233How do you brighten up a dull, wet afternoon
in early March? You take a drive in BMW’s
new flagship Grand Touring coupé with
its warp factor acceleration and burbling
V8 turbo-charged engine. It is more than
enough to put a smile back on the most
cynical of faces.
The new M850i is one of the finest of
BMW’s range of fine driving machines. Even
when hunkered down at rest, the styling
says power and grace. Yet when easing my
way through the Boucher Road traffic I don’t
feel intimidated by the thought that there is
500bhp under that long bonnet.
With four-wheel steering, the 850i
responds like a smaller car - you notice this
in the car park or when changing lanes on
the motorway. This is a car that inspires
confidence as it has the power and the
handling to deal comfortably with whatever
the road throws at you.
Acceleration from rest to 62mph takes just
3.7 seconds and that has to be respected.
But it can stop with equal urgency thanks to
big disc brakes. Born to deal with Germany’s
unrestricted autobahns, it just laps up our M1
as if it was a country lane.
Grand Touring cars were invented for long
continental journeys to luxury destinations
in the south of France, Monte Carlo or the
Italian coast. They need to combine a lot
of power with a high level of comfort. The
M850i lives up to brief very well indeed.
The V8 engine - and the V6 of the 3.0
turbo diesel in its sister M840d - is mated to
BMW’s eight-speed automatic gearbox. You
can manually operate the gears with paddles
behind the steering wheel or just let it get on
with its job. It does this very effectively in the
background until you need to overtake when
a kick down delivers instant punch.
This is accompanied by a rather gratifying
sound from under the bonnet. The intensity
of the roar depends on whether the car is
in Comfort or Sport settings. Both models
are equipped with BMW’s Xdrive (four-wheel drive system) which is good to have,
particularly on a wet day. It is a clever
system giving a touch of the traditional rear-
drive feel in normal driving but cutting in
automatically when needed.
Inside, the car is a delightful blend of
stitched leather - red in my white car - and
high tech instrumentation. There is a 12-inch
screen on which ‘digital’ instruments are
displayed. (Your speed is also projected onto
the wind-screen.) A central screen is used for
sat nav and infotainment featuring ‘gesture
control’ - just wave your finger in a circle to
turn up the volume.
The M850i is a two-door four seater with
a huge boot. Later a convertible model will
be offered, together with a four-door Grand
Coupé. Oh, and there will be an even more
powerful M8 version!
This is an expensive car but it feels
worth it in terms of finish, performance and
sophistication. As BMWs go, it more than
lives up to their old slogan of ‘the ultimate
driving machine’.
The diesel 840d xDrive option has 320bhp
from its turbo 3.0-litre engine and can
accelerate to 62mph in 4.9 seconds. Priced
from £76,270 this one is rated at 46mpg with
emissions of 160g/km.AT A GLANCE
BMW M850i xDrive
Price - from £99,525Engine - 4.4-litre V8 turbo
Power - 523bhp
Eight-speed automatic, four-wheel drive
Acceleration - 0-62mph: 3.7 seconds
Top speed - 155mph (limited)
Economy/CO2 - 29.1mpg/221g/kmDerek Black takes the new BMW M850i through its powerful paces.
Power and Grace