Motor cortex (M1) lesions result in motor impairments, yet how M1 contributes to the control of movement remains controversial. To investigate the role of M1 in sensory guided motor coordination, we trained mice to navigate a virtual corridor using a spherical treadmill. This task required directional adjustments through spontaneous turning, while unexpected visual offset perturbations prompted induced turning. We found that M1 is essential for execution and learning of this visually guided task. Turn-selective layer 2/3 and layer 5 pyramidal tract (PT) neuron activation was shaped differentially with learning but scaled linearly with turn acceleration during spontaneous turns. During induced turns, however, layer 2/3 neurons were activated independent of behavioral response, while PT neurons still encoded behavioral response magnitude. Our results are consistent with a role of M1 in the detection of sensory perturbations that result in deviations from intended motor state and the initiation of an appropriate corrective response. •Motor cortex (M1) is necessary for the motor response to an unexpected perturbation•M1 is not necessary when the same movement is carried out spontaneously•Layer 2/3 neurons are differentially activated by unexpected visual perturbations•Activity in layer 5 PT neurons correlates with behavioral responses The role of motor cortex in movement control is controversial. Heindorf et al. demonstrate that motor cortex mediates corrective behavioral responses to unexpected visual perturbations, paralleled by layer-specific cortical responses distinct from the ones during the same movement without perturbation.