BMW is returning to DTM, and well, of course they’ll have to prepare a new DTM ride for the show right? The company from Bavaria has lifted the covers off its M3 DTM Concept Car, which offers an initial impression of what the M3 DTM racer will look like when it lines up at the start of the 2012 season.

While the looks of the car will most likely change considerably up to its first race, the basic technical specs are pretty much set – among these, 480 hp with air restriction as per regulations from its 4.0 litre V8, which is mated to a sequential six-speed gearbox. Elsewhere, performance specs include a 0-100 kph time of about three seconds and an approximate 300 kph top speed.

There’s still a fair amount of work to be done on the car before it becomes the finished article. “Getting a new racing programme up and running is a bit like doing a jigsaw. New pieces are added almost every day, and we must put them together to create the big picture,” new BMW Motorsports director Jens Marquardt said. With the successful roll-out of the car comes a full test programme out on track next, as the development of the M3 DTM continues.

Three teams will be competing in the DTM for BMW next year, these being BMW Team Schnitzer, BMW Team RBM and BMW Team RMG. The exact allocation of drivers to the three teams will be made at a later date, though BMW Motorsport did announce Andy Priaulx and Augusto Farfus as the first two names of the driver lineup at the car’s unveiling.