8 Series info.

[Rated M]

Bmw 8 Series
The BMW 8 Series (chassis code BMW E31) was a V8 or V12 engined 2-door 2+2 coupe built by BMW. 30,609 8 Series cars were built in total. A common misconception is that the 8 Series has been a successor for the original BMW 6 Series in 1989; instead it was an entirely new value proposition aimed at a different market with a substantially higher price point. A new 8 Series cost around US$100,000. 6-Series Production was stopped in 1999 and was not picked up again until 2003.

History
Design of the 8 Series began in 1984, with construction starting in 1986. The 8-Series debuted in Frankfurt at the IAA Auto Show in early September, 1989. Although it was originally meant to replace the 6 Series, the cars had very different character: while the 6-Series was a solid Grand Touring car, the 8 Series was aimed more towards the supercar market. It was the BMW's flagship car while in production. Over a billion German Marks were spent on development in total. BMW used CAD tools, still unusual at the time, to design an all-new body. Combined with wind tunnel testing, the resulting car has a drag coefficient of 0.29, a major improvement from the 635 CSi's 0.39. While CAD modeling allowed the car's unibody to be 8 lb lighter than that of its predecessor, the car was significantly heavier when completed due to the large engine and added luxury items—a source of criticism from those who wanted BMW to concentrate on the driving experience. From 1989 to 1993, the BMW 8-Series was sold as a 5.0 litre engine V12 850Ci. In 1993 it was joined by the less powerful 4.0 V8 engined 840Ci and 840CSi, before being scrapped in 1994 - leaving the 4.0 engine the only power unit available for the 8-Series. BMW 8-Series production ceased in 1999, but it was five years before its successor - the 6-Series - went in production. There were two higher performance variants the 850CSi and an Alpina B12 5.7. An automobile platform is a shared set of components common to a number of different automobiles. ... 1996 BMW 850 CSi The BMW 8 Series (chassis code BMW E31) was a V8 or V12-engined 2-door 2+2 coupe built by BMW from 1989 to 1999. ...

Models
840Ci: (1993–1999) 4.0 L M60B40 V8 engine used until 1996, replaced with the M62B44
850i: (1989–1992) 5.0 L M70B50 V12
850Ci: (1993–1999) Engine updated in 1994
850CSi: (1993–1997) 5.6 L S70B56 V12
External links
The BMW 8-series (e31.net) http://www.e31.net/
Club E31 http://www.clube31.com/
BMW 8 Series (E31) Official Registry http://www.8coupe.com/

[ANILE8]

I would have liked to see a ///M - 8 Series, now that would be horn.

BMW almost made it too but in their infinite wisdom decided against it and canned the project. The rest as they say is history. :rolleyes:

The BMW 850CSi is a detuned version of the M8 which has never been produced and remained a prototype only. The M8 should have been built in a consequently lightweight manner in order to be a 'Ferrari-Killer'. The specially developed 550 hp engine has never been used except in the prototype - of which only one exists. But with the support of McLaren the M8 engine was transformed into the power plant of the McLaren F1 super sports car. At the time of development of the M8 there was virtually no market for such a car, so the BMW manager cancelled the project.

The M8-Prototype is perhaps the best-kept secret of BMW. Absolutely no one must see it or can get information, by order from the general manager himself. Questions from motorsport magazines remain unanswered as well. The car is locked away in the so-called Giftschrank, which could be translated as 'poison-storage'. According to BMW it is hidden behind lots of boxes anyway and will be destroyed in the near future as the 8 series doesn't exist any more and neither a successor.


http://www.e31.net/pics/M8.jpg



http://www.e31.net/pics/S701.jpg

[Marc]

I would have liked to see a ///M - 8 Series, now that would be horn.

BMW almost made it too but in their infinite wisdom decided against it and canned the project. The rest as they say is history. :rolleyes:

The BMW 850CSi is a detuned version of the M8 which has never been produced and remained a prototype only. The M8 should have been built in a consequently lightweight manner in order to be a 'Ferrari-Killer'. The specially developed 550 hp engine has never been used except in the prototype - of which only one exists. But with the support of McLaren the M8 engine was transformed into the power plant of the McLaren F1 super sports car. At the time of development of the M8 there was virtually no market for such a car, so the BMW manager cancelled the project.

The M8-Prototype is perhaps the best-kept secret of BMW. Absolutely no one must see it or can get information, by order from the general manager himself. Questions from motorsport magazines remain unanswered as well. The car is locked away in the so-called Giftschrank, which could be translated as 'poison-storage'. According to BMW it is hidden behind lots of boxes anyway and will be destroyed in the near future as the 8 series doesn't exist any more and neither a successor.


http://www.e31.net/pics/M8.jpg



http://www.e31.net/pics/S701.jpg

Interesting story! I'm intrigured, sounds like secret world war kind of stuff. Hopefully they don't destroy it and one day declassify it, kind of like governments do.

[Rated M]

Now we all have to be killed James :eek:

try googling... BMW M8......................there's stuff there

http://lesterhein.blogspot.com/2008/06/bmw-m8-seriously-impressive.html

[dmurton]

An M8. I would sell my soul and certain body parts to own such a beast.

However, seeing that an M8 is only a concept, a B12 might be the 'fastest' 8 series we can get our hands on, if you could find one.

[Alpina SAM]

An M8. I would sell my soul and certain body parts to own such a beast.

However, seeing that an M8 is only a concept, a B12 might be the 'fastest' 8 series we can get our hands on, if you could find one.




B12 would certainly put a smile on my face. 416 HP would be plenty of fun! I don't know if any made it over here though :(