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prove stability above those velocities. a green circle when the “force field”
It works fabulously in practice, with the of safety systems are all engaged. It’s
8 imparting an almost eerie sense of all fairly transparent, save for the lane-
steadiness in corners, where it hugs keep assist function, which works
the road like a Hoover on a red carpet. quite aggressively to keep you from
straying over a line. Get near a lane
marking and the car will fight you like
The new M850i can slay all types of an arm wrestler, requiring more than
asphalt and excels in all sorts of driv- a little muscle to override; it’s also
ing conditions—torrential rainstorms or among the most overeager to activate
icy mountain roads, dry and twisting we’ve seen. Thankfully, the Intelligent
canyon two-lanes, and even bump- Safety systems can be configured
er-to-bumper traffic. It jets off the line individually to your liking, or you can
and on to 60 mph in a blistering 3.6 simply turn them all off by holding the
seconds, and every staffer who slid button down for three seconds. It de-
behind the wheel of the M850i was faults back to “All On” when you cycle
smitten with a car universally charac- the ignition, though.
terized as a smooth, incredible, and
great all-rounder. The drive modes As in other BMWs equipped with
includes Sport, Sport +, Eco Pro, and gesture controls, they come across as
Comfort, with Sport+ naturally being little more than gimmicks here—for ex-
the most engaging, turning the BMW ample, there’s virtually no difference in
from a sporty and rewarding grand terms of motion between twirling your
tourer to a crackling, snarling beast, finger or using the knob to adjust the
eager to pounce at every apex. audio system’s volume, and the knob
has the distinct advantage of working
Despite its size, as with most coupes, every time. One feature we did actually
the 8’s rear seats are best left to lug- find neat was the ability to take phone
gage duty, offering up just 29.5 inches calls with the wave of a hand once
of legroom and 33.6 inches of head- you’ve paired your phone to the car.
room. But used for cargo and com-
bined with a deep trunk that can swal-
low up to 15 cubic feet of additional In all, the M850i is an incredibly im-
loot, the 8-series can accommodate pressive piece, and it’s hard not to be
plenty of stuff for two people to enjoy intoxicated with its huge power, highly
the type of extended trip this car was capable chassis, and surprising grace.
made for. While it’s plenty satisfying on its own,
the 8 Series family will include plenty
Inside, the gauge cluster is fully digital; of variants, including a convertible, a
it’s a high-resolution affair and easy four-door Gran Coupe, and the big
to read, although we will admit that daddy, the M8. But whether you stick
the usability and overall presentation with the coupe or try another version,
of functions such as navigation in the you’ll be the star wherever you show
cluster is better executed in some VW up.
Group vehicles. We were pleased that
the cockpit offers myriad methods to 2019 BMW M850i xDrive Specifica-
control the ample technology inside, tions
including the iDrive controller, the 10.3- ON SALE Now
inch central touchscreen, your voice, PRICE $112,895/$119,295 (base/
and, blessedly, plenty of hard buttons as-tested)
and switches. There’s even a handy ENGINE 4.4L turbocharged
button to activate the steering-wheel DOHC 32-valve V-8; 523 hp @ 6,000
heating element located—get this—on rpm, 553 lb-ft @ 1,800 rpm
the steering wheel. TRANSMISSION 8-speed auto-
matic
LAYOUT 2-door, 2+2-passenger,
Among the tech you’ll find automat- front-engine AWD sedan
ic parking, a plethora of cameras for EPA MILEAGE N/A
backing up and viewing all sorts of L x W x H 191.2 x 74.9 x 53.0 in
angles, and BMW’s Intelligent Safety WHEELBASE 111.1 in
suite of features. These are controlled WEIGHT 4,478 lb
and quickly accessed using a button 0–60 MPH 3.6 sec
in the center of the dash that displays TOP SPEED 155 mph
22 JUNE 2019 Road-Test china 2 wheels 23