Here's A Better Look At BMW's New 8 Series

Check out the near-as-damnit production version of the BMW 8 Series. Officially labelled as a concept, we nonetheless know that the two-door 8 Series is coming, so this just seems to be the company dipping its mega-coupe toe into the water to gauge the public’s reaction.

They’ve got nothing to worry about as far as we’re concerned. It’s a bit pretty, even taking into account the front kidney grille that must be about the size of a small country. Aimed squarely at the S-Class Coupe, the 8 Series is slated to be BMW’s most luxurious and expensive two-door car ever. It might even show the 7 Series a thing or two on the tech front, thanks to advances made in the years between their respective launches.

It’s heading for production in more or less this state next year, bar one or two minor tweaks to ease the mass-production process. Auto Express quotes BMW’s Chairman of the Board of Management, Harald Kruger, as saying:

“The number 8 has always represented the pinnacle of sports performance and exclusivity at BMW. The forthcoming BMW 8 Series Coupe will demonstrate that razor-sharp dynamics and modern luxury can go hand-in-hand.”

Naturally the ‘concept’ rides on hefty 21-inch wheels and uses the same chassis architecture as the 7 Series (and 5 Series), which we already like a lot not just for its comfort but its uncanny ability on a winding road to shrink around the driver and even feel like it loses a couple of hundred kilos. Expect four-wheel drive to be a common feature, possibly even in the switchable form seen in the new M5.

The 8 Series will have a broad spread of engines when it gets here, with the platform engineered to accept everything from a 2.0-litre four-pot to a 6.6-litre V12. We hope it gets the latter, obviously. We understand that BMW has trademarked various model designations, including 825, 830, 835, 845 and 850, although, as we all know, those numbers no longer correlate to engine size.

BMW’s quad-turbo diesel might make also the cut, to add a lower-CO2 option for people who care about that when spending what could be six figures on a car that isn’t a Tesla. Horses for courses, etc. We’ll bring you performance and spec details as and when they’re confirmed.