BMW M6 GranCoupe 2013 Track Review - International

BMW M6 Gran Coupe

What we liked:
>> Twin-turbo V8 engine – the power, the subtle tunes
>> Foolproof handling and great natural poise
>> Cabin finish

Not so much:
>> $70K more than M5?
>> Four seater for all intents and purposes
>> Not the most involving M-car

It seems the erroneously named four-door ‘coupe’ is here to stay. All three mainstream German luxury brands have models that fit the label – and intend to launch more.

Mercedes-Benz has the CLS on sale and soon the A-Class based CLA will join the fray. It has even stretched the definition to include a wagon! Audi’s Sportbacks fit the bill large and small and now BMW too is seeking to extend the concept – in addition to the 6 Series Gran Coupe tested here, there’s a ‘coupe’ version of an SUV (X6) and just around the corner expect an X4. The 4 Series Gran Coupe is therefore surely a formality.

Intended to offer the practicality of a four-door with the ‘emotion’ of a coupe, the genre seems to have struck a chord with well-heeled buyers. Though the lower roofed four-doors are unlikely to outsell their more sensible counterparts, they are selling. And, more’s the point, grabbing extra dollars and extra profit margin every time...

Little wonder then that the performance offshoots of the various brands are keen to get their carbon-fibre clad snouts into the trough. Think AMG, RS and, of course, BMW’s M sub-brand...

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT

Featuring the bi-turbo V8 and dual-clutch auto transmission running gear of the twin turbo F10 series M5, the M6 Gran Coupe arrives this month (June 2013) with an eye-watering price tag of $299,500... Or if you’d rather – $70,000 more than the car with which it shares almost every non-cosmetic component, the super capable M5.

Launched in Europe in April our Malaysian track drive of the M6 Gran Coupe corresponded with the car’s showroom arrival Down Under. BMW says it will sell around 15 M6 Gran Coupes in Australia between now and the end of the year. This compares to circa 60 for the M5. Clearly this car is not just about numbers... Well, not about sales numbers at least...

Positioned as a flagship of the M-car ‘sedan’ range, the M6 Gran Coupe offers a marginally higher level of equipment than the M5 on which it’s based.

Aside from the M-fettled running gear (M experts on hand in Malaysia reckon 80 per cent of components are changed in the evolution from 5 Series base car to M5/M6 super sedan), luxury and amenity items are myriad. High-spec audio and four-zone climate control systems are standard, as are a swag of driver aids including head-up display and BMW’s camera-based Driving Assistant, which incorporates lane departure and forward collision warning, et al. Adaptive LED headlamps are fitted and the usual auto lights, wipers and keyless entry and start are also included in the sticker price.

Incongruously, although the M6’s cruise control has a braking function, no active cruise control is offered – a lack of real estate at the pointy end of the car (blame multiple radiators, coolers and intercoolers) means there is no room for the radar antenna, nor separate foglamps for that matter.

Inside there’s a sumptuous cabin with lashings of high-grade Merino leather (including a hand-stitch dash and headlining) and an ‘interesting’ palette of interior shades from which to choose. There are five seat belts, but every other indication – including a centre console that wipes out any floor space for the centre rear passenger – says this is a four-seater.

Riding on the same wheelbase as the M5, at least the outer two rear occupants get decent legroom and foot space. Not necessarily headroom however. The M6 gets a scalloped carbon-fibre roof that is markedly lower than the M5's roof.

Options are many: plenty of trim choices plus a selection of wheels and even a carbon-ceramic braking system that is priced at $24,000. The ‘black’ brakes are full race-spec items and the 410/396mm ventilated carbon rotors last the life of the car.

Given the car’s elevated price tag, it seems cheeky that BMW wants $950 extra for a DAB+ digital radio tuner or $1800 for active front seats. The standard pews are at least heated and multi-adjustable.

From July 2013 build, the M6 GC will also offer the option of an M Competition Pack. This costs $12,000 and delivers an extra 11kW (gearbox longevity limits torque to the same 680Nm as the standard car), as well as a number of carefully chosen chassis tweaks. The effective steering ratio is changed to be more direct, damper rates and sway bar are revised and the electronically controlled adaptive M Differential is sharpened. There’s also a sports exhaust and unique 20-inch alloys.

The Getrag-built gearbox is a seven-speed dual-clutch unit that probably vies with Porsche’s PDK as the best execution of the multi-clutch gearbox to date. In auto mode shift times can be varied from smooth and syrupy to millisecond fast and furious. In manual mode using the steering wheel-mounted paddles makes changing gear a boy (or girl) racer's delight.

For the record (and frankly anyone who says they care is lying) gazetted combined fuel consumption is 9.9L/100km.

So is the M6 Gran Coupe worth the equivalent of an extra M135i over the M5? A quick trip to Sepang for BMW’s regional M Track Days 2013, provided motoring.com.au with some insight – though not a definitive answer. One answer is... Maybe... But only if you’re totally enamoured with the four-door coupe looks.

BMW’s M Track Days deliver regional owners, M fans and a small number of media the chance to experience a range of BMW’s hottest products in the safety of racetrack environs. Sepang, on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, was transformed from GP circuit to an M Division campus for the event and around 200 customers were exposed to the full range of M cars over five days.

It provided us a few laps in the M6 Grand Coupe and the ability to compare its dynamics in extremis to the M5 and M3. What it didn’t do is give us any on-road testing time. Those impressions will have to wait until we drive a car Down Under.

For the record, the M6 Gran Coupe is properly, seriously quick. Not just from a standing start, but rolling out of second and third gear corners. The engine is mega – torque rich but also eager to spin to the redline. Indeed, it has sufficient grunt for you to be checking if the M3 you’ve just jumped into (after the M6) is really running on all eight cylinders.

On Sepang’s short back (Southern Loop) straight it was easy to register 210km/h in the M5 and M6, while the M3 was lucky to top 190 – and you can easily guess which of the cars was coming out of the previous corner harder.

When compared to the lithe M3, the M6 Gran Coupe very much feels the bigger, heavier car, but that doesn’t mean it’s a slouch in the twisty bits – just not as good as the outgoing 3. Unlike some big fast cars, the M6 Gran Coupe’s front wheels feel well planted and driven appropriately understeer is rarely a concern.

Oversteer? Well, that’s another matter... Although mainly one of self discipline on the drivers’ behalf – or lack thereof...

But to our question of whether the M6 Gran Coupe is worth the extra dollars over the M5... Candidly, no. Driving M5 and M6 Grand Coupe back to back, it’s very difficult to feel any difference. That’s a measure of praise for the taller sedan. But remember too that the donor car, as well as being significantly cheaper, is also marginally lighter.

As pretty as the M6 Grand Coupe is (and it is a looker in the metal), the M5 is every bit as good as a driver’s car. Were this writer in this marketplace, I’d think of better ways to spend the $70,000 and plump for the M5.