[11] Bmw 7 Series Coupe On Today Highlight

BMW knew the redesigned 7 Series had to take a huge leap forward to compete with the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, so the automaker packed every new technology and luxury feature it could into into its flagship sedan. But while the new 7 Series is well-reviewed, its sales lag far behind its rival from Stuttgart. According to Automotive News, BMW's solution is to build a 7 Series coupe.

The AutoNews report cites an anonymous source who claims the 7 Series coupe is coming as soon as 2019. There's no word on whether this car might be called the 8 Series, but it's reportedly the first of several variants BMW is working on to boost sales of the 7 Series platform.

As recently as four years ago, sales of the S-Class and the 7 Series were about equal. But that's far from the case today. Through July of this year, BMW sold 6808 7 Series sedans, while the Mercedes S-Class sold 10,276 units. That's approximately a 50-percent sales lead.

Reportedly, BMW blames its flagship's slow sales on its relatively conservative styling. But as Juergen Pieper, an analyst at Bankhaus Metzler in Frankfurt, told AutoNews, there's likely more to it than that.

"The 7 series hasn't managed the same 'aha' effect as the new S class," Pieper said. "It's lacking that special something."

It seems BMW hopes that adding a coupe to take on the incredible S-Class Coupe will help reverse that trend.

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