As I’ve said many times, it’s a lot easier for the new kid at school to make friends if they’re attractive. Sure, some people really do care about how the Genesis GV80 handles, but I’d be willing to bet most buyers just like how it looks. Back in the ’90s, BMW understood the same thing. When it introduced the 8 Series, it gave us an absolutely gorgeous coupe that made the Mercedes SL look frumpy and old. Unfortunately for customers, the 12-cylinder 850i’s looks wrote checks that its performance couldn’t cash.
As Jason Cammisa explains in the video below, reviews of the BMW 850i were far from kind. You might even call them harsh. One magazine called it “an embarrassment to all who rode in it.” So what was BMW to do? Send it to the M division, of course. Those folks knew a thing or two about building the ultimate driving machine, and they did exactly that. Except BMW had no plans to call the car they created the M8. No, it would only be known as the BMW 850 CSi.
The M8 that wasn’t an M8 made 380 horsepower from its now-5.6-liter V12 and actually had handling to match its engine and good looks. In fact, one magazine said it was “massively different than the original; a symbol of power and a statement of supreme technical accomplishment.” Another said it had “blossomed into a serious sports car.” Car and Driver even said it had “perfected the species.” Talk about a turnaround.
Sadly, BMW never built many 850 CSis. It only brought 225 of them to the U.S., and only 1,510 were ever produced. That makes it one of the rarest M cars of all time, so if you see one for sale, just buy it. Sure, the plastics are probably crumbling, and the V12 that runs as two inline-sixes can be a reliability nightmare, but come on. Surely, it’s worth it to own the car that perfected the species, right?
