BMW 6-Series (2011) review
by Sue Baker (4 April 2011)
Car styling inspired by nature is a current fashion, and BMW's new 6-Series follows the trend. Its designer asks us to imagine a stick poked into water, and says that the resulting ripples that trail behind it are the inspiration for the flowing creases in the new droptop glamour car's body lines. All very lyrical, but whatever the trigger for the changed design of the car, the result is a sleeker, less aggressive and more fluid-looking shape than its predecessor.
The previous 6-Series did well as a halo car for BMW, selling some 14,000 across the UK. The majority of those were diesel-engined coupes, so it is a bit perverse that the new car comes initially only as a petrol-engined convertible, with other versions not due before the end of 2011. The choice from launch is between the 640i and 650i, either a three-litre straight-six cylinder with a single turbocharger, or a 4.4 litre V8 with twin turbochargers.
The eight-cylinder 650i costs £7750 more, which buys precisely the same (electronically limited) top speed as the 640i and just 0.7 seconds shaved off the 0-62 acceleration time. The bigger engine pumps up running costs, with 10mpg less from every gallon and a CO2 output that is 64g/km higher. That bumps the VED category up three levels, doubling the cost of the annual road tax disc.
The six-cylinder car has a very adequate 315bhp on tap, more than enough for most of us, so it was a no-brainer to grab the key of a 640i Convertible for an unusually long test drive of almost 1500 miles from Malaga to London. Over that distance it consumed 67 litres less fuel – almost a tankful – than the 650i would have done.
Pace was inevitably dictated by speed limits, including the recently-lowered Spanish national limit at 110km/h. So, with one less fuel stop, the 640i was actually the quicker car for the trip.
BMW has pumped up the body dimensions just a little to shoehorn extra space into the 6-Series. It is now longer, wider and fractionally lower than its predecessor, with a slightly increased wheelbase. Legroom in the back seats has improved slightly, and for a sporty 2+2 it's pretty reasonable. You can realistically describe it as a car for four adults, and the boot is a fair size too with 350 litres of space when the hood is up, and 300 litres with it down.
It should be a given that a car costing over £65,000 would be able to swallow considerable distances and let you climb out un-fatigued, but it isn't necessarily so. The 640i certainly does, though. On the crossing-countries marathon it proved surprisingly comfortable with the top kept down over considerable distances, thanks to the hood's glass rear screen remaining in place when you power the top down, and a very effective mesh diffuser that pops in place over the rear seats.
With the deflector in position and heated seats on, two of us drove open-topped for more than half the trip back from Spain, and normal conversation without raised voices proved perfectly possible. We only put the roof up for some long motorway stretches to reduce the background volume of high-speed wind rush.
The multi-layer hood is excellent from an insulation viewpoint, taut and quiet when it's in place, but its fabric bulk does cause some drawbacks. With the hood up there are intrusive rear three-quarter blind spots that demand extra care in some situations, such as when joining a motorway. Driving roof-on also makes anyone sitting in the back feel rather enclosed.
Overall, the driving experience is superlative. The 640i has 332lb/ft of torque and is beautifully responsive, with huge reserves for overtaking. The automatic gearbox is eight-speed and can be controlled manually via steering column paddles.
Meaty brakes can rapidly haul back the performance, and there is plenty of steering feel from a set-up with just the right amount of power assistance. The previous 6-Series had a ride quality that was overly firm and prone to harshness in some situations, but that has been ironed out and is much more supple and controlled.
BMW's EfficientDynamics eco measures are now applied to the 6-Series, including automatic engine shut-down and brake regeneration, and they contribute to the 640i's combined economy of 35.8mpg and a CO2 figure of 185g/km. Those are really not too bad for a car with this level of performance.
The 6-Series comes equipped as standard with Drive Dynamic Control, to let you choose how responsive you want the throttle, gearshifts and steering to be. Head-Up Display is also standard. Variable suspension damping control is available as an option.
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