BMW pulled the covers off its latest sports car, the BMW 8-Series at the prestigious Le Mans 2018. The Bavarian manufacturer has left no stones unturned to ensure that the 8-Series is the new benchmark in the sports car spectrum.
The BMW 8-Series is a bold, striking coupé easily identified by its signature double kidney grille. At launch, it will be available with two powertrains: one petrol and one diesel. A twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 petrol motor sits under the hood of the M850i xDrive. Good for 523hp and 750Nm, the V8 sends the 8-Series to the ton in 3.7 seconds. The 840d xDrive employs a 3.0-liter TwinPower turbo diesel that makes 315hp and a healthy 680Nm. Both the variants use BMW's proprietary eight-speed Steptronic Sport automatic gearbox. Additionally, BMW has also optimised hydraulic control and developed new software to deliver sportier gear changes. In addition to the improved shifts, fuel efficiency and smoothness have also gone up.
The 8-Series has been an ambitious project for BMW, as the company wanted a car that was good not just on paper but in flesh too. While it may seem that BMW has thrown enough power at the Eight, the real magic lies in its chassis development. In its own words, the Bavarian manufacturer is offering “supreme agility, precision and poise expected of a top-class sports car.” Engineers at the company fine-tuned the new car's suspension, steering, and drivetrain to make the 8-Series as close to telepathic as possible around a track. That doesn't mean it can't lay rubber down a dragstrip in furious fashion.
The 2019 BMW 8-Series benefits from the M division's bag of goodies. Adaptive M suspension with electronically controlled dampers is standard, so is BMW's Active Integral Steering. Customers can also spec their Eight with active roll stabilisation. All the driver assistance and safety tech that comes to your mind are already aboard this car and plenty more that doesn't.
Interestingly, BMW claims it is plugging a market gap that exists between the Porsche 911 and the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupé. The 8-Series is essentially for the customers who want the exhilarating drive of a true sports car like the Porsche but also want coddling comfort inside, a la the Merc S-Class Coupé.
We sure are excited to see what the big Beemer has to offer that the 6-Series or M6 doesn't do already. But if the Eight itself looks so promising, what hell will break loose when the M8 comes out? This leads to another question: is there going to be an M8 or not?
