2005 BMW 6 Series Review

Specifications

The Makings of a Future Classic

Since first setting eyes upon the 645 Ci during its introduction in Malaga, Spain, it continues to stir up the emotional half of my soul. You see, Ive been longing after a BMW coupe for as long as Ive wanted a car, which is pretty well from my first year onwards.

The first 3.0 CS that caught my eye was at a used car dealer in my home town, Fjord Blue with dark blue leather hides, it was a sight to behold. The 630, 633, 635 and M6 models that came later set the luxury coupe benchmark for years to come, but no imitator managed to build a sporty two-door as elegantly styled and enjoyable to drive as BMWs original 6.

The new 645 Ci follows in this tradition. It is breathtaking, in design and driving dynamics. I coursed the Spanish mountains that surround the Mediterranean hotspot in all powertrain variations, which include one engine and three transmission choices. The 6-speed manual will forever be my favorite, but the cars 6-speed automatic with Steptronic manual-mode actuation is also an excellent gearbox, as is the paddle-shift operated 6-speed SMG sequential manual.

The opportunity to drive the 6 came again in and around Los Angeles, California the following year, at the North American introduction of the coupe and convertible model. Again, what a superb drivers car; comfortable, precise and wonderfully quick.

While driving Californias circuitous roadways, trimmed with majestic palms framing glorious seascapes, is a memory forever etched into the recesses of my mind, I find tooling round Vancouver gave a better indication of the cars overall livability. To this end the 645 Ci offers comfortable accommodations for two, while its rear seats are great for kids and useful to a couple of extra adults in a pinch. Trunk space is generous for this class of car, at 15.9 cubic feet, making the 6 ideal for getting away from it all; luggage in tow.

But truly, BMWs new coupe wasnt designed to be its most practical offering. Its a statement of personal style, most likely complementing an X5 or 7-Series parked in the adjacent stall. While all of BMWs vehicles are biased towards enthusiast driving, the coupe combines the compliant ride of a larger sedan with the handling prowess of a sports car. Its not as edgy as a Porsche 911, per say, yet delivers performance that will have many a Carrera driver eating humble pie.

And that from a cabin which is both elegant, in a contemporary Germanic way, and expertly put together. BMW has long been a leader in fit, finish and materials quality, with the 6 portraying some of its best work to date. Most surfaces are soft to the touch, switchgear unsurpassed in its segment, and ergonomically it is as well laid out as cars get. To that end the seats are very supportive, with effective side bolsters and multiple adjustments.

I played around with the cars innovative iDrive infotainment system, which is much improved over the system I initially tested in the 7, and once again found it easy to operate after spending a little time getting acclimatized. For those who dont like knobs and buttons, all you have to do is tell it what to do verbally after pressing the voice command button on the steering wheel. It follows orders well, and simplifies operating the cars various systems so that you can get onto the job at hand, driving.

Now that were talking both driving and technical innovations, the 6 is offers a plethora of engineering firsts to enhance time spent behind the wheel. One of my favorite new duos is active steering combined with BMWs dynamic drive technology. Essentially active steering adapts the steering ratio to vehicle speed, but its electric motor assisted, planetary gear motivated rack-and-pinion system is much more sophisticated than conventional speed sensitive steering systems, common to most luxury cars. When parking, steering response to input is much quicker, at about 1.7 turns lock to lock. At high speed, that ratio relaxes significantly to allow incredible stability.

Dynamic drive effectually flattens out curves, adjusting to road surface imperfections before the actual bumps and dips occur. The 645 Cis ride is not only smoother than rival sport coupes, but its handling is also much improved.

Power comes by way of BMWs sensational 32-valve, dual-overhead cam, 4.4L V8, producing a lusty 325-horsepower at 6,100 rpm and 330 lb-ft of torque at 3,600 rpm. While quick blasts to highway speeds were great fun in Vancouver, it was during my previous drive through Spain that I learned exactly how well the 6 performs at high-speed. It remains level to the ground, totally stable and totally in control no matter the velocity. Only a particularly slick stretch of rain-soaked polished pebble roadway caused any stability problems, and then the 6s various electronic driver aids, such as Cornering Brake Control (CBC), Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), Dynamic Traction Control and Dynamic Brake Control (DBC), quickly took over to thwart any potential trouble.

I also took the opportunity to test out BMWs Active Cruise Control (ACC), which maintained a safe distance from all cars ahead, and found the 645s head-up display (HUD), which projects important information on the lower corner of the windscreen, quite useful as well. The cars LOGIC7 audio system is amazing, making symphonic music sound better than when taking in the VSO at the Orpheum - less coughing from spectators I suppose.

For me, the new 645 Ci is a significant improvement over any previous BMW coupe. Its design and overall execution, inside and out, is inspirational, with fine attention paid to the minutest of details, all in an effort to make its ownership experience second to none. Its the makings of a future classic.