DRIVEN: BMW 8 Series, Just A 6 With A Different Name?

Pretty much what I expected.

Looks great, sounds great, drives great for such a big car.

But the inside falls flat. What should have been an opportunity to deliver the elegance and craftsmanship of the 7-Series with a more dramatic and emotional design flair for BMW's range-topping personal super-coupe winds up being a simple generic vertical interior.

And again with the plastic buttons! The 7 has metal buttons, the 8 has plastic! 8 is higher than 7, this makes no sense!

As always, I'll reserve judgement until I see it in person, but I'm not terribly persuaded to "upgrade".

This is no different than when BMW cancelled the 3-series coupe and re-launched it as a 4-series (except it jumped two numbers). Few customers will be fooled and it will likely sell even less than the 6-series coupe since it will be more expensive.

I'm quite confident that it actually jumped up one number sir, not two.

6 series to 8 series / 8-6 = 2

This is BMW's reaction to the ultra luxurious Mercedes models that have made the BMW's look antique.

Yawn... the original 6 Series was breathtaking, the original 8 Series, revolutionary... this is a stretched 5 platform and what else? Its yet another Euro-Coupe w/a non usable back seat, a GT Coupe... ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.... I heard Cadillac was going to do a coupe similar to this, I hope not....

Big. Fat. Mustang.

Disappointing design, both interior and exterior

Nowadays, even Lexus looks more interesting and sharper than BMW.

The new 8 looks like a Mustang wannabe with a catfish mouth. A polar opposite from the original 8, which, I'll say, looks like a Kingsman.

BMWs first major sales failure.

It's just a 6 with Mustang cues renamed an 8.

I couldn't unsee the Mustang design cue's since reading this. I really wanted to love this car but now that the Mustang design reflects in it, my feelings towards the 8 are really hurt.

poor donnyfatcat, just stop by and pick up a Shelby.

whoever is responsible for BMW car design needs to leave period. This is an 8 Series ? Looks like a hyundai Genesis. Front end no different than a 2 series. rear end is so generic, interior is lame. Total disspointment

as a BMW fanatic im very disappointed in this. An 8 series was a way to showcase their talents in a halo car, this car to me is nothing more than a refreshed 6 series and it looks very nice for a redesigned 6 series, but when you go online and look at the old 850csi's , those cars were special !! this is good, but not great, and not even better than the s class coupe which is already like 3 years old . Fail .

Like it, looking forward to seeing the M8.

Why didn't they just build the concept?

Im waiting for the BMW front end body kit for the mustang. It'll look better, be a better car, and cheaper.

What a disappointment. Outside is nothing compared to the exquisite S-coupe or Aston Martins. Even the E coupe has a particular presence about it that is pretty captivating. This new 8’s exterior package is forgettable. The interior is much worse. It would look appropriate in a $40k car. It appears to drive pretty well so it has that going for it but even the engine note is completely uninspiring. The Lexus LC500 engine sounds outright sultry in comparison.

For a truly perfect balance of luxury, performance, and styling, I’d go with the E53 AMG Coupe. It’s too bad AMG isnt making a proper E63S coupe. The LC would be a good choice too but it’s stylng and space packaging leave a bit to be desired.

This 8-Series will be a complete sales failure for BMW. The vehicle lacks the presence and cushy ride of the S-Class Coupe. The interior is woefully cheap compared to the S-Class Coupe. The biggest problem is BMW thinks buyers in this segment and price range want sports car handling, which they don't. People in this segment want luxury, a cushy ride and a high quality interior. If they wanted a sports car, they would just buy a Porsche.

This will fail miserably for BMW.

I agree completely. The 8 Series should have been a large, comfortable, 4-place coupe with non-fastback lines that oozed luxury and gravitas. What we got was an awkward Mustang interpretation.