When even the stock BMW M2 is such an eyeful, Manhart was always going to have to go all-in to make its version stand out, and the tuning firm’s new MH2 GTR II doesn’t disappoint. The German tuner is already offering an upgrade package for the G87 M2, but the MH2 560 revealed in February seems almost reserved next to the GTR II. While the 560 was painted a moody black that almost conceals the carbon fiber body modifications, the GTR II shouts loud and proud about its mods with a coat of deliciously OTT magenta paint set against champagne-colored Manhart decals.
Visual upgrades include a new hood trim,
bumper inserts, front spoiler and grille, all made from carbon, plus a huge
fixed rear wing and Alpha-N diffuser. There are also new side skirts and Raffa
Wheels RFS-02 Forged Series rims that measure 20×10.5 inches at the nose and
21×11.5 at the rear, colored to match the body decals.
Tucking those wheels deep into the arches
is a Manhart Variant 4 coilover suspension kit by KW that ought to improve the
car’s handling on track, where the stripped-down interior should feel equally
at home. Manhart has deleted the rear seats and added a roll bar –
champagne-colored, again – and Schroth harnesses.
No car that makes this kind of visual statement
can get away with a stock engine, or even a mildly tuned one. The M2’s
3.0-liter S58 six generates 453 hp from the factory and Manhart’s MH2
560 pumps out, as its name suggests, 560 metric ponies, which is 552 hp. But
the GTR II leaves both looking like three-cylinder city cars with its 705 hp and 850 Nm figures. Perhaps surprisingly, Manhart says all
it did to achieve those numbers was remap the ECU and add a carbon intake and
performance exhaust.
Customers looking to get a taste of this
package for their own M2 get to choose from several exhausts, the fully legal
TÜV-approved version consisting of sports downpipes, HJS cats, a stainless
steel system with valve-control and four matte black 100 mm tailpipes.
Those unbothered by clean air standards and a clean driving record, or living
in countries with a similar attitude, can go more extreme with a set of race
downpipes without cats and a DPF delete kit.
