BMW Showcases Limited-Edition M850i During Monterey Car Week
Buyers can choose from five original E31 8-series color profiles.
The limited run of only 500 M850i special-edition cars comes at a cost, starting at $130,400.
The original 8-series launched in 1990 with a wind-tunnel-designed body and a proud smirk of a front fascia. The E31 might smirk all the more had it been at the reveal of its successor during the 2025 Monterey Car Week.
BMW
BMW announced a special run for fans of the 8-series Gran Coupe, the 2026 M850i Edition M Heritage. Limited to 500 examples worldwide, the M Heritage pays tribute to the first 8-series with exterior paint colors that reference the original offering first shown at the 1989 Frankfurt Motor Show. Buyers can choose from Bright Red, Mauritius Blue metallic, Cosmos Black metallic, Oxford Green metallic, and Daytona Violet metallic. Rounding out the exterior dress-up are two-tone Orbit Grey 20-inch dual-spoke alloy wheels clad in summer performance tires and a carbon-fiber roof with subtle three-color M stripes.
The M goodies don't stop there. Inside, the Heritage edition offers M Sport seats finished in BMW diamond-stitched black leather and faux suede. The soft stuff continues up over the headliner, dashboard, and upper door panels. The seats, door panels, and belts also get sporty red and blue tri-stripe stitching. Matte finish carbon fiber covers the center console, out of which juts a glass shift lever to remind everyone that this isn't just a performance car, but a luxury one as well.
BMW
Less subtle reminders can be found in the M badge on the front headrests, the numerous places sporting the model's full name—"M850i Edition M Heritage"—and a shout-out to the exclusivity with "1/500" displayed on the doorsills.
Don't worry that you'll have to check all these boxes on the order form. The M850i Edition M Heritage comes in one configuration only, based on the M850i xDrive Gran Coupe with all the cosmetic upgrades previously mentioned and popular features like a Bowers & Wilkins Diamond surround sound system and BMW's driver's assistance package, all included in its $130,400 pricetag.
BMW
BMW
Beneath the retro colors and M callouts, the Heritage edition makes use of the same engine and chassis setup as a top-trim M850i, which means that under the hood is a 523-hp 4.4-liter twin-turbo V-8 sending 553 lb-ft of torque through an eight-speed automatic transmission and to the ground via all four wheels.
We're expecting no change in performance from non-special editions, so the Heritage model should go from zero to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds according the BMW, and 3.5 seconds according to our test team. It should stop well from its electronically-limited 155-mph top speed thanks to M Sport brakes.
We like all the flash of the M850i Edition M Heritage, but with so much fanfare and so many M stripes, we're curious why BMW didn't just go all in and make a special-edition M8 Gran Coupe. Customers interested in the M Heritage can place orders now, with production planned for November 2025 and deliveries in early 2026.
Elana Scherr
Senior Editor, Features
Like a sleeper agent activated late in the game, Elana Scherr didn't know her calling at a young age. Like many girls, she planned to be a vet-astronaut-artist, and came closest to that last one by attending UCLA art school. She painted images of cars, but did not own one. Elana reluctantly got a driver's license at age 21 and discovered that she not only loved cars and wanted to drive them, but that other people loved cars and wanted to read about them, which meant somebody had to write about them. Since receiving activation codes, Elana has written for numerous car magazines and websites, covering classics, car culture, technology, motorsports, and new-car reviews. In 2020, she received a Best Feature award from the Motor Press Guild for the C/D story "A Drive through Classic Americana in a Polestar 2." In 2023, her Car and Driver feature story "In Washington, D.C.'s Secret Carpool Cabal, It's a Daily Slug Fest" was awarded 1st place in the 16th Annual National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards by the Los Angeles Press Club.
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