The Car Connection Expert Review
Likes
- M8’s track performance
- Strong power at every level
- Beautiful in any body style
- Agile for its size
Dislikes
- Small cabins
- More safety gear should be standard
- Very expensive
Buying tip
features & specs
The 2022 BMW 8-Series boasts beautiful looks, modern luxury, and sporty moves in an expensive package.
What kind of vehicle is the 2022 BMW 8-Series? What does it compare to?
Part sports car, part luxury car, the 2022 BMW 8-Series comes in sleek coupe, convertible, and Gran Coupe sedan body styles. It takes on the Audi RS7 and Mercedes-Benz S-Class and AMG GT 4-Door Coupe, as well as the Porsche 911 and Lexus LC.
Is the 2022 BMW 8-Series a good car?
It’s a great car, with the looks, power, and luxury to justify its high prices. The most popular and most practical body style, the Gran Coupe, provides the basis of our 7.2 out of 10 rating. (Read more about how we rate cars.)
What's new for the 2022 BMW 8-Series?
The M8 coupe and convertible return for 2022 after a one-year hiatus, but, like the Gran Coupe, they’re only available as M8 Competition models. Base 840i models gain 19- instead of 18-inch wheels and multi-function seats, but all models lose wireless smartphone charging.
Every body style offers low-slung, sleek looks, but the Gran Coupe is the most practical 8-Series with its usable rear seat. The 8-Series avoids the excesses of other BMWs, with a wide face and a short, wide twin-kidney grille to match. The design flows from front to rear, with character lines that begin at the gills behind the front wheels and resolve at the rear wheels. The elegant cabin boasts fine leather upholstery, a 10.3-inch touchscreen, aluminum trim, and even an optional crystal shift knob.
Every 8-Series brings the power, starting with a 335-hp 3.0-liter turbo-6 in 840i models, moving up to a 523-hp 4.4-liter twin-turbo V-8 in M850i models, and topped by a 617-hp version of that V-8 in the M8 Competitions. Zero to 60 mph times range from 4.7 to 3.0 seconds, and all-wheel drive comes standard on all but the base 840i. The lone transmission is a slick-shifting 8-speed automatic, though we’d like a manual as well.
No 8-Series has a spacious cabin, though the Gran Coupe can fit four adults in comfort. The rear seats in the coupe and convertible are best for kids or packages.
How much does the 2022 BMW 8-Series cost?
The 8-Series coupes, convertibles, and Gran Coupes come in 840i, 840i xDrive (all-wheel drive), M850i xDrive, and M8 Competition models.
For about $86,000, the 840i coupe and Gran Coupe come standard with Merino leather upholstery, power-adjustable front seats, a 10.3-inch infotainment touchscreen, a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, a head-up display, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 16-speaker Harmon Kardon audio system, a panoramic sunroof, and 19-inch alloy wheels. All-wheel drive adds $2,900, and the convertible costs $9,400 more.
Standard safety equipment includes automatic emergency braking and adaptive LED headlights with automatic high beams. BMW charges extra for adaptive cruise control and blind-spot monitors that should be standard at these prices. An available traffic-jam assistant allows limited hands-free driving on highways.
Where is the 2022 BMW 8-Series made?
In Germany.
2022 BMW 8-Series Styling
Low, wide, and sinister, the BMW 8-Series brings an elegant and sporty look to the full-size segment.
Is the 2022 BMW 8-Series a good-looking car?
While recent models have become caricatures of BMW design, the 8-Series lineup avoids that pitfall. Instead, it’s sleek, with a low-slung stance that helps the car’s long lines play out for a graceful look. We rate it a 9 here, with two points each for the exterior and the luxurious interior.
The 8-Series Gran Coupe takes on the Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class as a coupe-like sedan with a fast rear roof line. The coupe and convertible have a sleeker stance that draws more attention. The convertible features a power soft top rather than a heavier and sometimes clunkier hard top. The M850i and M8 models get bigger tires and more aero features that make them look meaner.
It’s hard to find a more attractive cabin this side of Bentley. Modern and elegant, it has a boxy center stack topped with a 10.3-inch touchscreen. Materials include contrast-stitched leather offset by aluminum trim and topped with an available crystal shift knob. Choose one of the lighter or bolder colors to avoid a sea of black.
2022 BMW 8-Series Performance
The 8-Series offers powerful engines and agile moves.
Is the BMW 8-Series AWD?
The base 840i has rear-wheel drive, while the other models come with all-wheel drive.
How fast is the BMW 8-Series?
It comes in three flavors: fast, faster, and Holy Moses! All models also ride well and boast sharp moves. That combination earns the 8-Series an 8 out of 10 here.
The 840i models feature a 335-hp 3.0-liter turbo-6 that unlocks a quick 0-60 mph time of 4.7 seconds. Move up to the M850i and you get a 4.4-liter twin-turbocharged V-8 that cranks out 523 hp and drops the 0-60 mph time to 3.7 seconds. The M8 Competition (no base M8 is offered) turns up the wick on the twin-turbo V-8 to 617 hp, which cuts the 0-60 mph time to 3.0 seconds and enables a top speed of 189 mph with the optional M Driver’s package. The turbo-6 delivers strong power for all daily needs, while the V-8s threaten to pin you back into your seat with every jab of the throttle. They also have a great, low-pitched growl.
M8 versions are pretty high strung, which makes the 840i and M850i models the better daily drivers, mostly because they ride more comfortably. The M8 is firmer, but not harsh.
The 8-Series may be big, but BMW views the M8 as its best performer and bases its IMSA and Le Mans M8 GTE on the coupe body style. All 8-Series models, and the M8 especially, offer nimble moves for such big cars, and that’s further aided by the optional rear-axle steering. Big brakes across the lineup make for forceful stopping, but the M8 has even bigger rotors, plus the cooling to handle track duty. Optional carbon-ceramic brakes make the M8 even better on the track.
2022 BMW 8-Series Comfort & Quality
Though it’s beautiful, the 8-Series’s cabin is small for a big car.
The 8-Series Gran Coupe is the most practical for four adults but the coupe and convertible are best for two. We give the 8-Series points for its fantastic front seats and exemplary interior materials but subtract a point for its small rear seat. That earns it a 6 out of 10 here.
The two-door models span a healthy 191 inches, while the Gran Coupe’s 200 inches make it hard to park. Despite its full-size car footprint, the 8-Series has the interior space of a compact. Even the Gran Coupe’s cabin is small for a four-door, and the coupe and convertible back seats are best for kids.
BMW adorns the cabin with top-notch materials assembled with care. The seats are upholstered in soft Merino leather, the large infotainment screen is complimented by a digital instrument cluster, and the car even has available gesture controls.
2022 BMW 8-Series Safety
The BMW 8-Series offers plenty of safety equipment, but has no crash-test scores.
How safe is the BMW 8-Series?
As a high-end luxury car, the BMW 8-Series hasn’t been crash tested. It comes with relatively few safety features for the price, but buyers can pay for more. Without test results, we can’t assign it a rating.
Every 8-Series comes standard with automatic emergency braking and adaptive LED headlights with automatic high beams. Option packages add adaptive cruise control, a traffic jam assistant with low-speed hands-free driving, blind-spot monitors, a surround-view camera system, front and rear parking sensors, automatic parking, and cross-traffic alerts.
2022 BMW 8-Series Features
BMW packs the 8-Series to the gills with features as it should for a near six-figure car.
The BMW 8-Series is loaded with features right out of the box, but BMW also offers plenty more to personalize your car. Add in good infotainment and we rate it an 8 here.
Which BMW 8-Series should I buy?
The Gran Coupe is a stylish sedan that has the most utility of the group and it earns our recommendation. It starts at about $86,000 and comes standard with Merino leather upholstery, power-adjustable front seats, a 10.3-inch infotainment touchscreen, a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, a head-up display, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 16-speaker Harmon Kardon audio system, a panoramic sunroof, and 19-inch alloy wheels.
However, the M850i’s power is intoxicating, so we’d be tempted to step up to it for a touch over $100,000.
How much is a fully loaded 2022 BMW 8-Series?
BMW doesn’t offer a standard M8, so buyers can get the M8 Competition Gran Coupe for about $131,000. It comes with all-wheel drive with an M Sport differential, an M Sport exhaust, a Track mode, 20-inch wheels on run-flat summer performance tires, a carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic roof, Merino leather and synthetic suede upholstery, M Sport front seats, heated front armrests and steering wheel, a wi-fi hotspot, and gesture controls. Choose from the numerous options and you can push an M8 Competition past $170,000.
The 8-Series comes with a good 4-year, 50,000-mile warranty with four years of roadside assistance.
2022 BMW 8-Series Fuel Economy
The 8-Series trades in power, not frugality.
Is the 2022 BMW 8-Series good on gas?
Not really, but the fuel economy ratings aren’t bad for its power. We give it a 4 out of 10 rating for the base 840i coupe, which gets EPA ratings of 23 mpg city, 30 highway, 25 combined.
The 840i convertible and Gran Coupe lose 1 mpg city and 1 highway but not overall, and all-wheel drive cuts the ratings to 20/27/23 mpg with every body style.
The M850i convertible is rated at 17/24/19 mpg, as is the Alpina B8 coupe.
