What started off as a wild rumor is officially happening as BMW M boss Frank van Meel is confirming through this first teaser of a camouflaged car that the iconic 3.0 CSL is indeed coming back. It’s going to debut before the end of the year as the culmination of the M division’s 50th anniversary celebrations. 2022 has already been an eventful year considering we’ve seen the M4 CSL and M3 Touring, but there’s more to come aside from the already known M2 and XM.

According to our reliable sources, the modern equivalent of the 3.0 CSL will be based on the M4 CSL but with a few important changes. For starters, it’s expected to lose the eight-speed automatic transmission in favor of a six-speed manual gearbox while retaining the rear-wheel-drive configuration. The skilled folks from BMW M are believed to be dialing the inline-six engine to somewhere in the region of 600 horsepower. That would represent a healthy bump of 50 hp over the M4 CSL in which the whole shebang kicks in at 6,250 rpm.

There’s no word about the engine’s torque just yet, but we’ll remind you the S58 generates 650 Nm (479 lb-ft) between 2,750 and 5,950 rpm in the M4 CSL. By the way, you get the same amount of torque in the lesser M4 Competition as well. However, those two cars are sold exclusively with an automatic, so it’ll be interesting to see what sort of three-pedal gearbox BMW will use to handle that much torque provided the figure won’t change.

The manual- and RWD-only 3.0 CSL will feature a retro-flavored coachbuilt body, possibly taking inspiration from the 3.0 CSL and 3.0 CSL Hommage R concepts from a few years ago. The colorful camouflage with M cars of the past does a good job at hiding the design, but it can’t mask the large wing and roof spoiler.

Although the kidney grille is quite large, it’s less polarizing compared to what you’ll find on other M4 models. The dual round air intakes are an obvious throwback to the original 3.0 CSL from the 1970s. The “I like it rare” sticker on the hood denotes the vehicle’s limited-run production while the “6MT FTW” on the trunk lid confirms the car will have a do-it-yourself transmission. Oh, another sticker promises the car will be “insanely epic.”

As it’s usually the case with coachbuilt projects, production will be extremely limited. We’ve heard through the grapevine only 50 cars will ever be made and none will be coming to the United States. How much will the 3.0 CSL cost? You might want to sit down for this one as we’re hearing it’s going to set you back €750,000. If that’s the case, it will easily become the most expensive new BMW ever.

Source: Frank van Meel / Instagram