The Opinion: BMW 640d Gran Coupe ‘BMW has missed a trick’

There seems to be a niche for everything nowadays, and BMWBMWGermany, 1918 > present87 models
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43 videos
has filled another gap with the Gran CoupeBMW 640d Gran CoupeGermany, 2012 > present3 photos
.

Since MercedesMercedes-BenzGermany, 1924 > present197 models
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launched the CLSMercedes-Benz CLS-ClassGermany, 2003 > present2 series
67 versions
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in 2005, and sold rather a lot of them, its competitors have been falling over themselves to join the fray. Most obvious are the Audi A7Audi A7Germany, 2010 > present39 versions
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and the BMW Gran Coupe but we can even add the Porsche PanameraPorsche Panamera Gen.1 [970]Germany, 2009 > present31 versions
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to the list.

It is certainly an attractive way to go about your motoring if you can afford to plump for one of these ‘four door coupe’s’ and they have provided a reason to change for people with families who have got bored of saloon cars and the dowdy image that goes with them. The four-door coupe looks sportier and should be more fun to drive than its saloon car brethren.

The 640d scores an early victory as you walk up to it. The BMW is svelte looking and despite being a big car it manages to absorb the extra doors without looking convoluted.

Once you climb inside it all becomes very familiar with a large, current generation, satellite navigation screen and chunky steering wheel that we have become accustomed to over the last few years. The good news for BMW is that the resulting interior architecture is executed well enough to be carried off even in a car with a £80,000 price tag (with options) such as this one. Maybe it is not ultra-special, but it is a nice place to be nonetheless.

BMW 640d Gran Coupe 2012 183 cu in 313 hp @ 4400 rpm 155 mph 5.4s

Mercedes-Benz CLS 350 CDI BE Auto 2011 182 cu in 265 hp @ 3800 rpm 155 mph 6.2s

view full comparison

The next aspect of significant importance, and something that BMW has traditionally been good at, is the way the big BMW moves down the road.

‘Big’ is an important word here.  When you’re sitting up front in the driver’s pew the Gran Coupe feels like a very big car indeed, yes it has an extra couple of seats over the ‘normal’ coupe but it feels almost like a stretch limousine, albeit an agile one. This feeling of size is exacerbated by a lack of visibility in comparison to BMW’s own standard saloon cars. By ensconcing the driver low down and refining the looks with a low set roof line BMW has contrived to limit the driver’s own view out of the car.

BMW has also fallen into a trap that I thought it has learned about with its current crop of cars. Recent BMWs have been massively improved in terms of ride quality, with sporting dynamics linked to a cosseting ride. However the Gran Coupe has regressed. In an attempt to make its new four-door coupe ‘sporty’ it has removed the cosseting ride and ride quality is important in an expensive four-door car.

Where the Gran Coupe cannot be faulted it in the drive train department. The three litre six cylinder diesel is one of the great engines in 40d trim, producing 309bhp and injecting the kind of fun into big diesel motoring that motoring has been devoid of for so may years. This engine is economical and fast and responsive!

It gets even better though. BMW has linked it up to ZF’s eight speed automatic gearbox, which shifts seamlessly and utilizes the torque characteristics of the diesel engine. As combinations go this one is akin to putting Kate Moss in Versace.
The 640d Gran Coupe has all of the ingredients to make a great car but in the making BMW has concocted something that falls short in some key areas, so for now, despite the engine, the Mercedes CLS remains king of the hill.

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