BMW Gran Coupe Concept gets go signal as 8-series

Barely a week after its official unveiling at the Beijing motor show, the Gran Coupe concept car of BMW is heading to the production pipeline to take the reign as the brand’s flagship sedan to revive the 8-Series.

The move will give BMW a product to match head to head with the CLS of Mercedes-Benz, A7 of Audi, and the Panamera from Porsche. The BMW concept vehicle has the elegance and presence of the 7-Series but has a more aggressive and sportier character fit for an owner who wants to be behind the wheels.

The chief designer of the brand confirmed that the coupe will received the 8-Series nameplate and not the earlier rumored production as the 6-Series sedan. The roofline of the Gran Coupe is lower by 4 inches than the 7-Series but is wider than the flagship car of BMW.

We believe the market will not really care much about the name of the car. The Gran Coupe will be following some of the architecture elements of the 7-Series and the 5-Series models with similar powerplant offerings.

The Gran Coupe can be expected to be in dealerships by 2012.