BMW M850i xDrive Coupe 2019 review: Snapshot

The $272,900 BMW 8 Series Coupe is one of those rare occasions where it pays to pay less. The Coupe is a whole $9000 cheaper than the only other 8 Series variant, the Convertible, but it’s not only faster - at 3.7 seconds for the 0 to 100km/h sprint, as opposed to 3.9 for the drop-top variant - it’s much more beautiful to look at as well.

If you think 3.7 seconds sounds fast for a car as classy and ostentatiously expensive at the 850i, then you’re absolutely correct. The big Beemer’s brawny 4.4-litre, V8 twin-turbocharged engine makes a whopping 390kW and 750Nm, but those performance times are still staggering for vehicles that weigh more than 1.8 tonnes. 

This is a properly luxurious luxury car, with a merino-leather interior, beautifully shiny glass highlights on its controls and laser lights to help you see 500m down the road, in pure white light, at night. 

Explore the 2020 BMW 8 SERIES range

• BMW M850i xDrive 2019 review
• BMW M850i xDrive Coupe 2019 review: Snapshot
• BMW 8 Series 2019 review
• BMW M850i xDrive Convertible 2019 review: Snapshot
• BMW M8 2021 review: Competition Gran Coupe

The 850i xDrive might have super-car-like power figures - so much so that it needs to be all-wheel drive (or xDrive) to get all its power to the ground, rather than in the traditional, rear-drive BMW fashion, but It is not a snapping sports car unless you want it to be. Its default setting is very much as a classic grand tourer, capable of crossing vast distances in VIP comfort. 

The standard inclusion list is as long as Lebron’s arm and includes 20-inch M-branded light-alloy wheels, a tyre-pressure indicator, M Sport Brakes, M Sport Differential, Adaptive M Suspension Professional with Integral Active Steering, Active anti-roll stabilisation, Comfort Access including a kick-open tailgate, wireless phone charging, Soft Close Doors, BMW Crafted Clarity Glass Application, Driving Assistant Professional, Parking Assistant Plus, including 3D View and Reverse Assistant, Laserlights, a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a 10.25-inch Control Display, metallics, paint, merino leather upholstery, heated steering wheel and arm rests, and seats, a 16-speaker harmon.kardon sound system, a Head-Up Display and the hugely pointless Gesture Control.