---
title: "Watch Rhys Millen Drift the Nurburgring in a BMW M4 CS in Pennzoil’s New Film"
description: "You may not know that the legacy company has started a neat little side hustle crafting Hollywood-caliber car films that showcase all manner of awesome vehicles, all pushed to the limit—and beyond, in a few cases—by race driver and drift master Rhys Millen."
date: "2018-03-06"
modified: "2018-03-06"
authors:
  - name: "Kyle Cheromcha"
    job_title: "Editor-in-Chief"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/kyle-cheromcha"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/19036/watch-rhys-millen-drift-the-nurburgring-in-a-bmw-m4-cs-in-pennzoils-new-film"
categories:
  - "BMW News"
  - "News"
  - "News by Brand"
  - "Watch This"
tags:
  - "BMW"
  - "BMW M4"
  - "Coupe"
  - "cs"
  - "Drifting"
  - "luxury"
  - "M4"
  - "Nurburgring"
  - "pennzoil"
  - "Rhys Millen"
  - "sports car"
---

# Watch Rhys Millen Drift the Nurburgring in a BMW M4 CS in Pennzoil’s New Film

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2018/03/new-bmw-ring.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

You may know Pennzoil as a fine purveyor of motor oil. You may not know that the legacy company has started a neat little side hustle [crafting Hollywood-caliber car films](<https://www.thedrive.com/watch-this/13489/new-pennzoil-ad-shows-the-dodge-demon-drifting-through-the-streets-of-pittsburgh>) that showcase all manner of awesome vehicles, all pushed to the limit and beyond by race driver and drift master [Rhys Millen.](<https://www.thedrive.com/watch-this/14396/learn-everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-legend-rhys-millen>) And the latest installment, *Escaping the Ring,* picks one heck of set piece to cap things off: The famous Nurburgring, and a hardcore BMW M4 CS.

The 460-horsepower [BMW M4 CS](<https://www.thedrive.com/new-cars/9450/the-bmw-m4-cs-is-a-limited-run-m4-with-a-power-bump>) is one of the most track-capable cars the company sells, and also one of the more focused cars on the market today. Powered by a riotous, twin-turbocharged straight-six engine, it's got a stripped-down interior with cloth pull loops on the inside of the doors and manually-adjusting seats. It also happens to be incredibly well-balanced, which is a good trait when you're trying to drift down one of the most technical racetracks in the world.

Of course, with Rhys Millen behind the wheel, [there is no try.](<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQ4yd2W50No>) Presented here a day ahead of its official premiere, *[Escaping the Ring](<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLXckEY22kk&feature=youtu.be>)* follows Millen as he makes his way from one of the Nurburgring's inner facilities to the Autobahn *post haste* in his incredibly yellow ride. What follows is over two straight minutes of the [BMW M4 CS](<https://www.thedrive.com/watch-this/9497/watch-the-bmw-m4-cs-tear-up-a-circuit>) speeding, sliding, and yes, jumping through the Green Hell. Toss on some headphones and crank it up.

https://youtube.com/embed/XLXckEY22kk

For the record, the official Nurburgring lap time for the M4 CS is 7:38, and while Millen's might have been a hair slower thanks to the extravagant smoke show, we can all agree that it looked way more fun. Millen told *The Drive* that the crew burned through a few sets of tires every day of the weeklong shoot, and described the car as incredibly fun—and much easier to drift [than the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon,](<https://www.thedrive.com/watch-this/13489/new-pennzoil-ad-shows-the-dodge-demon-drifting-through-the-streets-of-pittsburgh>) for what it's worth.

And though both Millen and Pennzoil executives referred to this as the "final" film in the series, the mysterious cliffhanger plus their all-too-visible winks make it likely we'll be seeing more in the future.

If you're wondering about any outtakes, Millen said he managed to mostly avoid any pucker-inducing moments—though he did confess that the jump ended up giving the front bumper a few battle scars that BMW wasn't too thrilled about. If you're looking for more on how it came together, check out [this extra behind-the-scenes clip](<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAdZMFadLxU&feature=youtu.be>) Pennzoil produced below, and don't miss the crazy Porsche 968 camera cars used to film some of the high-speed scenes.

https://youtube.com/embed/WAdZMFadLxU

## Author
Overseeing an expert staff of writers and editors from his lair in Los Angeles, Kyle shapes The Drive’s singular approach to covering the automotive industry and car culture. He’s been with the site as a writer since 2017, taking over as editor in 2019. On a daily basis, Kyle is responsible for directing The Drive's editorial news and car review content strategies, setting special coverage priorities, managing complex reporting projects, and ensuring what you read on the page meets our high internal standards for quality and trustworthiness. He is also the executive producer of The Drive's YouTube channel, which was relaunched in February 2024 to great acclaim and has accumulated over 14M new views in its first year back on the scene. He hosts a biweekly series on the channel where he breaks down fascinating and complicated stories from the automotive world.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/kylecheromcha.bsky.social>)  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/kylecheromcha>)  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-cheromcha-1550248a/>)