Two more 8ers are incoming.
While the dust may have only just settled around BMW’s unveiling of its flagship 8-Series coupe, it seems the company has no intentions to let the 8er badge settle. Instead, in the next few months, the Munich-based company will seek to expand the 8 lineup to include two new body styles, as patent filings in Brazil have revealed.
While hardly a surprise, the patents show a couple of new variants to the 8er lineup that will pick up where the now-discontinued 6-Series left off. A convertible will likely follow first, after which a 8-Series GranCoupe will burst onto the scene. Neither of the two cars show much variance from the 8-Series coupe that we’re all getting familiar with though, with similar front-end treatments (save for an additional slat across the corner air ducts on the GranCoupe).
The rear, which unfortunately has not yet been seen, is where the greater variance likely lies. The cabriolet has likely had to make some rear-passenger-space sacrifices to make room for the folding fabric top, while leaving enough boot space to be usable. The rear deck will also likely be reworked to accommodate a fixed third-brake light too, since it can no longer be mounted on the rear windscreen.
The GranCoupe also carries a few changes over the M8 GranCoupe concept that we saw earlier this year, which has surprised us to say the least. The roofline appears to taper less, which is perhaps not as dramatic to look at but certainly offers a headroom advantage. Further, the Hofmeister kink seems to be nearly upright on the 8GC, which looks almost Volvo-like in execution. Odd.
The 8-Series is expected to hit the roads with the same drivetrain options as offered with the Coupe. As such, launch models should arrive in 840d (3.0L I-6, 235kW/680Nm) and 850i guises (4.4L V8, 390kW/750Nm), with both cars benefitting from xDrive all-paw traction and an 8-speed ZF gearbox.
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