The 8 Series doesn’t quite live up to the legacy left by the legendary E31 and you can see that right away with the small investment that BMW made with the Life Cycle Impulse product earlier this year. It doesn’t make sense to spend a lot of money on a product that doesn’t generate enough sales volume to warrant the investment. Another relevant and more recent example is the Z4 as the roadster that received the lightest facelift.
While the soft-top convertible is rumored to be pulling back in 2025, the 8 Series could live to see a third generation. Our friends in BMWBLOG have it with good authority, the model line will survive, but in a simplified form. The coupe and cabrio are believed to be headed for retirement, with only the Gran Coupe surviving. Interestingly, the most practical body style of the three is rumored to be losing its petrol and diesel engines.
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Codenamed G77, the next 8 Series Gran Coupe could come exclusively in electric form. BMW plans to start production sometime in 2026 and will stick with the rear-wheel drive-based CLAR platform used by current ICE-powered models. Despite carrying the number “8” in its name, this swoopy sedan will play a role in bridging the gap between next year’s i5 and the already released i7.
Although BMW is working on a custom electric platform dubbed the “Neue Klasse,” sources close to the Munich automaker believe it may be too early to build the 8 Series on the NE architecture. As a refresher, the first model on this all-new hardware is slated to arrive from 2025 with sedans and SUVs in the 3 Series segment.
There will be years of overlap for the Neue Klasse and CLAR platforms before BMW finally drops the latter. Selling the Series 8 on electric power only from 2026 would represent a bold move considering that many people are still not ready to make the switch to EVs. Top officials from the company have repeatedly said the death of ICE should not be rushed because the infrastructure is not ready for an electric strike.
