First official pics: All-new BMW 6 Series

BMW has released the first official images of its new 6 Series Coupe, which makes its public debut at the upcoming Paris motor show.

Although billed as a "concept", what you're looking at is almost exactly how the production reality (which launches in mid-2011) will look, according to BMW design boss Adrian van Hooydonk.

What's clear from the images is that this time around the company is treading a much more conservative path than it did with the current-gen model, which has managed to alienate at least some buyers with its awkward high bootlid and fussy detailing.

By contrast, the new model is distinguished by clean, uncluttered styling (almost to the extent that it borders on blandness). Not surprisingly, it bears a strong family resemblance to the recently released F10 5 Series sedan, with which it shares its mechanical underpinnings.

Its overall proportions remain true to the long-bonnet-short-tail coupe formula, and the glasshouse/roofline with customary Hofmeister kick harks back to the enduring E24 6 Series (1976-89).

In the words of BMW: "The principal bodywork lines extend over the entire length of the concept, while the various body sections meld together as if made of one piece."

The concave and convex contours of the car's flanks are essentially a contemporary interpretation of BMW's so-called 'flame surfacing', and the company adds that the "interplay of linear and sculpted forms is inspired by the wave motion on the surface of a sea exposed to the winds and the tidal ebb and flow."

Of more tangible benefit are the full-LED headlights (a first for the brand), which are said to provide intense precision illumination, as well as incorporating adaptive headlight functionality.

The daytime driving lights take the form of LED rings (a BMW trademark), while the L-shaped rear lights were conceived to establish a visual link between the sides and the rear of the vehicle.

A pair of LED light strips in the tail-lights create the familiar BMW night-time look, an effect enhanced by the L-shaped lower light unit. The indicators and brake lights are also LED-powered.

The cabin is an embodiment of BMW's less-is-more minimalist philosophy, and there's clever use of a variety of trim materials, colours and contours -- most notably the sweeping arc that extends from the glovebox to the centre armrest.
 
Also nicely executed is the freestanding, 10.2-inch control display for the iDrive system perched above the centre console.
 
BMW hasn't announced any technical nitty-gritty for now, but -- going on the images -- it appears the new 6 is slightly wider and lower than its forerunner.
 
The engine line-up will comprise BMW's current range of inline sixes and V8s, with the next M6 cranking out over 400kW from its twin-turbocharged 4.4-litre V8.

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