Photo: Rain Prisk
The new BMW 8 Series, which marks the eagerly anticipated return of the badge, together with the arrival of the dream-worthy M8, have yet to be officially introduced, as all we have so far are teasers, bits of info and spyshots. However, this hasn't kept the Internet from dreaming about the next generation of the 8er.
And this is how we ended up with the rendering above, which portrays a mid-engined 8 Series.
Sure, the pedigree is there, with the M1 that kickstarted the M car offensive back in the late 70s having used this layout. Nevertheless, despite the Bavarian carmaker's appetite for filling up niches, the company hasn't shown any intention of bringing such a model back to the showroom.
Even so, Rain Prisk, the digital artist behind the stunt, is currently going through a mid-engined phase, which is why he turned to Photoshop to deliver the pixel play sitting in front of you (think of this as the next M8).
We'll remind you that the artist has previously delivered other mid-engined transformation, with these targeting the Nissan GT-R and the Dodge Viper.
Of course, rumors about successors for both cars have been floating around and while the fate of the Viper is uncertain, the fact that Nissan is expected to develop an R36 GT-R hasn't been accompanied by any prototype sighting.
And while neither Nissan nor Dodge had announced competitors for the nearly-ready mid-engined C8 Chevrolet Corvette, we need to mention that the R35 Godzilla's retirement is imminent, while Gen V Viper production came to an end last year.
Of course, with the potential next-generation 8 Series theoretically landing after 2025, there's plenty of time for BMW to weigh the possibility of a mid-engined offering. Nevertheless, given the electrification revolution currently taking over established brands, such a halo car would have to arrive in either plug-in hybird or all-electric form, but this is another story for another time.
Sure, the pedigree is there, with the M1 that kickstarted the M car offensive back in the late 70s having used this layout. Nevertheless, despite the Bavarian carmaker's appetite for filling up niches, the company hasn't shown any intention of bringing such a model back to the showroom.
Even so, Rain Prisk, the digital artist behind the stunt, is currently going through a mid-engined phase, which is why he turned to Photoshop to deliver the pixel play sitting in front of you (think of this as the next M8).
We'll remind you that the artist has previously delivered other mid-engined transformation, with these targeting the Nissan GT-R and the Dodge Viper.
Of course, rumors about successors for both cars have been floating around and while the fate of the Viper is uncertain, the fact that Nissan is expected to develop an R36 GT-R hasn't been accompanied by any prototype sighting.
And while neither Nissan nor Dodge had announced competitors for the nearly-ready mid-engined C8 Chevrolet Corvette, we need to mention that the R35 Godzilla's retirement is imminent, while Gen V Viper production came to an end last year.
Of course, with the potential next-generation 8 Series theoretically landing after 2025, there's plenty of time for BMW to weigh the possibility of a mid-engined offering. Nevertheless, given the electrification revolution currently taking over established brands, such a halo car would have to arrive in either plug-in hybird or all-electric form, but this is another story for another time.
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