The BMW Group is using this year's Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este to unveil the BMW Concept 8 Series, the essence of a modern-day BMW coupe wrapped up in an enthralling design study. The study car will serve as a taster of a forthcoming BMW model - the new BMW 8 Series Coupe, slated for launch in 2018 and part of the biggest model offensive in the company's history. The NUMBER ONE > NEXT strategy sees the BMW Group aiming to significantly increase sales and revenues in the luxury class, and the BMW 8 Series Coupe plays an important role here.

"The number 8 has always represented the pinnacle of sports performance and exclusivity at BMW," explains Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG Harald Kruger. "The forthcoming BMW 8 Series Coupe will demonstrate that razor-sharp dynamics and modern luxury can go hand-in-hand. This will be the next model in the expansion of our luxury car offering and will raise the benchmark for coupes in the segment. In the process, we will strengthen our claim to leadership in the luxury class."

The BMW Concept 8 Series reveals much of what is to come. "The BMWConcept 8 Series is our take on a full-blooded high-end driving machine," says Adrian van Hooydonk, Senior Vice President BMW Group Design. "It is a luxurious sports car, which embodies both unadulterated dynamics and modern luxury likearguably no other. For me, it's a slice of pure automotive fascination."

The BMW Concept 8 Series is immediately recognisable as a BMW, but also displays new design ideas and form-building techniques. "The design of the BMW Concept 8 Series provides a fresh interpretation of iconic BMW styling cues," adds van Hooydonk. "And it also showcases a new approach to the use of forms, which is reflected particularly prominently in the car's surfacing. A handful of crisp lines mark out clear surfaces, and the car's volumes are powerfully sculpted. Together, these elements make a forceful statement and create a model brimming with character. In short, this is a driver's car."

The interior focuses on the essential: the task of driving. Once behind the wheel, the driver is wrapped in the tightly enclosed ambience typical of sports cars. The surfaces and lines all gravitate forwards and underscore the dynamic driving experience. The grouping of functions into control clusters, e.g. in the centre stack, the centre console and the doors, gives the interior a clear graphic structure.

Alongside the ongoing development of the standard 8 Series, the engineers at BMW M are also working flat-out on the M model. A fully camouflaged, early prototype of the future BMW M8 was unveiled in a driving presentation as part of the support programme for the Nurburgring 24-hour race. Classical M features like larger air intakes, modified brakes and a sports exhaust with four tailpipes hint at the significantly boosted power and dynamic potential of the car and whet the appetite for a driving experience of intense emotional richness.