2019 BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe leaked early

Pictures of the all-new BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe have been leaked online that give us our first undisguised look at the Porsche Panamera and Mercedes CLS-rival.

Appearing overnight on Brit mag

The front half of the car looks as though the bigger 8 Series Gran Coupe is unchanged over the coupe, but from the front A-pillar rearwards there's been big changes to provide enough space for four adults to travel in comfort.

This has included re-designed front doors and, what looks like, a less steeply raked windscreen.

Interestingly the rear door, that keeps the coupe's well-defined haunches, abandons the two-door's shapely C-pillar for a take-on of the car-maker's famed Hofmeister kink – a similar approach was employed on stunning 2018 BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe concept that was show at the Geneva motor show car.

Set to replace the outgoing 6 Series Gran Coupe, the stretched BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe not only rivals the Mercedes-Benz CLS but the far more powerful Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door sedan.

The latest leaked pics don't quite give us a glimpse of the Gran Coupe's cabin but it's expected to be almost identical to the Gran Coupe’s two-door cousins.

That means upfront there will be a 12.3-inch digital instrument panel that’s flanked by a 10.3-inch infotainment system.

Beneath its skin, the four-door Gran Coupe remains based on architecture lifted from the 7 Series limousine.

The original concept featured a mighty twin-turbo 6.6-litre V12, but when the big Gran Coupe goes on sale it will more likely come with either a 390kW 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 for the M850i xDrive or a 235kW 3.0-litre twin-turbo diesel inline-six-cylinder for the 840d xDrive.

Later on, expect an M8 performance flagship version of the 8 Series Gran Coupe that will get at least 460kW.

Both versions come with all-wheel drive and a BMW’s ZF-sourced eight-speed automatic transmission.

We expect the M850i xDrive to easily hit 100km/h in less than four seconds – around two-tenths more than the lighter coupe.

It’s thought a flagship V12 version might also be on the cards to help BMW rival the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door that could be offered with a monstrous 600kW hybrid powertrain.

Set to command a healthy price premium over the regular coupe, the BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe is scheduled to launch in Europe in September, with Australian sales expected to commence before the end of 2019.