2008 BMW Review

Specifications

For a brand that prides itself in performance, technology and now
efficiency, there is an almost unexpectedly high level of focus on
styling at BMW. See one of their cars roll by on the street and chances
are it’s going to stir a powerful reaction, especially if it’s a car
so heavily entrenched in style as the 6-Series.

I’ve
heard a lot of people talk about the 6, some rave about it while
others have less kind things to say. Whether the styling is up your
alley or not, this is a car that commands attention and deserves
respect. Looking at the 6 against BMW’s products from a generation
ago, there has been a less than subtle transition from what was
once minimalist to a degree of starkness. BMWs were typically
Germanic, holding their place on the continuum of Audi and
Mercedes-Benz, living on safe ground. Anyone can do safe and
conservative, but it takes effort to be bold, and it takes guts to put
passion into design that finds form beyond mere function.

But
I didn’t always think of the 6 that way. It took an eye-opening
seminar, headed by BMW’s Chief of Design, Chris Bangle, for me to gain
that appreciation of what BMW was doing with the 6 and its other cars.
The idea was to encapsulate the BMW hallmarks - the twin kidney grille, the
Hofmeister kink rear window, the corona headlamps - and take the
rest of the car to the next level in order to create a new,
groundbreaking identity. And indeed, it has. BMW does bold like no
other, but even today you can see elements of modern BMW trickle into
other brands, carmakers too conservative to take big risks all on their own. You can see the oft ridiculed “Bangle Butt”, the separated trunk lid
and tucked fenders, on the S-Class and the Lexus LS, not to mention Hyundai’s Azera. And yet, as
opinions may divide, BMW’s sales have never been better. Like I said,
respect is what the brand deserves.

With its
traditional sports car proportions of a long nose, short overhangs and big
wheels, the 6-Series is quite honestly the closest thing to modern art
on four wheels. The flatness of the facial features work well,
creating a low-slung and somewhat intimidating look, and between it an
the 7-Series, the two cars with prominent, block-like backsides, it
looks fitting here. It might be me, but I happen to see a lot of old
911 Turbo from the rear three-quarters, especially the one with the big
whale-tail. And yet, the way it all comes together in the 6 makes it pop.
It doesn’t suffer the “designed by committee” look that a disconcerting number
of vehicles suffer from, but rather it makes you take notice in a highly individualistic way. No, it’s not just another pretty
car. It’s a BMW.

And while I appreciate
what BMW has done stylistically, the fact that the rest
of the car measures up to the design is what matters more. After all, to look modern is one thing, but to be
modern and stay modern is another. On that note, the 650i has been
updated for this year, with ever so slightly different bumpers, side
sills and new headlamps that feature LED turn signals. These changes
are so minor, you’re unlikely to spot them unless you know exactly what
you’re looking for.

Whether
considering the constantly changing ratios of Active Steering, which
grants the 6 the poise of a ballerina on tight, slipstream roads and
rock-solid confidence at high speeds, or the Dynamic Drive active
anti-roll bar system which allows it to float over bumpy roads without interfering with its cornering prowess, the 6-Series uses technology to the fullest of its
potential. There’s no compromise here for having those large, alloy
wheels or thin-profile runflat tires; the 6 simply allows you to
accomplish more while doing less. Cool, calm, and collected has never
been a more appropriate tagline for the 6. Tackle your favorite road,
and you’ll find that your heartbeat might elevate, but you’ll never
break a sweat.

The more you delve into
the depths of the 6, the more clear it is that it’s very much the
businessman’s grand-touring toy, or the control freak’s sports car.
It’s ultra comfortable and impeccably built, but where it differs from an XK
or CLK is that it constantly reminds its driver of how advanced it is. The
head-up display delivers the info you need to know right there in
front of your eyes. iDrive lets you control even minute details of
the vehicle, and it now offers eight customizable memory points for
storing your most accessed contacts. It’s capable of interacting with
Blackberries, iPods and Bluetooth-equipped phones, all controlled
through the iDrive interface. Even something as simple as the automatic gearshift
lever has been advanced, with the physical linkages severed and
replaced by electric cables.

Many
cars offer adaptive cruise control of some sort, but only a handful,
incidentally the original group of cars to offer it in the first place,
have the ability to completely stop the car, and not just slow it down
to 20 mph or so. BMW calls it Stop & Go, and indeed the 6 is
more than capable of dealing with stop and go traffic. It’s an issue of
trust to be able to allow this $80,000+ machine to control its
own destiny by throttle and brake, but sure enough the system works. I
tested it out driving through the downtown core of a small city, and
provided I was behind another vehicle, it worked like a charm. The
system doesn’t read traffic signs, so you do have to keep an eye out,
but on the open road you can set it and take it easy. And while it
doesn’t understand the meaning of a stop sign, the 650i understands
painted lines on the road, and will quite literally keep you from
straying over the straight and narrow with its Lane Departure Warning
system.

And just when you think the
650i couldn’t feature any more advancements, it pulls out an ace from
under its sleeve. Push the little button labeled with a crescent, to
the right of the headlight switch, and the iDrive screen projects the
road ahead, depicted through infra-red heat. Yes, you read that right,
the 650i has night vision technology. Wow factor aside of being able to
spot things in the dead of night that aren’t visible to the naked eye,
it isn’t the perfect solution to night-time driving. Its positioning,
to the center of the car, isn’t in the driver’s direct line of sight.
Secondly, the field of vision is quite narrow, which means you’re
unlikely to spot things in the periphery, the area where deer, raccoons
and other roadkill fodder are likely to jump out of. It is quite a cool
feature, and these things aside, it works well, but BMW would have done well to study the night vision forerunner, Cadillac, which integrated its system into the head-up display unit of its Deville DTS so that it appeared on the windshield, just below the driver’s sight lines.

Even if the 6-Series were plainly clothed and were no better stocked
with gadgets than your average six-figure grand tourer, it would still
shine brilliantly, because behind the wheel it’s impossible not to see
how brightly it shines. Yes, it is based off of the 5-Series, but you
could do a whole lot worse than to base a coupe after one of the best
handling sedans on the planet. I’d even be willing to bet that the
6-Series is a better drive, thanks to its slightly more sporting
setup. The brakes are good, and the six-speed automatic transmission,
with its Sport mode and paddles, delivers upshifts as smooth and precise
as one could wish.

Sitting behind the
wheel, the 650i is comfortable and cozy; you sit low in it, snugly
seated between the high doors and the deep console. And while the
headliner is anthracite, the cabin is remarkably light and spacious
feeling. It’s the giant, tinted panoramic glass roof that’s letting the
light in. The only thing is that while it tilts, it doesn’t slide.
Still, it makes a world of difference to the cabin. And while most
people don’t consider grand tourers like the 650i to have much by the
way of rear room, it’s vastly more practical than a 911 or an XK. In
fact, the only coupes I can think of that might match it is Maserati’s new
GranTurismo and perhaps the Audi S5, or Bentley’s Continental GT at twice the price. Thanks to that raised trunk lid,
there’s also an astonishingly large cargo hold, too.


If
there is something that I wish BMW would intensify, it’s certainly not
the driving experience, which is precisely honed and rich in feel, and I wouldn’t touch its comfort levels either, as the 650i is just as comfortable as a 5-Series
with the Dynamic Drive suspension. I can’t even complain about fuel
economy either; paired to the automatic transmission, the V8 manages 23 mpg on the highway, and has a cruising range that’s over 500 miles. What would further help its case for me is sound. The Logic7
system is clear and powerful, and the iPod integration works
brilliantly, but you know this isn’t what I’m talking about. The
6-Series is limousine quiet, but I’d love to hear more of the 4.8’s bark;
although you do get a nice earful when you really step into it and let
all 360 horses flow, plus the deep-throated woof when it’s fired up.

As
a grand tourer, the 650i is a success. It’s a reminder of how driving
should be a highlight of every trip. It’s the sort of car that you’ll
want to take across the country instead of flying. It delivers the sense of
control, agility and balance of a 5 with the relaxing features of a 7,
integrated into the body of a traditional coupe. If not for the styling or the
drive, it’s the modernity that makes the 6-Series what it is.