BMW and Jeff Koons Unveil Special Edition 8 Series Coupe
BMW digitally unveiled a special edition of their 8 Series Gran Coupe made in collaboration with the American artist Jeff Koons.
The car is aptly named “THE 8 X JEFF KOONS.” It starts life as a BMW M850i xDrive Gran Coupe and features a completely custom design both inside and out, personally created by Jeff Koons. The vehicle will be capped at a global limit of 99 units.
Koons incorporated many different shades of blue into the paintwork, said to represent the vastness of space and tying into the fact that the BMW 8 Series is a globally available product. This motif plays heavily on Koon’s own work, being without borders itself. The rear of the car features various lines of color paying homage to the artist’s previous 2010 BMW Art Car-- an E92 M3 GT2 that raced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
According to BMW, the paint process of THE 8 X JEFF KOONS requires a total of 11 separate stages and several hundred hours per vehicle to complete. During its run, two cars will be produced per week at the BMW Group Plant Dingolfing and BMW Group Plant Landshut, both of which are in Germany.
Beyond the paintwork, the exclusive livery-work includes a “POP!” vinyl on each side along with “vapor thrust” imagery, said to symbolize the 8 Series’ power and speed. Inside, the cabin is composed of multi-colored high-end materials and fine leather. A special cup holder lid with “THE 8 X JEFF KOONS” badging adorns the center console. The seats are made of red and blue hues, paying tribute to the BMW M badging and the world of superheroes and comic books-- a key inspiration for Koon’s design.
“My edition of the BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe is a dream come true. It is completely unique, very special to me and I’ve wanted to create a special edition BMW for a long time,” said Jeff Koons. “What matters is how we relate to each other and our awareness of everything we are surrounded by. This principle drove my creative vision for THE 8 X JEFF KOONS, and it’s an exciting next chapter of co-creation with BMW.”
THE 8 X JEFF KOONS is available for preorder now. These special edition cars will be sold in the US market with a starting price of $350,000; however, prospective buyers will also need to consider the $995 destination fee.