DTM race car drivers Timo Glock and Marco Wittmann have abandoned their M4 racers for a day in order to give the 2015 X6 M SUV a chance on the Circuit of the Americas Formula 1 track.
Be honest now, would you ever expect BMW to put out a video that would make any of their products look bad? So what if Timo and Marco are used to the lightweight race-spec M4, and the X6 M is a behemoth on wheels.
They were going to make it look good regardless. Just so we get that out of the way. Now, as truth would have it, the X6 M, despite its size, is indeed a very capable sports SUV. We’re never inclined to think BMW is exaggerating when talking about their own cars, specifically because we know how good their cars are.
This is a 575 PS car that also develops 750 Nm of peak torque. It has a rear-biased torque split which makes it less inclined to understeer when the front loads up.
The BMW X6 M will also accelerate from 0 to 62 mph (100km/h) in 4.2 seconds, which is pretty much quicker than any non-Turbo and non-GT3 Porsche 911.
It was very interesting hearing Marco talk about high cornering speeds of up to 160 to 170 km/h and how surprised he was. As somebody who’s the reigning DTM Champion, we’d imagine that particular surprise was a very pleasant one.
The video also touches upon the fact that professional race car drivers are also influential in how BMW’s M Division develops their cars. It’s good to know that these cars are always a mix of precision engineering and personal preferences.
A race car driver will never willingly sacrifice performance, since they are always looking for faster ways of getting a car around a track.