The BMW M850i Gran Coupe is a handsome devil that packs a potent 4.4-litre V8 engine, but can this £100,000 car justify its price tag?

BMW offers one of the most extensive lineups of cars out there, with a vehicle to suit every desire and niche. From the hatchback 1 Series to the mammoth X7 SUV, it’s hard to find a segment that the German luxury marque doesn’t reside in. The new 8 Series is effectively a luxurious coupe variant of the 7 Series saloon, but not content with offering simply a black and white choice, BMW introduced the 8 Series Gran Coupe. It’s a rakish sports saloon, derived from coupe, that was itself dived from a saloon. Confused? Allow us to paint some definition into this automotive grey area.

Jokes aside, this body style makes sense for those who want those handsome coupe looks, but need some added practicality. In fact, BMW is so confident of demand for this car that it thinks Gran Coupes will outsell all other 8 Series models. If it’s looks are anything to go by, we’d be inclined to agree.

Escaping the wrath of BMW’s ugly stick, something that saw good use on the 2 Series Gran Coupe, its much bigger brother is certainly a looker. Our M850i test car, finished in a steely matte grey, successfully forges an alliance between muscular design and an elegant profile. Prominent kidney grilles and sculpted intakes scream athleticism, yet as your eyes wonder rearward, the creases smooth into curves that melt away into the tapering roofline. There’s a distilled aggression to this machine – a civilised but brooding character.

Open the door and slide into a supportively bolstered sports seat to find a cabin bathed in high quality materials. You sit low amongst banks of leather-wrapped surfaces, glossy piano black elements, and aluminium details. It is classic BMW in terms of excellent fit and finish, but the attention to detail is something only seen on 7 and 8 Series models. You are very much in the lap of luxury here, except for the way this cabin cocoons around you is far more akin to sporting models than a limousine.

A large 10.3-inch touchscreen display dominates the centre console, offering you access to all of the amenities you’d expect such as DAB radio and Apple CarPlay. The system runs the latest version of BMW’s excellent iDrive infotainment, and as someone who loathed its first incarnations years ago, I can not overstate how brilliant it is now. The user interfaces are intuitive, everything is logically located, the graphics are crisp and the overall operation is responsive. Something else about this system the deserves particular praise is that instead of you blindly stabbing at a screen when driving, BMW has retained its physical controls and added gesture control for quick functions such as volume. BMW iDrive really is the standard barer in terms of infotainment for 2020.

The Gran Coupe grants you the luxury of rear doors to clamber into the back. Just like in the front, some sculpted seats cradle you and you’re surrounded by plush surfaces. You also share the same ‘low in the chassis’ feel of the driver, something that makes sitting in the back of this 8 Series feel like an event for passengers. Legroom is pretty good and enables those in the back to stretch out, however, that roofline dramatically cuts down on headroom. If we are honest, adults over 6ft may feel a little hunched in the back over lengthy drives, but growing children will be perfectly happy. Well, happy unless they are the unfortunate middle passenger who has to straddle a large console – see this as a jump-seat for occasional use.

Open the boot to find a good 440-litres of space with the seats up, however, an Audi S7 Sportback and Porsche Panamera have larger boots with more practical hatchback openings. In terms of rivals with a saloon-styled boot, the aperture is about on par with a Mercedes-Benz CLS.

Push the starter button and a deep trill is emitted from the exhausts, announcing the awakening of the turbocharged 4.4-litre V8 under the bonnet. The car quickly settles down to a smooth buttery idle that’s scarcely audible within the cabin. Refinement is good overall thanks to BMW’s adaptive suspension and selectable drive modes. The ride on undulating Tarmac is compliant and composed, allowing you to sedately glide along without fuss. That said, the fetching 21-inch alloy wheels of our test car tended to thump into potholes and somewhat interrupt the tranquility. We’d maybe suggest the smaller 20-inch alloys where possible. Other than that, the M850i is a lovely place to relax and clock the miles.

Should you decide to accumulate those aforementioned miles a little bit faster, 523bhp and 553 lb ft of torque are at your disposal. While the 8 Series Gran Coupe weighs a considerable 2,077kg, the combination of xDrive all-wheel drive and that torque coming in at a low 1,800rpm fashions an incredible takeoff speed. This beefy Bavarian gets from rest to 62mph in just 3.9 seconds, something that provides quite the thrill for all onboard. As you are sucked back into your seat, the rumbling V8 soundtrack is pumped into the cabin for additional drama. It does sound a tad synthetic, but that’s the trade for hushed running at lower speeds. The Gran Coupe will growl on to an electrically limited top speed of 155mph.

As with all BMWs, it’s not what the M850i does with its performance in a straight line, but how it deploys it through the corners that impresses most. Keeping in mind the substantial mass of this car, it relishes challenging sequences of bends like a lion does its next meal. It hoovers up the road approaching a corner at an alarming rate, but the reassuring bite from the brakes soon arrests progress. In Sport Mode the steering is sharp and its nose is keen to home in on the apex thanks to the magic that is four-wheel steering. Like almost every new car, there is a lack of true connection to the road through the wheel, but this car’s agility for its size is nothing short of impressive.

Rounding a tightening bend really highlights how well tuned this BMW’s suspension is. There is a small amount of roll, just enough to inform the driver of where the weight is transferring, but there’s an overwhelming composure to how it holds itself. Begin to squeeze the throttle as you emerge from corner exit and the confidence-inspiring all-wheel drive helps effectively deploy all of those ponies. Pair all of this with a rapid a near unflappable 8-speed ZF automotive transmission, and there’s a lot of performance for the enthusiast to exploit.

There is a lot to like about the BMW M850i Gran Coupe. It’s a handsome devil, the torquey V8 engine is as relentless as an express train, and the tech-adorned cabin is a nice environment to cover ground in. However, there are some other considerations such as its rivals being more practical and cheaper in some cases. A Porsche Panamera 4S is a strong contender, and while it might be a little off the straight-line pace of this BMW, it takes the crown in terms of outright handling.

The £100,000 price tag is a heavy one, but it buys you a car with real charisma and plenty of punch. Sure, this Gran Coupe is a niche product, but it’s certainly one we can get onboard with.

Model tested: BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe M850i xDrive

Price: £99,910

Engine: Twin-turbocharged 4.4-litre V8 petrol

Power: 522bhp

0-62mph: 3.9 seconds

Max speed: 155mph

MPG: 24.6mpg (combined)

CO2: 260g/km

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