The V8 is God’s engine configuration of choice. Sure, there are much more efficient ways to make power through smaller displacement motors with forced induction, but it’s nearly impossible to replace the vibes and feelings a big V8 gives you. It’s why the V8 is still in high demand in markets like the U.S. and the Middle East, where fuel is cheap. We’re willing to pay a bit more for the fantastic feeling of a V8 burble. It’s why BMW has decided to let the V8 stick around.
Automotive News sat down with BMW’s head of development, Frank Weber, for a wide-ranging interview about everything from the future of electrification, its Neue Klasse architecture and hydrogen fuel cell-powered cars. That’s all well and good, but the real topic that jumps off the page is a question about the future of V8s at BMW. This comes just a couple of years after the German automaker phased out its V12 engine and has turned much of its concentration to turbocharged inline-for and -six-cylinder motors. Still, the V8 will live on, Weber says:
V-8s are here to stay. There are markets such as the U.S. and Middle East where you cannot replace V-8s with inline-six hybrids. This is not about performance. They are comparable in terms of acceleration, but customers like the smoothness, sound and feeling of a V-8. We will continue to offer V-8s.
That’s such incredibly welcome news if you’re a knuckle-dragger like me, especially at a time when V8s are going away. Look no further than Ferrari’s 296 GTB or the Dodge Charger Daytona and Sixpack for prime examples of this, but BMW will soldier on.
I mean, it’s most-recent V8 offering, the new M5 has a plug-in hybrid twin-turbo 4.4-liter V8 that pumps out 717 horsepower and 738 lb-ft of torque. It’s enough to make that massive car feel fast as hell.
BMW is actually getting a hell of a lot of use out of that 4.4-liter V8. Sure, it’s tuned differently and has different internals depending on the model, but you can currently find a 4.4-liter V8 in the aforementioned M5 Sedan, M5 Touring, 760i, M850i Coupe, M850i Convertible, M8 Competition Convertible, M850i Gran Coupe, M8 Competition Gran Coupe, Alpina B8, the X5 M60i, X5 M Competition, X6 M60i, X6 M Competition, X7 M60i, Alpina XB7 and the XM. If you’ve got the money, BMW has the V8 for you, and it sure looks like that’ll be the case going into the future.
You have America to thank for this. You’re welcome.
