- Doors and Seats
2 doors, 4 seats
- Engine
4.4i, 8 cyl.
- Engine Power
210kW, 420Nm
- Fuel
Petrol (91) 10.5L/100KM
- Manufacturer
RWD
- Transmission
Auto
- Warranty
NA
- Ancap Safety
NA
Used car review: BMW 8-Series
LIKES
- V12 engine is silky smooth, V8 feels more alive.
- Standard kit runs to ABS, climate-control air, CD player, leather and power front seats, even on the first model.
- Great interstate tourer provided there's only two of you.
- Smooth-shifting auto gearboxes.
- Ergonomically pure controls and switchgear.
DISLIKES
- No airbags on early models.
- Less cachet than a BMW flagship model should have garnered.
- Tiny rear seat limits appeal.
- Running costs will be significant, especially if something major goes wrong.
OUR RATING: 3 stars (out of 5)
There's absolutely no doubt that BMW's 6-Series coupes of the 1970s and '80s were slick, desirable pieces of gear.
But just to prove that newer is not necessarily better, BMW failed to capture anything like the same level of public acceptance when its all-new spiritual successor for the 6-Series was released in the early 1990s.
The vehicle was called the 850i, and maintained a vague link with the original 6-Series but was never the aspirational vehicle the earlier car had been, nor would it ever achieve the collectability the original has.
What was wrong with the 8-Series? Mainly it was the wrong car at the wrong time. Just as the world was discovering that perhaps greed wasn't good, and some big corporations were heading to the wall, the 850i arrived, with a full complement of excess baggage. The bodyshell was a victim of its own idea of style, with limited headroom and a tiny rear seat that made the car the pinnacle of automotive selfishness: a two-seater.
Then there was the engine. At 5.0 litres, it was big, to be sure, and with 12 cylinders (in a V layout) it seemed like a real attention seeker.
Throw in the kerb mass of almost two tonnes (and the affect that had on fuel consumption) and you can see how the 850i was viewed as a tad too conspicuous by many.
The market voted with its wallet and the 850i was a genuine disappointment, sales-wise.
Arriving here in 1990, the 850i's underbonnet region was a technological wonder. A V12 was (and still is) quite exotic, and even though the BMW's engine used just a single overhead camshaft, its 220 kW of power and monster 450 Nm of torque were something else at the time.
OK, so those figures are either bettered or matched today by the $46,000 Ford Falcon XR6 Turbo, but in 1989, even the fuel-injected V8 Commodore produced just 165 kW.
A four-speed automatic was the most common transmission option, although a six-speed manual (another piece of exotica) was also available.
Apart from the sheer wilfulness of it all, the big coupe was not the supercar it perhaps should have been, at the asking price of $220,000. The looks of the car were hardly matched by on-road performance, with too much mass, too-soft suspension and a lifeless feel that masked its reasonable quickness in a straight line.
It was not rewarding or involving enough for that sort of money.
BMW heard the message loud and clear by 1993 when it launched the V8-powered 840Ci, which sold alongside the V12 version (which became known as the 850Ci) until 1996 when the V12 was unceremoniously dumped.
The V8 used a 4.0-litre engine that improved fuel economy to an extent (mainly around town) and was almost as powerful with 210 kW, thanks to double overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder. It was also available only with a five-speed automatic gearbox.
That car soldiered on until 2000 in an innings that was much longer than anybody had predicted and yet is still characterised by an image of what-might-have-been.
These days, the lack of buyer interest when it was new has meant values have plummeted, making an 8-Series coupe more affordable than it might have been had it been a hit when new.
Equipment levels are sky-high, and only the spectre of potentially enormous running costs (and the mediocre performance, of course) should put anybody off.
That said, the real bargains now are the early V12 cars, which can be had for comfortably less than $40,000, which seems crazy, given the original asking price. Those, however, are more of a gamble, and the pick of the crop - if the budget will stretch there - are later V8 cars that were just as good to drive and a lot less confronting mechanically.
The only problem is that a late-model BMW 635i Coupe with its classic, high-stepping in-line six-cylinder engine and manual gearbox, is a nicer thing to drive and is also held in higher esteem by enthusiasts. And it's cheaper. Not a tough choice when you think about it.
NUTS 'N' BOLTS -- BMW 8-Series
Engines: 5.0-litre V12/4.0-litre V8
Transmission/s: 4-speed-auto/6-speed-man/5-speed-auto
Fuel economy: City/highway (according to govt tests): 17.5 L/100 km/9.5 L/100 km (850i); 13.5 L/100 km/9.5 L/100 km (840i)
Safety rating: Not listed (howsafeisyourcar.com.au)
Insurance: $1335 (RACV, assumes a 40-year-old, rating one driver in a medium-risk suburb)
NEED TO KNOW
- Any roughness or lumpiness at idle in the V12 could mean big trouble.
- Even small repairs to a V12 are going to cost big dollars.
- Make sure everything works as it should.
- Electric-seat and sunroof motors can die for no apparent reason.
- Air-conditioning systems can give trouble with age and can be costly to fix.
COMPETITORS
Porsche 928 - The big front-engine Porsche suffers, like the BMW, from being perceived as less than the real thing. It's also a better long-distance tourer than a sports car, but a crook one will break the bank. (three stars)
Holden Monaro - For less money than a late-model 840Ci, you can get into a new, full-sized coupe that has more in common with the BMW in terms of how it works than you might think. Then there's the HSV version. (three and a half)
Mercedes-Benz 560 SEC - Engine is a gem but repairs will bite hard if they're needed. (three and half)
WHAT TO PAY
YEAR | MODEL | ENGINE | NEW | NOW* |
1996 | 840Ci | 4.0-litre V8 | $196,580 | $61,900 |
1997 | 840Ci | 4.0-litre V8 | $203,650 | $77,500 |
1998 | 840Ci | 4.0-litre V8 | $207,990 | $93,600 |
1999 | 840Ci | 4.0-litre V8 | $207,990 | $112,000 |
2000 | 840Ci | 4.0-litre V8 | $207,990 | $127,000 |
* Retail price at dealer as supplied by Glass' Guide.