BMW firing on all eight again

BMW has revealed a big, sleek one-off coupe concept for the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este show’n’shine on the banks of Italy’s Lake Como, fuelling further speculation it will revive its flagship 8 Series sports car nameplate.

First teased 10 days ago, the twin-turbo 6.0-litre V12-powered Pininfarina BMW Gran Lusso coupe is styled by Ferrari's former Italian design partner.

BMW publicly toyed with the idea of a large V12 two-door via the Concept CS in China a few years ago, but now it seems the success of the 6 Series coupe, convertible and sedan family – now complete with high-performance M6 versions of all three – has convinced it to revisit the formula, probably based on the top-shelf 7 Series limousine.

The German maker's long-winded announcement describes the Gran Lusso as a “high-end luxury class” vehicle and contains plenty of back-slapping for both members of the opulent joint-venture.

“The appeal of this collaboration with Pininfarina is that you get another, very different and special angle on facets like luxury and exclusivity,” said Head of BMW Design, Karim Habib.

“The Italian company, after all, has always been a byword for these criteria in particular, demonstrating time and again its keen sensitivity and exceptional finesse in these areas. In Pininfarina we have found the ideal partner to lend shape to this vehicle concept.”

The huge four-seat grand touring coupe is the latest in a line of design collaborations from the German premium car-maker following the Z4-based BMW Zagato Coupe, which went into limited production after its concept debut at last year’s Villa d’Este concours de elegance.

“The result of this co-operative venture is far greater than the sum of its parts,” said Pininfarina’s Head of Design, Fabio Filippini.

“When two such tradition-rich and experienced brands join forces to turn a vision into reality, something utterly new and exciting emerges. From start to finish, this project was defined by a mutual respect for the identity of the other company.”

No technical details have been provided for the Gran Lusso, but BMW does offer the somewhat dubious claim that its interior is crammed with the finest tobacco-brown Foglizzo leather and kauri wood sourced from a single piece of the rare New Zealand timber that was “aged more than 48,000 years”.

“Its special character derives from the fact that the toppled kauri trees have been preserved in swamps for millennia and can be processed like fresh timber after being retrieved from the fossil swampland,” gushes BMW.

Also inside is the finest Italian virgin wool headlining featuring a ‘Principe di Galles’ pattern , soft deep-pile carpet and an oblong roof aperture illuminated by white LEDs. 

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