BMW 640d Gran Coupe review: Super Six!

Performance, ride and handling

The 640d is a special car as regards performance. BMW claim a 0-100km/h sprint time of 5.4 seconds for this machine. In practice, it means a churning sensation in your stomach, an increase in blood pressure and outbreak of grin inducing chemicals in your brain. The 640 Gran Coupe has the uncanny ability to turn your peripheral vision into motion blur in a flash. In Sport mode, just feathering the throttle serves up so much power on the platter that you tend to get somewhat intimidated. Double ton shows up on the speedo in a blaze. Regulation cars, no matter what speed they’re doing seem to be at a standstill. You want to feel like the master of the universe – hop in the Gran Coupe and get driving on Indian roads.

We recommend you keep the head-up display on, for the Gran Coupe doesn’t seem one bit perturbed at some really high speeds. Chances are, you’ll keep pushing the pedal not realizing you’re about to go supersonic – specs in the distance magically translate into smoke spewing Tata trucks in the blink of an eye and sooner than you realize, you’ll have a halo above your head. Extremely in control in a straight line, the Gran Coupe has the capability of making a mockery of the times you generally take travelling interstate.

BMW have been making some of the best engines in the automotive world for ages now, and this one is no different. As the rev needle swings past 4000 rpm, the subdued burble of the engine sounds like divine symphony emanating from a distance. Shouldering the responsibility of being a cross between a limo and a coupe, the Gran Coupe cannot take the liberty of being an all out sports car, and that’s exactly what the engine sound denotes – exciting, but without mimicking an all-out sports car.

Unlike some other new Beemers, the 640d still doesn’t have a fully electric power steering. The electromechanical unit feels thoroughly feelsome and offers great communication with the road-surface, more so in Sport mode. It feels quite heavy and lends an incredible amount of assuredness to car at high speeds. BMW’s Servotronic steering tech, which controls the amount of steering assistance to suit the speed of the vehicle, works its magic across the speed range.

The power is sent to the rear wheels, and even with the wide rubber providing shiploads of traction, it ‘s rather easy to see this baby’s tail coming out in the Sport+ mode, which sends the electronic babysitter (DSC) on a holiday. Even so, the 640d is incredibly well balanced and offers total control as you playfully make her move sideways. Steering feels neutral and as long as you know what you’re doing the beautiful tail just wags as you want it to.

With the ESP on, in Sport mode, the 6 series digs its fangs in the tar and offers a drive feel which is incredibly reassuring and quite unmatched in the segment. Even with its extensive length, substantial weight, and a torrent of torque, the 640d handles nimbly and feels much lighter than its weight.

Riding on massive 19inch wheels and shod with ultra wide and ultra thin 275 / 35 rubber (pun unintended) at the rear and a relatively moderate 245/40 tyres up front, the 640 Gran Coupe offers a rather stiff ride. While those ultra thin tyres go a long way in keeping this four door coupe glued in to the tar, a significant loss in primary suspension compromises comfort. This is further complemented by a low ground clearance of 126mm which made us take utmost care on every speed breaker to avoid scraping the belly of this beauty. In effect, the ride quality is significantly stiff as compared to, say, a 5-series, and the theory applies even in the Comfort mode. Personally, we would trade our clothes on our body for handling ability, and loved the no-compromise attitude exuded by the newest Beemer on the block. However, taking into consideration the road conditions in our country some may not appreciate the low clearance and stiff ride so much.

BMW have put their Dynamic Damper Control wizardry at work to help matters a bit. The technology features a control unit on each wheel which evaluates movements four hundred times a second and adjusts the shock absorbers for optimum comfort in any driving mode. The system works exceptionally fast – so if the front wheels come across a rough surface, the data is relayed to the rear wheels for optimum cushioning.

Unfortunately our politicos have messed our roads to such an extent that even such wizardry doesn’t quite work. The ground clearance of the Gran Coupe is an issue, and the only remedy is to be extremely cautious.

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