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Attention! This site is for information purposes only, does not promote any driving style and is not of a training nature. All cars covered by the descriptions and photos posted on this site are used in accordance with traffic regulations and with the highest security measures in order not to cause any damage to road users. The author of the blog is not responsible for other road users who in a manner inconsistent with traffic regulations or with the exposure to the health and life of others, will use vehicles on public roads and outside them.

„A hard boy"

The return of the legend, announced to all and to everyone before the beginning of 2018. Together with a good friend, we were sitting at a large table and began to wonder what will happen when analyzing internet rumors, gossip and car photos, which was only a guess and creation of the imagination like the literary work that has been written by the Stanisław Lem. Knowing the BMW company and its products, I guessed that "eight" will be a work created for sports with approval for use on public roads. Although I may be wrong and in fact that "Bavarian frenzy" will be a competition for the famous and well-deserved Mercedes S-Coupe? which as we know it is something on the car market, something like a huge, exclusive yacht optionally equipped with an enormous power generator, able at the captain's request, provide a good dose of adrenaline to all travelers on board. While speculation and discussions lasted I moved back to the 90s with my thoughts. In my childhood, there was no internet (at least in the Pomorzany district where I used to live) so I spent my time playing behind the "railway tracks" near the locomotive, on plots, on the pitch or in the basement in which was the legendary vehicle (because it can not be called a motorcycle or a scooter) Mosquito 2 or 3 I do not remember. The new BMW in those days was rather rare picture on the Polish roads, and when it appeared, it was better to get out of its driver's way and passengers traveling in greater numbers from the side. I remember it was not different with the 850i model. Basically I saw the car only in the picture of Turbo chewing gum, I knew, it had pop-up lights (what was the top of posturing), color of green or burgundy and the most often russian gangsters drive it. The E31 model was designed by Klaus Kapitz in the 80s. The car project cost the Bavarian concern over one and a half billion DM. Officially, in the years 89-99, just over 31,000 models of this car were manufactured. As for those times, model 850i was very technologically advanced because it had electronically controlled steerable rear axle, systems supporting the stability and traction of the vehicle ASC + T, electrically controlled seats with memory function or a photochromic mirror which was a rare finding in cars traveling on the European roads of the 80s and 90s. The eight series had one more ace up its sleeve, but actually under the hood.., drive units. The Bavarians focused on V8 and V12, which generated power in the range of 218- 550 horsepower. The latter engine was reserved for the M8 model, which ultimately was never in serial production due to too high costs of the production, it's a shame because the performance of this car on "paper" was impressive; 4.9s to the first hundred in 1990? Can you imagine?.. The only prototype that was created was said to have been destroyed. Later it turned out that it was not destroyed and the M8 went to the Bavarian museum, and what is the truth about this model? Where are the rest of the copies that allegedly never arose? I will tell you once where the cars got to and probably still get, which supposedly was never made :) One day parents of a buddy from the yard decided to take me on a trip to Berlin. Fantastic idea I thought and not because of the museum I was supposed to visit, but because of a completely different, more beautiful vehicles that could be found on the streets of the capital at that time, of the Federal Republic of Germany. In fact, I was not wrong, in the mid-90s there were Porsche, BMW, the latest Honda and Audi, Triumph and Kawasaki motorcycles in the center of Berlin. Briefly speaking, everything I had in the pictures of Turbo's chewing gum, for which I spent my pocket money in Mrs. Stasia's greengrocer's store, in my neighborhood. I was not in a hurry for this museum and I did everything to get there just before closing as much as I can but unfortunately time passed slowly, and the vision of unavoidable boredom was getting closer to us. At one point, a car showroom just jumped out of nowwhere on my way in which the ”Queen of Bavaria” stood at the exhibition, that is, the latest series 8. I already knew there would be a problem, a disagreement and a tense atmosphere between me and my friend's parents, since I was not interested in that museum, but in their ”eight series” ,which clearly indicated a conflict of interest. Forasmuch I was convinced that the one who will take the first bold step will win this competition and I was not wrong at all. I announced that I would be back in a minute and I went as fast as I could to the car showroom which was fortunately still open. Since it was quite busy inside, nobody paid much attention, that I have already sat in the inside of the newest 850Ci, not intending to leave it soon. Sitting behind the steering wheel of this monster right next to the glass site, I started imagination (because I could not start the engine) and I set off on a journey ahead, ignoring the rest of the world around me. This idyllic trip was interrupted by my friend's mom, who, like an officer of the Belarusian road militia, started knocking on the window, showing her teeth in a smile which really was a symptom of great nervousness and embarrassment by my attitude. Not wanting to make the situation worse, I got out of the car and followed them towards the museum, which I visited with the "Bavarian Beauty" in front of my eyes, not the remains of a couch from the office of some Erich Honecker. Since that time, my contact with the „eight series” was limited only to the road passing, until November 30, 2018, when I sat behind the wheel of the latest "eight" equipped with the proper engine with a capacity of 4.4 liters and 530 horsepower :)

I circled that car several times in searching of something subtle, delicate. friendly and romantic and you know what? A fairy tale about a Snow White can be romantic but not 850i. This car is a Predator and that's it. In my opinion, the body line is the mix of sports Coupe with a pinch of magical supercar dust. The Series 8 is long, low suspended and huge, and stuffed with steroids that were injected into the rear, large wheel arches and into a big bonnet and a door. The rear bumper is one large diffuser with sculpted, aerodynamic inlets and holes for the four ends of the exhaust system. The front of the car looks like ”an air crusher” equipped with a set of sensors which additionally measures its consitency in order to effectively break down each air molecule into an atom. This car is awe-inspiring and maybe that's why it just can not be disliked. I open the blue door of this Coupe and without hesitation I get inside.., but not behind the wheel, but in the backseat. Impressions? SPORT for two passengers. I already know that I won the bet with my friend. The 850i is not a competition for S-Coupe. These are two different cars. In the back seat of BMW, I did not feel like inside a limousine with a sporting touch, but rather like an intruder, who got into a zone forbidden for travelers. The rear seat is more comfortable than in the Mustang, but unfortunately there is not enough space for legs and head for a tall man with a height of 181 cm. I quickly got out of the back seat and took a seat which has been made by BMW especially.., for me. :) The position behind the wheel without question. I was really like one thing with the machine which is literally ready to take us on a life ride. A glance at the interior and I can definitely say that you cannot find anything in common with other BMW models, except the steering wheel and the panel on the center console where is the crystal gear stick and the iDrive control knob. The rest is new designed and made with care for the smallest details.., for sure? Unfortunately, new models often suffer from ”childhood diseases” which are usually removed on the occasion of the first facelift after about two years from the car premiere. Does the new 8 series get sick too? In my opinion, it suffers from a deficit of several euros, for which you can equip your car with better quality buttons and switches. The first thing that caught my eye is a plastic element which is used to control the passanger's seat in a horizontal position. The plastic is cheap and you can feel it under your fingers, in addition you can see its unfinished upper edge. Pressing the Auto Hold button the traction control is turned on, and to make matters worse, all the buttons on this panel work like the keyboard of an old Nokia cell phone (we press the key without a characteristic click sound). It turned out that the panel was factory damaged and the service had to replace it after a week of car use. Poorly, because where is the quality control department of the car parts in the factory? Where is the final product inspection department, a product which is the car worth 150000 thousand Euro? Well, the economy is thriving, the car sales huge, the market's demands exceeds production capacity, but.., whether our client cares about it, the client who has to pay for the vehicle as much as for two apartaments.., furnished and equipped apartments. Fortunately, the whole is a classic, good, strong and beautiful BMW. The appearance of the central display (tachometer and speedometer) sets completely new trends in the design of driver information panels. Personally, I get the impression that the mere indication of speed and rotation has gone to the background and has been replaced by a huge tablet, where we can find literally everything that your heart desires, to see while driving. I decided to switch most of the indications on the display and here's what I saw. The arrow of the speedometer and tachometer protrudes shyly from the black abyss of the monitor trying to determine the speed and turnover, leaving a characteristic red streak around itself. I wrote "trying" not coincidentally. The speedometer is initially calibrated at 20 km/h, then every 40 km/h, and at the end every 60 km/h which means that determining the actual speed between 140 and 200 km/h based on the speedometer is only likely. Of course, an electronic clock comes with help which will show such speed in kilometers as well as in miles. If we like gadgets a lot, then we can turn in the same time on the map indication, road sign recognition system, radio stations with a nice lady's face with headphones on, who occupies almost one third of the display, overload indicator, power and torque counter used while driving, on-board computer or telephone. Fortunately, with one click you can turn it all off and have peace of mind, looking only at the speedometer, tachometer, M-Power emblem with the inscription 850i, driving mode, gear and a few other things that do not interfere with driving the car. I really know that electronics is the future and so soon the counters in every car will look like this, but is it really impossible to leave a touch of classics combined with the virtual reality of the 21st century? It is possible, you just have to want it. Take a look at the cockpit of the latest Panamera and judge for yourself whether it is possible... The reversing camera is a very useful thing and along with the rangefinder in the package? Great, and respect for BMW. Going back we can see the distance from the obstacle, expressed in meters. The touchscreen monitor on the console looks fine, likes touch and does not irritate. The new Menu is just as intuitive as previous ones, nothing more nothing less, real hit. The functions we find are not particularly different from those found in other luxury German cars. Conventionally, the lighting settings, the sound, driving modes, display, air conditioning, the vehicle itself, as well as a few details such as sport indicators and drive distribution and ??? :) The BMW Store with applications that we can buy. Such App Store is unfortunately still poorly developed. If we still do not have enough gadgets, we have a Gesture Control function. It is nice if you want to turn down or make a radio louder or change the channel. There are few more gestures, but I have not used them them and I do not even know what they are used for.

"The New Epoch"

I press the Start and hear the ”Predator” announces that, ”he” is ready to hunt. The sound of the engine is loud, you can hear power and strength, which is what I expected from the 4.4- liter motor and 530 horsepower. I fasten the seat belt.., well, in order to fasten it you have to reach back with your right hand, without a seat belt handover is a bit troublesome. I grab the crystal gear knob, turn on Drive and what we have here? Complaining is over since the car from the first moment exerts positive feelings on the driver. The 850i is comfortable, in my opinion it is something between the six Gran Coupe and the seven series, so it is good. We don't feel the discomfort of the sports car but it is still far from the ”seventh” couch however you can feel the car is seriously heavy. While driving in EcoPro mode, we can still hear the engine work, and every harder press of the gas causes the Eco mode to fall apart and ”the Predator” takes over immediately. The power is always and everywhere regardless of the driving mode. Any delay on the gearbox, some defects or annoying situations? NOT in this car. The eight-speed Steptronic Sport transmission creates the perfect whole with the engine and I absolutely didn't feel any failure or lack of initiative from one side or the other while driving. I have been in this EcoPro mode for a longer time I look at the average burning indication and come to the conclusion that it cannot be better. The 13.2 liters of gasoline per hundred kilometers within the city is really a revelation, taking into account the parameters of this car. Only is it a car created just for economic rolling? As someone prefers, but I turn the Sport Plus. The steroids have been applied. The sound of the engine became extremely loud, it shoots from the exaust pipe at low speed (these shoots are like kicking on a metal bucket), the gearbox starts to jerk slightly when changing, so it got sportier. I drove onto the highway and pressed the gas firmly, any impressions? A huge run, and no jokes. I will give you an example; driving a regular car with a bit stronger engine you press the gas and observe the speedometer pointer, which defines this value more or less in the following way: 100, 120, 130, 140, etc. Do you know how it is here? Every gas press that is 100, 200, 250 km/h and the end of the fun. Over and over again. This car is not a joke despite four-wheel drive and a torsional rear axle. If we stop thinking, it will hurt a lot. It's a bit like giving little Jenny a loaded gun in his hand and saying go play, but do not point at your friends and don't pull the trigger. After all Jenny will shoot someone, it's just a matter of time. When the ”highway emotions” have already fallen, I decided to have some fun on the bends with this car. I will say it straight, I have never driven a car so well and so confidently. Even Audi, which I like very much is not as good as this almost two-tone monster. You turn and the car goes. Even wet surface does not cause discomfort. Every smallest movement of the steering wheel makes the car tend to turn, it's an amazing fun to drive. As I approached the end of the ride, the rain fell and the road got uncomfortable. I got cold feet, to play with gas on a car with over 500 horsepower, but even my attempts to provoke the „eight series” to interrupt traction control did not succeed. This car, just like it fell on the roads in 2018, is holding on to them like welded permanently. When driving in curves, you can feel the car is heavy therefore, in my opinion, it would be difficult to control it fully on the track. I realize that it is rather my guesses resulting from the experience during play within reason, and how would it really be with the ”Predator” at your side? I do not know, maybe one day I will find out, or you can tell me about it … Has BMW revived the legend or maybe it has built something even more exciting from the ground up?.. It is difficult to say because I did not drive the previous series 8 but I guarantee you that the new model of this car is a machine I have never seen one in the BMW stable before.

How the car is driven, how it looks and how many emotions it raises is difficult to express in words other than simply "it is unique". Despite the fact that the car is not perfect considering even the production quality of certain elements, I would like to have it in my garage, who knows, maybe someday? If you do not mind burning at the level of 13, 14 liters and you have a budget of 150 thousand Euro, I recommend buying the latest BMW 850i xDrive with a clear conscience. Thank you!!! :)

Artur Rojewski

"I'm Powerful"