BMW
BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe: A svelte 8’er with four doors
Following last week’s leaks, we had a good idea of what the BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe would look like. Nevertheless, the four door 8 Series has now been officially unveiled.
The 8 Series Gran Coupe is the replacement for the four door version of the 6 Series and the first four door model in the 8 Series line up. While the 6 Series Gran Coupe was one of the best looking sedans in a coupe-like exterior, the new model looks even more exciting.
The front and rear of the car looks identical to the 8 Series coupe. It has a wide and low slung twin kidney grille flanked by twin-pod headlights. At the rear, it gets L-shaped LED tail lights and a sculpted boot spoiler. The rear bumper has an integrated diffuser and twin chrome exhausts.
Now, the interior of the 8 Series Gran Coupe is a ditto copy of the 8 Series coupe, apart from the two rear seats. The centre console houses a touchscreen infotainment system. The instrument cluster is also a configurable screen. The iDrive controller and the gear lever with its shiny crystal are also offered on the coupe and convertible models. In the back, you get three seats, however the person in the centre will have to hop over the rear centre console. Clearly, it’s not the most comfortable place to be in.
The 8 Series Gran Coupe comes in 3 variants – 840d, 840i and 850i xDrive. The diesel version is powered by a 3.0-liter, turbocharged 6-cylinder engine that produces 320 hp and 501 lb-ft of torque. The base petrol uses a 3.0-litre turbocharged 6-cylinder that produces 340 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque while the latter employs a 4.4-litre twin turbo V8 that makes a healthy 523 hp and 553 lb-ft of torque.
The 840i and 840d are available with all-wheel drive as an option, while the 850i is all-wheel drive only. The 850i xDrive is naturally the fastest of the lot. BMW claims that it will do 0-60 mph in 3.0 seconds!