00:00 Hi guys, Chris here.
00:01 We're at the Car Expert Test Track,
00:02 Queensland Raceway today,
00:04 and we are testing the BMW M8 Competition.
00:07 This thing is an absolute weapon.
00:09 460 kilowatts, 750 new metres of torque.
00:12 It's gonna be pretty exciting around the track.
00:13 I can't wait to see what sort of numbers it will do.
00:15 (car engine roaring)
00:19 All right, initial impressions.
00:21 Let's have a look at this on the out lap.
00:25 Seating position is really good.
00:27 Super comfortable.
00:28 I really like how low I can get.
00:30 Visibility doesn't seem like a big problem at all.
00:33 I really like being down low and sitting back,
00:36 angled back a bit.
00:37 That's sort of a race car feel for me.
00:39 I don't wanna be too high
00:40 and feel like I'm on top of the car.
00:42 Steering wheel feels a little bit big.
00:43 I'd rather a slightly smaller wheel.
00:45 Just gives me a little bit more feel,
00:47 a little bit more control.
00:48 I just feel like I don't have a great grip on it,
00:50 but I do love the M1 and M2 red buttons on the wheel.
00:53 They look awesome.
00:54 And it's great to be able to choose
00:55 what sort of settings you had and easy select them.
00:57 So sort of preset everything,
00:59 can choose traction control on and off,
01:02 which sports suspension setting or engine setting,
01:04 and you can pre-map all that.
01:06 Steering feedback there is a little bit light.
01:09 It'd be interesting to see at speed how that responds.
01:13 Just like a little bit more weight in the wheel normally.
01:16 The car's also pretty heavy, 2.3 tonne basically.
01:20 So that's gonna take some stopping
01:22 at the end of a straight,
01:23 especially when a car does zero to 100 in 3.2.
01:26 So at the end of the straight here,
01:27 we're gonna be moving.
01:29 I had a few attempts to get the best zero to 100 time
01:31 that I could.
01:31 In the end, I only managed 3.8 seconds,
01:33 which is a little bit disappointing,
01:35 but it was a really hot day and the track was a bit dirty.
01:37 So I'm sure that affected the result.
01:39 Start to build up the speed a bit now.
01:42 Feels pretty stable.
01:45 The platform feels good.
01:47 You can feel the weight over there on the outside,
01:49 but not too bad, but that engine is solid.
01:53 Steering's actually pretty nice.
01:54 Even though it's light,
01:56 I get a good feeling of precision
01:58 so I can sort of choose where I wanna be on the track
02:00 and that's the most important thing.
02:02 Let's test these brakes.
02:04 Pretty solid, but you do notice the weight
02:09 just not quite pulling up.
02:11 All right, let's try a hot lap.
02:13 Good exit here.
02:15 Use the all-wheel drive off the corner.
02:19 Even the traction control's coming on then.
02:20 Let's see how this goes.
02:22 (engine revving)
02:25 (engine revving)
02:27 (engine revving)
02:30 (engine revving)
02:33 (engine revving)
02:38 (engine revving)
02:47 (engine revving)
02:58 (engine revving)
03:28 All right, so finally got a decent lap in at the end.
03:31 It was actually pretty hard work.
03:33 It's a hot afternoon here at Queensland Raceway,
03:35 so I'm sure that affected the time a bit.
03:38 We got down to a 57.3.
03:41 I think on a cold morning,
03:42 this car would definitely be quicker,
03:44 but hot afternoon, you lose some time for sure.
03:48 It was a handful, but pretty impressive engine-wise,
03:51 performance-wise.
03:52 I had to be quite aggressive with the car,
03:54 but a few times I lost the rear as well
03:57 and struggled to maintain stability.
03:59 Just being such a big, heavy car,
04:01 I'd say is my biggest criticism,
04:02 and that's part of the package.
04:03 That's the sort of vehicle it is.
04:05 It's not an entirely track-focused race car.
04:08 It's more of a grand touring car,
04:10 and it ticks those boxes,
04:12 but I have to say, for a big car,
04:14 mid-corner stability was actually really good.
04:16 So BMW have nailed that part of it.
04:19 Engine, huge power.
04:21 Coming off the last turn here,
04:24 it's almost like you've got a slight four-wheel drift,
04:26 which is pretty cool.
04:27 Braking is great, super consistent,
04:29 but just difficult to really nail,
04:32 especially down the main straight into turn one,
04:35 to have the confidence to know exactly
04:36 where the car was gonna end up.
04:38 I was a little bit nervous each time,
04:40 just couldn't quite place the car exactly where I wanted,
04:43 and I guess just with that 2,300 kilograms
04:47 of energy going forward,
04:48 it was hard to place it exactly where I wanted,
04:50 and I just sometimes got a little bit of push,
04:52 sometimes had a little bit of oversteer,
04:54 and that just made it a little bit difficult
04:57 to get a perfect lap.
04:58 I think there's a bit more time in it,
05:00 but on a colder day, it would definitely be a quicker car.
05:03 The colder air would help the tyres,
05:05 help the turbos, build a bit more power as well.
05:08 And funny I say that, even though it's got 460 kilowatts,
05:12 because the traction is so good
05:13 with the all-wheel drive system, the xDrive,
05:16 it could actually handle more power
05:17 and even a bit more torque.
05:19 Everything else, no complaints.
05:21 The gear shifts were super smooth and quick.
05:24 The pedal was nice and firm.
05:25 Overall, a pretty impressive car,
05:28 but a tough thing to get around a circuit, that's for sure.
05:32 So there you go, the BMW M8 Competition.
05:37 That is a beast of a car and a handful on the track.
05:40 Wasn't easy to get a lap time out of there,
05:42 but 57.3 in the end is not bad.
05:44 On a cooler day, you're gonna see a quicker time.
05:46 To get the most out of this car,
05:47 you've gotta be pretty careful.
05:49 There's a lot of weight going around there,
05:51 so over-committing the corners
05:52 is only gonna cause trouble.
05:54 So be careful there.
05:55 You've got the all-wheel drive system,
05:56 so use that, use the maximum of that
05:58 when you're exiting the corner.
05:59 Use the grip, use the traction,
06:01 and then use that awesome engine,
06:02 that V8 twin turbo off the corner.
06:04 That's where your time is.
06:05 Get the car turned and fire it out of the corners.
06:08 It's a big car, so be patient.
06:10 Thanks again for watching, guys.
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06:24 Take care and I'll see you again next time.
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