From the March/April 2026 issue of Car and Driver.
Lap Time: 2:48.7
Class: LL3 | Base: $108,275 | As Tested: $108,275
Power and Weight: 523 hp • 3729 lb • 7.1 lb/hp
Tires: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R
F: 275/35ZR-19 (100Y) ★
R: 285/30ZR-20 (99Y) ★
What goes through your mind as VIR's pit lane blurs by at 154.4 mph from behind the wheel of the 523-hp BMW M2 CS? Surely some ponder whether CS stands for "Competition Sport" or "Coupé Sport." I bet it depends on their age. Anyway, for me, it was simple: She was right.
Starting just shy of six figures, the M2 CS nearly claimed the title of quickest BMW in Lightning Lap history. Second to the 2023 M4 CSL still counts as high honors, especially when this 2-series lapped the Grand Course 1.6 seconds quicker than the far more powerful and expensive M5 CS. To pull that off, we had a little help from a real BMW racing driver, Laura Hayes.
The M2 CS's twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six sends 479 pound-feet of torque to the rear wheels, and that thrust requires careful application. Wheelspin puts on a show, but tire smoke is just time lost. Carefully dial in the throttle, and the 285/30ZR-20 rear tires mostly behave themselves. The Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R rubber generates confidence-building front-end bite, giving the M2 CS just over 1.0 g of grip in Turn 1. That confidence extends to the Climbing Esses, where the M2 averages 123.8 mph and remains locked to the tarmac.
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To help us nail the best lap possible, we spend an hour with Hayes, the quickest woman ever to run the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb; she has raced the previous-generation M2 there before. Hayes's guidance focused on restraint rather than aggression, pinpointing where early upshifts would pay dividends. At the Turn 1 exit, through the agonizingly slow Turn 4, tracking out of the constant-radius exit that reminds us of half a skidpad circle in Spiral, and over the downhill curbing in Roller Coaster were all places where short shifting minimized slip. Short shifting also helped us find 1.3 seconds in the Infield.
And while the base M2 requires constant vigilance over the rear end, the CS requires even more. Compared with the 453-hp M2 we ran previously, the CS opened an 8.2-second gap around VIR. The M2 CS rewards precision and patience. And it sure as hell helps if you drive like a Pikes Peak winner.
Austin Irwin has worked for Car and Driver for over 10 years in various roles. He's steadily worked his way from an entry-level data entry position into driving vehicles for photography and video, and is now reviewing and testing cars. What will he do next? Who knows, but he better be fast.
