On June 15, the cat will come out of the bag. BMW is bringing back the 8 Series, and as you can tell from the countless teasers published in the past handful of days, the German automaker wants to be sure you know the big coupe is back in business.
Codenamed G15, the fixed-head coupe that serves as the successor to the F13 promises to be a lot better, more luxurious, and sportier than the 6 Series it replaces. In this particular clip, BMW takes its time to go through what makes the M850i xDrive great. Being slotted between the 850i and full-fledged M8, you could describe the M850i xDrive as an exquisite blend of performance and grand touring.
First of all, the 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 is tuned to produce 530 PS (523 horsepower) and 750 Nm (553 pound-feet) of torque. All that suck-squeeze-bang-blow is sent to the wheels by an eight-speed automatic transmission. And thanks to all-wheel-drive with an active rear differential, you can bet your two cents that straight-line performance doesn’t pale in comparison to the vehicle’s ability to carve corners.
Although it’s larger than the F13, the G15 in M850i xDrive specification is made to handle as best as possible thanks to adaptive suspension with active roll stabilization, plus four-wheel steering. BMW even goes to say the 8 Series is meant for the “gentleman racer,” but that’s PR mumbo-jumbo if you want an honest opinion.
The clip also offers a brief glimpse inside the luxed-up sports coupe, showing bits of the instrument cluster and infotainment system. There’s also a scene in which a man opens the hood of the prototype to look at the engine in awe, which is curious if you bear in mind the powerplant is hidden from prying eyes by a plastic cover.
Criticism aside, it’s not that hard to understand why BMW is so excited about the 8 Series. It’s been a long wait since the original went out of production, but from the looks of things, the newcomer is entitled to carry the 8 Series nameplate forward.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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