Bring on the M8 Touring

I’ve squeezed my hulking golden lab into the back of every one of my past half-dozen long-term test cars, big and small, but not this one. Unlike the smaller (and now departed) 4-series Gran Coupe, the M8 GC has a conventional saloon-style boot, not a lift-up tailgate. Though the actual space isn’t bad, and there’s a split-fold rear seat, the load sill is annoyingly high and aperture small, meaning getting big stuff in and out is at best tricky or, as in this case, impossible. So the hound has to make other travel arrangements, which is fine: he’s never once offered to help hoover up the hair.

CHRIS CHILTON BMW M8 Competition Gran Coupe Month 3

The story so far

Brilliant M5-based GT

+ Stacks of performance combined with plenty of space for four

Rear hatch would be more useful

Logbook

Price £123,880 (£140,000 as tested) Performance 4395cc V8 twin-turbo, 617bhp, 3.2sec 0-62mph, 155mph

E ciency 26.4mpg (o cial), 23.1mpg (tested), 256g/km CO2

Energy cost 23.6p per mile

Miles this month 1067

Total miles