- BMW continues testing the new 8 Series which will debut at the Le Man Endurance race next week.
- The 8 Series will get a top-spec M850i with 522bhp 4.4-litre V8 and xDrive.
- The grand tourer resurrects the moniker after an absence of 19 years.
BMW has officially announced the world premiere of the 8 Series Coupe at the 2018 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race. The flagship grand tourer was spotted testing hard at the Nurburgring once again ahead of next week’s debut.
The original 8 Series was discontinued back in 1999. The new 8 Series will replace the 6 Series in the BMW line-up. It will have a coupe, cabriolet and a Gran Coupe (four-door coupe) body style apart from the fully-blown M8 models. It will be based on the new CLAR platform, thus sharing it with the new-generation of BMWs. The production-ready test mule reveals the 8 Series to be the size of the 7 Series with sensuous coupe lines and an aggressive styling. The top-spec variant (spotted here) will be the M850i, which will be one spec lower than the fully-blown M8.
Under the hood, the M850i will be powered by a new 4.4-litre V8 producing 522bhp in the top-spec M850i trim. This new V8 has increased the car´s power output by 68bhp and 100Nm. The torque figures now read 750Nm and it is available from as low as 1800rpm. Transmission duties will be handled by the same eight-speed Steptronic unit offered elsewhere in the BMW family.
BMW says that the 8 Series is in its final stages of development. The Bavarian carmaker claims to have rested the coupe during winter drives in Arjeplog in Sweden, at the BMW Group’s proving grounds in Miramas in the South of France, and at the testing centre on the Nurburgring Nordschleife.
The 8 Series will go on sale in late 2018 or early next year. The 8 designation of the Coupe will become the flagship vehicle in BMW’s line-up just like the Z8 before or the current i8. The 8 Coupe will spearhead the 8 Series family with a convertible, a Gran Coupe and the M8 series to follow suit in coming years.
