After hearing about the long lost BMW M8 yesterday, Petrolicious released this new video about the BMW 850CSi, the car that came from the lessons learned while developing the M8. The great thing about Petrolicious’ videos is that they’re from the perspective of owners of the cars. So you can see their passion for it, learn from their experiences and understand that cars are more than just cars. They’re part of your life, part of your family. That idea isn’t more evident than it is with Taylor Patterson and his BMW 850Si.
When BMW brass told their engineers that the M8 wasn’t gonna happen, they didn’t just scrap what they learned. Some of the technologies and ideas born from the M8’s prototype were implemented in the BMW 850CSi. While its engine wasn’t the insane 6.1 liter V12 from the M8, it was similar. The S70B56 engine displaced 5.6 liters but still carried 12 cylinders. All of which put out 375 hp, making it the most powerful BMW on sale at the time. That V12 was mated to a six-speed manual gearbox, which was a match made in car heaven.
Patterson’s example is nearly perfect and completely original. It’s stunning. While the 8 Series was a flawed car and was never the most beautiful BMW, seeing this black 850CSi in the California sun is breathtaking. It’s just such a desirable car and, in Patterson’s own words, BMW’s dream car.
It’s the car that people aspired to own one day, back in the ’90s. It was the car that brought people into BMW dealerships just to catch a glance at it. Those wide rear hips, massive quad exhausts and those fantastic star wheels make it one of the most seductive cars BMW’s ever made. From the rear three-quarters, it’s damn near perfect.
Patterson tells the story of his father, who’s the one that turned him onto the 8 Series by bringing a brochure home from the dealer when he was a child. His father explained to him that it had a V12 made from two BMW I6s and its own network of systems to make it all work together.
Back then, that was amazing. So when Patterson finally bought his, he picked his father up from the airport in it, handed him the keys and told him to drive, allowing his father to finally realize his dream. That’s the sort of stuff being a car enthusiast is all about. It doesn’t matter what the car is because it’s not about the car itself. It’s about someone’s dream car. The BMW 850CSi was their dream car.
