IT TOOK $27K IN UPGRADES FOR THIS BMW M2 TO SET THE SLIMMEST 'RING RECORD EVER

Nürburgring Nordschleife records are falling frequently in 2026. For example, the Xiaomi YU7 GT electric SUV became the first vehicle to set a driverless lap around the course, and the Volkswagen Golf GTI Edition 50 became the quickest front-wheel-drive machine to lap the circuit. In addition, Manthey Racing proved that a less-powerful car could be extremely impressive by beating the Ford Mustang GTD, despite the modified Porsche 911 GT3 RS having a 300-horsepower deficit compared to the Mustang.

Now, BMW is taking the opportunity to sharpen the M2 so that it can achieve a new 'Ring record. The car with the new M Performance Track Kit lapped the Nordschleife in 7 minutes 25.068 seconds to achieve the new compact class title around the circuit. The time was just enough to beat the BMW M2 CS that held the previous record of 7:25.534 – a difference of just 0.466 seconds. At the time, the M2 CS was the first vehicle in the compact class to beat the 7:30 mark. BMW M test engineer and professional racing driver Jörg Weidinger was behind the wheel for both record-setting runs.

Watch The BMW M2 Set A Record

The BMW M Performance Track Kit is available to retrofit for anyone who already has an M2 Coupe. The company is aiming the parts at owners who take their cars to track days, but the mods keep the vehicle road-legal. The kit costs 23,500 euros, roughly $27,000 at current exchange rates.

A BMW spokesperson confirms to CarBuzz that the Track Kit is coming to the United States later in the year. The company isn't announcing pricing for this market yet.

Race-Ready Parts For The Road

The M Performance Track Kit includes a manually adjustable, carbon-fiber front splitter. There's also a scoop beneath the front upstream engine oil cooler to optimize heat dissipation. Wheel arch diffusers increase downforce over the front axle. The most obvious new component is the manually adjustable swan-neck rear wing with an integrated brake light. In total, the pieces produce an additional 441 pounds of downforce across both axles at 124 miles per hour.

BMW engineered the parts to comply with the specific requirements of German regulations. The front splitter can tuck away. The rear wing has a Street Mode, where it's over the trunk lid, or a Race Mode that slides the piece two inches rearward, but isn't allowed for road use.

The kit also overhauls the suspension by including BMW's Through-Rod Damper System. This application is the first time that BMW is offering these parts on a road-legal vehicle, after previously only using them in motorsports. They can lower the car by up to 0.8 inches and have infinitely variable height adjustment in that range. Every corner has 14 clicks each for high- and low-speed compression damping, and 14 clicks each for high- and low-speed rebound damping.

The quicker time around the Nordschleife is more impressive considering that the Track Kit doesn't add any extra power to the M2. In contrast, the M2 CS has an extra 50 horsepower and weighs 77 pounds less. The new package's additional downforce and improved suspension are enough to make up for this deficit.

CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters:

Like Manthey Racing, the BMW M division has found that achieving a better time around the Nordschleife takes more than just adding more power to the engine. Sharpening the handling makes a big difference, too.

However, we wish the team that determines Nürburgring records would consider more stringent requirements when awarding titles. The M2 with the M Performance Track Kit is less than half a second quicker around the 12+ mile circuit than the M2 CS. Over such a long distance, a fraction of a second makes a minuscule difference that can easily be accountable to the driver, not the car.

Plus, the Track Kit-spec M2 isn't road legal in Germany in its record-setting form because the splitters have to deploy to make additional downforce on the track. So is this really a proper record?

Source: BMW via YouTube

2026-07-08T04:24:32Z