My favourite BMWs are the ones you can’t actually buy. Even if you see them at a BMW showroom.
A few months back, BMW Park Lane in London collaborated with Evolve Automotive. It was a great example of a manufacturer paying attention to the aftermarket, and getting involved with arguably the most important and loyal customer – the thoroughbred car enthusiast. I wrote a whole story about that, and you should check it out when you get the chance.
One of the cars Evolve had on display was their pride and joy G81 M3 Touring. The absolute honey of the modern day M-car line up, the M3 Touring gives us the family-sized mug of espresso with a shot of extra-hot tabasco sauce none of us really needed, but everyone asked to try. For science, of course.
The cynical trendy car journos – of which there seem to be many on this topic – got all brothers in arms and made bold claims that the M3 Touring was that car everyone wanted, but no one would actually buy. As it turns out, bizarrely, those who claimed they wanted one actually went ahead and bought one. The M division’s head honcho, Frank van Meel, went on record this past summer to claim his surprise for the demand of the M3 Touring, before grinning and telling us all they’ll be ramping up production to meet said demand.
So here we are. With the ambiguity around desirability cleared up, we’re now left with a great car being purchased by many. This opens the door to new questions though, such as ‘what’s the next BMW they’ll never make but everyone will want?’ and ‘how do I make my M3 Touring stand out from the rest?’
I think this it the cue for me to introduce Imran Arshad. Imran is the man responsible for Evolve Automotive and the owner of the M3 Touring you’re looking at here, making him the perfect specialist to help us answer the two questions outlined above.
Naturally, being the head of a large, successful aftermarket tuning company, Imran is unable to leave any of his personal fleet alone from the claws of the modifying bug. Initially Imran had an F90 M5 for everyday runaround duties – until it accidentally ended up becoming a 1,000hp machine destined for demo runs and R&D activities.
When the M3 Touring was announced, it became the natural, perfect candidate to take over the daily duties baton the M5 unintentionally needed to let go of. And so, Imran placed an order for one.
It was about here that the M4 CSL began getting teased by BMW: The third model to wear the iconic and awfully prestigious CSL (Coupe Sport Lightweight) badge on its boot lid.
You can see where this is going, especially so if you look at Evolve’s endless back catalogue of project cars from over the years.
In 2016, Imran and his team built an M2 GTS. Now, BMW never made that car, but using some imagination and bold engineering, Evolve designed and fitted parts the way BMW would have if they did. Adjustable rear wing and carbon fibre roof included.
So when the M3 Touring landed at Evolve’s workshop and BMW lifted the lid on the M4 CSL, the stage really set itself for Imran’s newest build. I’ve explored the unicorn mystique of the M3 Touring before here on Speedhunters, so naturally once something is eventually made available to you, you’ll then aim higher to try and pursue the next chunk of unobtainable OEM.
With the G81, that’ll be the CSL.
Evolve’s car features nearly all the visual adaptations you’d expect to see BMW to give the car if they were to make one: A genuine CSL strut brace under the bonnet keeping in a whole host of engine modifications I’ve listed in a spec sheet at the end of the post; CSL-style aero pin-striping you can see on the side skirts and front splitter; yellow CSL-style DRLs and even a red-outlined M3 badge on the boot lid.
Of course, the real one has a four instead of the three, giving us an insight into the attention to detail that went into getting the CSL Touring visuals on point.
The icing on the cake – and the most recent addition to the project – is the carbon roof from Alpha N, who were actually a partner team with BMW and involved in the carbon fibre side of the 3.0 CSL project. This was a major point in keeping the Touring CSL as close to the original BMW unicorn brief as possible.
Evolve’s journey with their CSL Touring isn’t complete yet though. They are currently waiting to fit a set of genuine CSL front hubs, which will allow them to set up the geometry the way a Coupe can be adjusted.
Hat’s off to Imran and the team at Evolve for helping the curious car dreamers like us see things the OEMs won’t sign off at those big scary boardroom meetings. With the way this Touring came out though, I’m sure they thought about it, even if just for a split second.
Michał Fidowicz
Instagram: candyshowroom
2023 G81 M3 Touring Competition xDrive
Engine: BMW 3.0L twin-turbocharged straight-six, Evolve Stage 1 re-map (580hp/590ft-lb), Eventuri intake system plus turbo inlets in matte carbon fibre, Eventuri engine cover in matte carbon fibre, CSF Racing heat exchanger, Remus titanium OPF-back exhaust, Awron exhaust valve controller, Downstar titanium engine bay bolt kit
Driveline: BMW 8-speed M Steptronic transmission, CSF transmission cooler, CS/CSL EDC/diff/traction/steering/transmission software
Suspension & Brakes: MSS Hybrid HAS suspension, genuine BMW M4 CSL strut brace
Wheels: Genuine BMW M4 CSL 827M wheels, 15mm spacers front, 12mm spacers rear
Exterior: Genuine BMW M4 CSL front grille, genuine BMW M4 CSL carbon fibre front splitter, genuine BMW front radiator guard, Alpha-N full carbon fibre roof, Alpha-N full carbon fibre bonnet, TRE carbon fibre front bumper ducts, TRE carbon fibre mirror caps, TRE carbon fibre diffuser, Motorsport+ CSL-style yellow DRLs, custom Skyscraper Grey paint by Quattro Coachworks, CSL-style side skirt pinstripe, Evolve custom 3D-printed badge, M3 CS rear badge
Interior: Fiona Red extended leather comfort trim, TRE carbon fibre seat back covers,MAED magnetic billet shift paddles
Keyword: Evolved: Giving BMW’s G81 M3 Touring The CSL Treatment