rab
Well-Known Member
I haven't seen any threads posted on this news and it's quite old but I'll put it up anyway. Reminded me when I saw the post on the news of the new BMW green supecar due in 2012. Apologies if the news has already been posted.
This article appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald 5 Sep 2008;
Quote:
BMW 8 Series: new flagship due in 2010
German luxury car maker targets Porsche Panamera and Mercedes-Benz CLS with a new four-door coupe that is being built by BMW’s renowned M division. By JEZ SPINKS.
BMW’s M performance division has been commissioned to build a new four-door luxury GT flagship that is set to become the German car maker’s new 8 Series.
The new four-door coupe-style gran turismo will be based heavily on BMW’s 2007 Shanghai motor show Concept CS, and will launch in 2010 as a rival for the Mercedes-Benz CLS3 AMG as well as the forthcoming Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide.
The M division is responsible for creating high-performance versions of regular BMWs, including the iconic 3 Series-based M3, though the new GT – called CS internally - will be the first non-M-badged car produced by the subsidiary.
“It will take a couple of years [to get the CS to market],” says BMW M president Ludwig Willisch. “The naming is not defined yet but it will not be an M car.
“It’s a car that doesn’t have any resemblance to the other cars built by BMW AG, so it was decided to give the project to us.”
The four-seater GT will be a large car at more than five metres long and is expected to be based on the underpinnings of the new 7 Series that goes on sale later this year.
M division’s involvement suggests the CS, however, is likely to have a significantly sportier chassis to ensure the handling is at least a match for the likes of the aforementioned Panamera. Willisch admits the CS “will need to be top notch”.
Aluminium and carbonfibre are likely to be used for the CS’s structure and body panels to reduce weight for increased performance.
A 6.0-litre V12 formed by adding two cylinders to the M5’s V10 is rumoured to be one of the CS’s engine options, though a smaller, twin-turbocharged engine could also be in the running.
Willisch has revealed that his M division is set to introduce turbocharged and downsized engines on future M cars. The next-generation M5 due about the same time as the CS is rumoured to be switching from its naturally aspirated V10 to a twin-turbocharged V8.
The original 8 Series two-door coupe launched in 1991 with a 5.0-litre V12, with the 850i followed by a 4.0-litre V8 variant called the 840i. BMW discontinued the 8 Series in 2000 owing to sluggish sales.
The CS is one of seven key projects BMW’s M division is currently working on. It’s keeping the subsidiary sufficiently busy that it has decided for now not to pursue its first mid-engined supercar since the 1978 M1.
Unquote.
This article appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald 5 Sep 2008;
Quote:
BMW 8 Series: new flagship due in 2010
German luxury car maker targets Porsche Panamera and Mercedes-Benz CLS with a new four-door coupe that is being built by BMW’s renowned M division. By JEZ SPINKS.
BMW’s M performance division has been commissioned to build a new four-door luxury GT flagship that is set to become the German car maker’s new 8 Series.
The new four-door coupe-style gran turismo will be based heavily on BMW’s 2007 Shanghai motor show Concept CS, and will launch in 2010 as a rival for the Mercedes-Benz CLS3 AMG as well as the forthcoming Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide.
The M division is responsible for creating high-performance versions of regular BMWs, including the iconic 3 Series-based M3, though the new GT – called CS internally - will be the first non-M-badged car produced by the subsidiary.
“It will take a couple of years [to get the CS to market],” says BMW M president Ludwig Willisch. “The naming is not defined yet but it will not be an M car.
“It’s a car that doesn’t have any resemblance to the other cars built by BMW AG, so it was decided to give the project to us.”
The four-seater GT will be a large car at more than five metres long and is expected to be based on the underpinnings of the new 7 Series that goes on sale later this year.
M division’s involvement suggests the CS, however, is likely to have a significantly sportier chassis to ensure the handling is at least a match for the likes of the aforementioned Panamera. Willisch admits the CS “will need to be top notch”.
Aluminium and carbonfibre are likely to be used for the CS’s structure and body panels to reduce weight for increased performance.
A 6.0-litre V12 formed by adding two cylinders to the M5’s V10 is rumoured to be one of the CS’s engine options, though a smaller, twin-turbocharged engine could also be in the running.
Willisch has revealed that his M division is set to introduce turbocharged and downsized engines on future M cars. The next-generation M5 due about the same time as the CS is rumoured to be switching from its naturally aspirated V10 to a twin-turbocharged V8.
The original 8 Series two-door coupe launched in 1991 with a 5.0-litre V12, with the 850i followed by a 4.0-litre V8 variant called the 840i. BMW discontinued the 8 Series in 2000 owing to sluggish sales.
The CS is one of seven key projects BMW’s M division is currently working on. It’s keeping the subsidiary sufficiently busy that it has decided for now not to pursue its first mid-engined supercar since the 1978 M1.
Unquote.
