With the 6-series, BMW has a clear winner on its hands. The lovely coupe, based on the 5-series sedan, has exceeded expectations—despite extremely ambitious pricing that positions it close to the variety-topping 7-series. Even although the 4-door Gran Coupe, a direct competitor of the Audi A7 and the Mercedes-Benz CLS, has become the most well-known 6-series model, BMW had us drive the standard 2-door coupe at the international launch in Lisbon, Portugal.
Tiny Tweaks
It takes a true BMW aficionado to spot the adjustments with this midterm facelift. Most prominently, the lower front air intake is restyled, and BMW has also changed the front kidney grille (9 blades rather of 10!). The look is intended to be sportier, we’re told, as some customers apparently thought the earlier model looked also tame. For those who want far more, there’s still an M Sport package, which has been altered, as properly. Adaptive LED headlights are now normal, and their inner workings are redesigned. The side indicator lights move from the front fenders to the mirrors. A new Black Accent package replaces much of the exterior chrome with black trim.
 |
Inside, the 6-series sports plenty of gloss-black trim and brushed-metal accents. Purchasers can decide on Dakota or Nappa leather, and 3 2-tone colour schemes are accessible. The telematics method, of course, is additional enhanced and a single of the very best we have knowledgeable. The rear seats can hardly be deemed a desirable place to be for adults, due to the challenging access and limited head- and legroom. But the front seats are superb, supportive, and comfy. The controls are properly laid out—with the exception of the infuriating gear selector, which requires way as well significantly practice to be named intuitive. (Our favourite repair for this issue, the manual transmission, is not obtainable on the 640i or the 650i but is nonetheless an selection on the M6.)
At least the ZF-sourced 8-speed automatic is one particular of the very best units on the marketplace. It shifts quickly and unobtrusively, always locating the right gear to match the driver’;s expectations. As much as we dislike the gear selector, we praise BMW for its appropriate, race-auto-like operation in the manual gate: You pull to upshift, the intuitive movement when you are pinned into your seat by hard acceleration, and push forward to downshift, which you normally do whilst braking, when your body is traveling forward, as nicely.
 |
Riding a Wave of Torque
Although the base 640i retains its 315-hp twin-turbo straight 6, we spent our time in the 650i, with its 4.4-liter V-8, also sporting 2 turbos. With its 445 horsepower, the 650i charges to 60 mph in a mere 4-and-a-half seconds and on to 155 mph. Whether or not on 2-lanes or on the freeway, the 650i is an utterly enthralling automobile to drive. It rides on a huge wave of torque, it accelerates with uncommon urgency, and it emits a distant rumble worthy of a correct sports automobile. The growl is underscored by the sports exhaust technique that is now common equipment. This engine is the basis of the 4.4-liter V-8 that powers the M6, and it shows.
The chassis is supremely capable, with excellent directional stability and the eagerness that you’d expect from a sporty coupe—but not necessarily from such a heavy vehicle. It is unfortunate that the electromechanical energy steering still lacks road really feel, and we also locate it artificially heavy in all of its settings. The optional all-wheel-drive technique (obtainable on all models) gets you a hydraulic steering setup, but it also adds still much more weight to an already heavy auto.
Its shortcomings are couple of and far in between, and the BMW 6-series remains one of the ideal luxury-overall performance vehicles on the market—and undoubtedly one of the most lovely. We wholeheartedly advocate it to any person who can afford it.
View Images View Images
2016 BMW 650i Coupe Very first Drive: The Update Is Nonetheless Wonderful
