diving in and really learning what it can do, I let a guy borrow it for Sunday and he is gonna UPS it back to me. I'll get to dig in later.

As for a lap timer and video taker, it's pretty damn cool to instantly diagnose your session.

The optimal lap feature is awesome too. As amateurs we know if we put it all together or there isn't any traffic, what our potential is.

Super user friendly. From open box to in car and working it took about 15 min.

[frenzy757]

awesome write up!

[aroundelway]

For anyone looking for a cheaper alternative to the garmin, Track Addict is an inexpensive app that works well on your phone and uses its sensors and their data to mark the start and finish lines of most tracks. Buy a 20 dollar mount and you are good to go.

[ptgltw]

After this session in the paddock one of my buddies came up to me and said, dude that C8 driver is pissed at you.....me thinking hmmm wonder why....

He said, he is pissed and wants to know how your M2 CS is so fast

I think the second pic is me terrorizing one of the many GT4's in my run group...or was it the vette? I can't tell I'm so close

[ptgltw]

Existing the lower esses about the get up to 130 mph for the uphill esses.

That E92 sounded awesome and looked awesome.

[ptgltw]

There weren't many faster than the mighty M2 CS but this was one of them.

I held him off for a lap or two Wasn't for lack of trying...more like lack of super car

[ptgltw]

My friend in the M2 CSR. He was nice enough to keep giving me point by's

I do have 135 ish more HP than he does.

Modifying and tracking the M2 CS street car certainly makes it easier to sell the M2 CSR

[CarJunkie]

Originally Posted by aroundelway

For anyone looking for a cheaper alternative to the garmin, Track Addict is an inexpensive app that works well on your phone and uses its sensors and their data to mark the start and finish lines of most tracks. Buy a 20 dollar mount and you are good to go.

I use TrackAddict and their Race Render software….one note: I have a very stout phone mount, and the vibration makes the video hard to watch. iPhone has no video stabilization. I aim the iPhone camera at myself so I can watch my inputs, and use GoPro for the main forward view. Race Render can then sync them up with PIP.

[sdhotwn]

I went to the Garmin after using a full Race Technology system for years. The biggest gain is the ultra easy data review add visualization on the Garmin. I don't have to spend all night comparing traces on the computer to get insight. I can get useful information in minutes after a session with the Garmin. I also have found that the instructor does a good job of finding the weakest parts of your lap and drawing attention to it. Even if you are confident in the track and your lines it still seems to find a few good recommendations. It's also fabulous when starting at a new track. Some of the fastest approaches are not entirely obvious because of the tradeoffs for corners and linking etc. Speeds up the learning curve and reduces some of the trial and error.

For the money I've been very happy with it and even had a pro driver I was doing instruction with and several other professional instructors comment that it's great.

[Davil]

Originally Posted by CarJunkie

I use TrackAddict and their Race Render software….one note: I have a very stout phone mount, and the vibration makes the video hard to watch. iPhone has no video stabilization. I aim the iPhone camera at myself so I can watch my inputs, and use GoPro for the main forward view. Race Render can then sync them up with PIP.

Old iPhone? The new ones have incredible stabilisation.

Also, great stuff. I've enjoyed these posts. I have no idea what sort of person finds this car underpowered out the box!

[medphysdave]

I'm intrigued by this. Between the Garmin and the track connect kit there would be a ton of info.