BMW Introduces 6 Series Gran Coupe to the Ring

[deadlyrhythm]

Is it really a '6er' then? If BMW still plans on coupes going to even numbers (example, 2 and 4 series), why is the 6 series so different?

... Stupid iPhone app blows...

[Frosty]

coupe1    /kup/ Show Spelled[koop] noun
1. Also, coupé. a closed, two-door car shorter than a sedan of the same model.
2. coupé ( defs. 1–3 ) .

Origin: 1825–35; < French coupé (in defs. 1 and 2 short for carrosse coupé cut (i.e., shortened) coach), past participle of couper to cut off, verbal derivative of coup coup; compare cope1


Ever since the onset of the CLS eons before the 6-Grancoupe and A7 the whole idea of dumping a 4 door sedan into the Coupe category is anoying, everything fusiform is a coupe now.... ok.. stepping off my soap box ~Frost

[BMW BRAD]

For a four door 6er, that thing looks pretty BADAZZ! It looks slammed takin' the twisties...... The wheels look pretty damn good as well! I dont see myself in the market for one, but it looks a lot better than the A7.......

[ORIGIN M.]

Really

It is funny how marketing works...

A proper Coupe' does not come with 4 doors. Period!

Originally Posted by Diver

4 door coupe is where it's at.

[Gymkhana]

Well....while Audi A7 looks like just another toy with those fancy glowing things around front lights,this BMW shares the same idea. Its nothing but 2 more doors to 6 series coupe. And here mercedes comes and breaks down this silly "add-2-doors-and-brand name-will-do-its-work" scheme. CLS looks nothing like all other mercedes from my view. Its the only 4-door coupe body that is really full of uniqueness and beauty. i mean,just take a look at those CLS AMG pictures for example. Have a walk to the nearest merc dealer and Listen to those baritone being growled by its powerful engine. I got nothing against BMW at all,id even say its my favorite car maker,but this one....is just another unnecessary thing,as well as their plans on FWD model.

[SCOTT26]

It is called Gran Coupe but it is really designated as Sport Sedan.
If the 3er , 5er and 7er are Sedans the 6er Gran Coupe is a Sport Sedan in the grand sense as the Gran Coupe is out of BMW's three sedans the lowest in terms of height - It really is that sleek.

Of course the Gran Coupe Sport Sedan will have a unique sense of occasion.
And we are currently working with "Individual" compositions of exclusive paint and interior combinations to further that ambition.
It will be one of BMW's most exclusive models yet in it's mix of sporting elegance and pure luxury.

The M model when it arrives in 2013 will be highly worthy of the term flagship.

[BMW269]

The 6 Series GranCoupé is a 6 Series Coupé with two more doors added, for this reason it is a true Coupé with 4 doors, much more than the A7 or CLS. Coupés usually have frameless windows, and this is the case of 6 Series GC, A7 and CLS, what is not so with other sedans such as 5/7 Series, A6/A8, E-/S-Class. Frameless windows is something that could qualify a car being a Coupé. The worst case in car industry today is the C-Class Coupé, that is a true Coupé, car with two doors and shorter than C-Class Sedan, but does not have the nice frameless windows.

[BL 5]

I really like those wheels. It looks bad a$$!

[xDrive35i]

Whine all you want, there's a market for this car. Think of the CLS as an E-coupe with more rear flexibility. If you want the style and cool-factor of a coupe but you don't want to have to push the seats forward to get to the backseat, you get a CLS. Approximately same rear legroom, just shorter front doors and some extra doors in the back. Your weekend car can be your everyday car. Your mid-life crisis doesn't have to make you look like an ass with a sunburnt bald spot. This car will sell similar numbers compared to the coupe and convertible.

And call it ugly all you want, but the already thousands of A7 owners won't care. They're enjoying their cars, and why shouldn't they?

[GreyCoupe]

deadlyrhythm,

Your question is at the heart of a lot of discussion about the Gran Coupe. Some think that it ought not be called a 6 because it is not a two-door coupe. Because of that, I for one do not think it belongs in 6 series..."6 series sedan" does not flow smoothly off the tongue.

That said, and it may be true, that this anomaly cannot be understood without being party to what BMW is planning in terms of managing and growing its other series families over coming years, and adding new ones, to your point, 2, 4 and 8.

In my view, the Gran "Coupe" is everything that the 5 series should be. My bet is the differentiator will be price. Recent 6 series have been successful carving out a big coupe niche and being profitable there. As to those who see the 6GC competing with the MB CLS, I think pricing will prevent that. As the 6GC will very likely be priced similarly to the existing 6 series, this will bring it in well over the CLS, but under the MB S cars.

And that is the niche that BMW seeks with the 6 and expanding the 6GC into this space. And if it can pull it off, it will be a marketing coup, while still not a coupe... /:-).

If this works for BMW and I think it will, it will be brilliant. They have effectively created a new "shelf" in terms of pricing and positioning...with very little competition. Establishing this was the mission of E63/64, and it accomplished it.

This leaves 7 pricing to float upward with S, and widens the "shelf space" it has captured in the 6 price range. More car [and money] than 5 or E, but less than 7 or S, without lots of Audi and other competition.

And if they elect to, this slots the 8 to go after SL/CL buyers at some point, and the possibility of 2 and 4 to slot between MB B and C, and C and E respectively.

Finally, one can no longer look at these series or classe families without considering what kind of plan is needed for slotting the non gas, non diesel cars. For BMW we are seeing the beginnings of this with the i8.

Anyway, I think the 6 series brand management in terms of carving out a niche where there is no obvious competition to be brilliant, and to "shirt-tail" sedan into the mix will likely be profitable. It's a puzzle that doesn't make much sense until we can see the other pieces, now hidden.

[datbimmerdoe]

hubba hubba!! can't wait 4 m-sport!