The fastest BMW ever: testing the M8 Competition
This car accelerates from 0 to 200 km / h in the same time as most from 0 to 100. It also has four doors and 440 liters of trunk.
The genius Colin Chapman said: simplify and add lightness. But what was the perfect sports car recipe in the 50s and 60s doesn't work today. Now the recipe sounds like this: complicate, and add horses.
This M8 Gran Coupe you see is made with this recipe. It is the fastest four-door production car BMW has ever produced, in just 3,2 seconds from 0 to 100 km / h for the Competition version we are testing (some independent testers even managed to get off with it in less than 3 seconds ). His strength is such that he must warn people with a weak heart in advance.
But is it really a sports car? Correct answer: not at all.
As you can guess, the Gran Coupe is the same as a regular coupe, but with the addition of two doors and a length of 20 cm. There are several reasons for this abuse, and they go by names such as Porsche Panamera, Mercedes AMG GT and Bentley Flying Spur .
BMW's two-door 'XNUMX' is the best-selling car in its segment, and with great success. Now the Bavarians want to do the same with four-door grand tours.
Because this M8 is just like that. There is really a serious obstacle between him and the title "sports car": a weight exceeding two tons.
Of course, there are no particularly light ones in the premium segment now. Heated and ventilated leather seats, a 16-speaker sound system, radar and cameras are not weightless. The M8 easily surpasses two tones on the scale. And these two tons connected with the laws of Newton when they had to fight with the engine.
No surprises: under the hood you will find the same 4,4-liter twin-turbo V8 engine found in the M5 and X5 M. Specially modified by the M division, it is mounted on reinforced brackets, the turbocharger blades are larger, the exhaust valves are not vacuum. but electronic. Fuel is injected not at the standard pressure of 200 bar, but at almost 350. Two oil pumps ensure good lubrication, even under monstrous lateral acceleration.
All this is combined with an 8-speed automatic transmission and an all-wheel drive system.
Luckily, as with the M5, you can manually transfer all the power to the rear axle and have a good time. Just make sure it's wide around you, at least until you get used to the amazing power of these 625 horses. This car simultaneously accelerates from 0 to 200 km / h, and the family hatchback accelerates from 0 to 100 km / h.
If you really just switch to reverse and disable all possible assistants, the M8 can be downright dangerous. But otherwise, it is surprisingly mastered and even convenient. The competition version has a carbon composite roof and lid, which doesn't cut weight as drastically - but it does significantly lower the center of gravity, and you can really feel it in corners.
The steering wheel is accurate, although it does not give amazing feedback. The brakes are flawless. The adaptive suspension is heavily stiffer in Sport mode, but otherwise smoothly smoothes out the most significant bumps, despite the 20-inch wheels.
In fact, the M8 is a bigger threat to your driver's license than it is to your life. The car is so quiet, so smooth and yet so powerful that it draws attention away from the highway while you're already flying at 200 kilometers per hour. And the police, protesting for a pay rise, are just waiting for this.
BMW claims an average fuel consumption of 11,5 liters per hundred kilometers, but you can simply forget about that. There might be a person in the world who rides 90s down the middle lane with 625 horses under the hood. But we did not meet with him. In our test, which is not a benchmark for savings, the cost was 18,5%.
The back seat is not as comfortable and spacious as in the seventh series, but it is still enough to drive friends. The trunk holds 440 liters.
The interior is top-notch in terms of materials and workmanship. It is not as flamboyant and attractive as other competitors: BMW has long preferred a more restrained approach. A 12 "numeric keypad and 10" navigation are standard and are included in the M8 Gran Coupe's starting price of BGN 303.
But much more is not included: only the “Competition” package adds 35 leva. Add more carbon brakes, custom paint, seat ventilation, 000 meter laser lights. Replace your standard Harman Kardon audio system with a Bowers & Wilkins audio system and you will find that you are close to the 600 leva limit.
Practically speaking, you have to scroll all the way to buy this car. A "regular" BMW M5 will give you the same engine, the same possibilities, more space and 200 kilograms less weight, and will cost you about one hundred thousand leva less. But nobody buys cars like the M8 Gran Coupe for practical reasons. He buys them because they make him feel omnipotent. And he buys them, too, simply because he can.
