When it reintroduced the 8-Series late in the last decade, BMW unleashed something of a quandary upon sports car enthusiasts: whether the car’s attractiveness subverted the appeal of its power, or vice versa. It looked enduring.

So it comes as no surprise that the generational half-step represented by the 2023 model year is comprised of brush-up adjustments and cosmetics and tech updates; the illuminated grille that comes standard is representative, and the flourish is echoed in the cabin with illuminated headrest badges. New colors include San Remo Green, Skyscraper Grey and Portimao Blue, and the dash screen is two inches larger, but substantial alterations to the lineup are not in evidence.

With one notable exception: the disappearance of the standard M8 in favor of the M8 Competition. Who’s going to buy the M8 and not go whole-hog? Not many buyers, one would surmise. That puts more space between the M8 Competition and the rest of the lineup.

The M8 Competition gets 617 horsepower and 553 pound-feet of torque out of its 4.4L V8 biturbo. The flagship is also outfitted with M Carbon bucket seats, and can be ordered with an interior color option of Sakhir Orange and jet black.

BMW informs that production of the 2023 M8 Competition and other 8-Series cars will begin in the spring of this year. The company didn’t give a delivery estimate, but did reveal one final bit of information that will be welcome news for those who keep up with BMW’s Art Car series: the next entry will be unveiled this month. The car used as a creative blank slate for 2023 is the M850i xDrive Gran Coupe. Pop art showman Jeff Koons did the honors.