Photo: BMW
If you’re a true gearhead you must’ve heard about Mercedes-Benz’s new S-Class Coupe. The Stuttgart-based company is now alone in a segment that was once dominated by BMW and therefore an obvious question arises: will we see an 8 Series revival?
Last year, when BMW unveiled its collaboration with Pininfarina, the world though it was looking at the next 8er, a coupe version of the 7 Series. All the clues were there: the chassis came from a 7er, it had 2 huge doors and the engine and overall design pointed towards an 850Ci model. However, almost 12 months passed and there’s still no word from BMW regarding such a move.
Will they let Mercedes handle this niche alone? Highly unlikely, especially since the Bavarians are currently expanding their line-up to cover every possible segment/niche/class possible just so that they could sell more cars. Furthermore, since they already have the name and legacy of the previous model at their disposal, it would also be very easy to reenter the race.
So, the only question that remains unanswered is ‘when?’. The G11 7 Series will come out somewhere in late 2015, early 2016. The new platform will bring great improvements, heading towards modularity and weight saving as much as possible. CFRP and aluminum usage will be extensive and a Coupe 7er would easily topple what Mercedes brought forward this week.
It would be the perfect moment for BMW to make a comeback for the 8 Series, the car that left quite a lot of people sobbing when it went out of production. It would also be a logical move, in line with the current trend over in Munich to cover all possible niches and continue fighting the ‘niche war’ it started. Will they do it, though? I surely hope so!
PS: If the 8 Series will make a comeback, will they also build an 8 Series Gran Coupe?
Will they let Mercedes handle this niche alone? Highly unlikely, especially since the Bavarians are currently expanding their line-up to cover every possible segment/niche/class possible just so that they could sell more cars. Furthermore, since they already have the name and legacy of the previous model at their disposal, it would also be very easy to reenter the race.
So, the only question that remains unanswered is ‘when?’. The G11 7 Series will come out somewhere in late 2015, early 2016. The new platform will bring great improvements, heading towards modularity and weight saving as much as possible. CFRP and aluminum usage will be extensive and a Coupe 7er would easily topple what Mercedes brought forward this week.
It would be the perfect moment for BMW to make a comeback for the 8 Series, the car that left quite a lot of people sobbing when it went out of production. It would also be a logical move, in line with the current trend over in Munich to cover all possible niches and continue fighting the ‘niche war’ it started. Will they do it, though? I surely hope so!
PS: If the 8 Series will make a comeback, will they also build an 8 Series Gran Coupe?
Google News