Either the German calendar is a few days early for April Fool’s day or the Germans are preparing the best answer we have yet seen to the Chevrolet Lumina Ute SS. Trawling the internet this morning revealed these spy pics courtesy of M3 post (suspiciously clear and in focus) of a BMW M3 pick-up test mule being hammered around the Nurburgring.
BMW engineers are either taking the mickey out of the world’s spy snappers – as the day was the first official manufacturer test day at the famous German track – or there is a more relevant reason for this cutaway M3 coupe.
Speculation is that engineers from BMW’s M division are simply having a laugh, hence the smiles of the two occupants (though I usually have the same grim on my mug whenever I drive an M3). Others believe that there is a likelihood that the carbon-fibre shell and large load area are hiding more interesting underpinnings ie an electric drive system and that the quartet of exhaust tips is there to throw others off the scent.
An even more plausible explanation is that BMW is testing something even more interesting, but clad in a very discreet manner, at some other point at the track and that the M3 bakkie is a big game of “Look over there”…
Original story here:
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=501785