BMW ALPINA B8 Gran Coupe: This Will Be a Future Design Classic
Let’s just start with the design. Just look at it. The ALPINA B8 Gran Coupe is bite-the-back-of-your-fist beautiful. The shape, the subtle body lines, the ALPINA-specific bumpers, and — of course — the always-gorgeous iconic ALPINA wheels create a visual masterpiece that reminds us what BMW design can achieve when it’s firing on all cylinders.
The 8 Series Gran Coupe already represents BMW design at its absolute peak — arguably the last truly beautiful car to emerge from Munich before the controversial design direction of recent years. The proportions are flawless: long hood, sweeping roofline, muscular haunches. It’s classic BMW GT coupe language executed to perfection, the spiritual successor to the legendary E31 8 Series but with modern athleticism. Even base 840i models turn heads. It’s the kind of car that looks fast standing still, the kind that makes you appreciate why BMW once dominated the luxury performance segment on design alone.
But the ALPINA-specific changes elevate it further. The lower front lip adds aggression without the overwrought drama of recent M car front ends. Those killer ALPINA wheels — the classic multi-spoke design that’s been refined over decades — fill the arches perfectly with a timeless elegance that makes them instantly recognizable. The rear bumper tidily wraps around quad exhaust pipes with a level of integration and purposefulness that’s become rare in an era of fake vents and black plastic cladding.
The B8 also comes in two ALPINA-specific colors — ALPINA Blue Metallic and ALPINA Green Metallic. Both have been ALPINA signatures throughout the brand’s history, instantly signaling to those who know that this isn’t just another tuned BMW. These are factory colors with heritage, not catalog options.
The ALPINA Difference
Here’s what separates ALPINA from every other tuner that’s ever bolted parts onto a BMW: they’re manufacturers, not modifiers. Each B8 Gran Coupe is hand-built in Buchloe, Germany, with a level of attention that even BMW’s own M division doesn’t quite match. The interior receives ALPINA-specific touches throughout — unique stitching patterns, subtle badging, a numbered plaque, and that gorgeous ALPINA steering wheel. Everything you touch feels richer, more deliberately crafted.
And with BMW’s acquisition of ALPINA completed in late 2025, the B8 Gran Coupe represents the end of an era. This is the last generation of true ALPINA-made before full integration into BMW AG. That makes these cars historically significant in the same way the last E46 M3s or final naturally-aspirated 911s became collectible. We’re watching automotive history happen in real-time.
Right now, 2025 B8 Gran Coupes are listed between $155,000-$160,000. For context, that’s less than a loaded M8 Competition Gran Coupe cost new, but you’re getting something infinitely more special. Hand-built. More limited production. A 50-year pedigree. And frankly, better looks than the M8.
Engineering Where It Counts
Under the hood sits a monster 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8 that shares architecture with both the N63 in standard 8 Series models and the S63 in M8s, but follows its own path. ALPINA tears down the N63 and rebuilds it their way: new pistons, larger twin-scroll turbochargers, upgraded intercooler, revised intake and exhaust manifolds, and a complete exhaust system.
The result? 612 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. That’s 5 hp shy of the M8 Competition but critically, 37 lb-ft more torque. And if you’ve driven both, you know that torque difference is exactly where ALPINA’s philosophy diverges from M’s. The M8 wants to scream. The B8 wants to surge.
ALPINA claims 3.3 seconds to 60 mph — maybe a tenth slower than the M8 Competition on paper, but in the real world, it feels every bit as devastatingly quick. The difference is in the delivery. The eight-speed ZF automatic receives ALPINA-specific tuning, offering a unique refinement.
The Future of ALPINA Under BMW
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: we don’t really know how the ALPINA brand will develop under BMW ownership. So far, we’ve heard about a new B7 and XB7, which tells us BMW sees ALPINA’s future in sedans and SUVs — the volume sellers. But nothing concrete on other products, especially coupes.
That said, knowing BMW’s historical affinity for luxury coupes — and the current gap in their portfolio — we’d be surprised if we don’t see at least an ALPINA coupe concept in the future. It actually makes perfect business sense. BMW needs a flagship luxury coupe to compete in the ultra-premium segment alongside Mercedes-Maybach and even Bentley, especially since Rolls-Royce doesn’t offer a two-door anymore.
An ALPINA grand coupe, priced north of $200,000 with hand-finished interior details, bespoke color options, and that signature ALPINA refinement could slot perfectly into this white space. Think of it as the anti-Maybach — less ostentatious, more driver-focused, but equally exclusive and luxurious. It’s a natural evolution of what the B8 Gran Coupe already represents.
Whether BMW has the vision to pursue this remains to be seen. But the B8 Gran Coupe proves the formula works.
A Future Classic, Right Now
The E31 8 Series is now a six-figure collectible. The E9 3.0 CSL is approaching half a million. Even clean E46 M3s are fetching $40k-$50k. The ALPINA B8 Gran Coupe is that car for the next generation.
It represents the last of something: independent ALPINA, naturally, but also the last gasp of BMW’s classic grand tourer philosophy before everything became either an electrified crossover or a track weapon. It’s beautiful without the controversial styling experiments. It’s powerful without chasing spec-sheet numbers. It’s exclusive without being unobtainable.
Years from now, when we might driving electric 8 Series crossovers with illuminated kidneys, we’ll look back at the ALPINA B8 Gran Coupe and recognize it for what it is: one of the last times BMW — through ALPINA — built exactly the car they should have been building all along.
It’s a future classic that you can still buy today.
First published by https://www.bmwblog.com
