Renderings: BMW 8 Series Concept

BMW 8 Series Rendering

New BMW 8 Series – a car that many bimmer fans dream of, but so far the Munich-based automaker refrained from committing to a new generation of the iconic 8er. To wet our appetite for a BMW flagship or supercar, Turkish industrial designer, Ismet Çevik, created a series of renderings of what could be the new 8 Series, based on his vision. The computer generated images use some design cues from the new 6 Series Gran Coupe and the final product illustrates a true two-door Gran Tourer.

“It’s actually a real rival to the Mercedes CL. Because I think the 6-Series is not a full comparison to the CL-Class. I went a bit further from a CL, and also included Rolls-Royce and Bentley influences. It is definitely a 90′s legend 8-Series. High class, business, luxury and supersport. Created to be new legend for BMW,” said Ismet Çevik about his concept.

The original 8 Series began life in the mid-1980′s as a vehicle not to succeed the E24 6 Series but more to surpass it as a more expensive, faster, technology-laden vehicle, namely BMW’s future flagship model. With this newer, larger coupe, BMW intended to take direct aim at the tankish Mercedes Benz S-class coupes of the day and they only knew how to do that through sheer horsepower, displacement and, of course, as we left the Wallstreet Era of the 1980′s – price.

Debuting in September of 1989 at the International Autoshow in Frankfurt, the E31 850i came in at a price of roughly $100,000 USD, immediately making it one of the most expensive BMW ‘s ever produced at that point in time. The 850i came equipped with the 5.0 liter M70 V12 mated to either a 4-speed auto box or a 6-speed manual putting out approximately 300HP – so it was definitely quick despite it’s curb weight of just over 4,000 pounds.

The high-end 8 Series was the 850CSi that it came with a tuned S70 V12 engine good for 380HP mated to a 6-speed manual along with an M-tuned suspension, steering and brakes.

But the ultimate 8er was the one-off BMW M8.

With the brand focusing on sustainability and EfficientDynamics, it remains unknown if a true 8 Series will ever see the daylight, but here is to hope…

Source: Top Speed