A fat 552 horsepower. Earth-shifting torque. A 189mph top speed. The BMW M6 is the fastest two-door car BMW has ever made, serves a magnificently indulgent sound-track and provides the kind of detail features that enthusiasts love to linger over.
It’s a close relative of the M5 saloon of course, sharing the same 552bhp twin-turbo V8, seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and chassis hardware, although the body has been strengthened and cleaves a cleaner path through the air.
Beef this car has plenty of in terms of power and mass, the M6 Coupe weighing a 1850kg despite its alloy skinned doors, carbon roof, composite front wings, alloy suspension and this example’s optional carbon-ceramic brakes.
That weight has an inevitable impact, even if this BMW carries its heft with remarkable composure.
On the chicanes of the Ascari Raceway it flaunts amazing body control as it darts from apex to apex, and manages equally flop-free responses when you stick its tail sideways, change direction at high speeds, spear a kerb or slam on the brakes. That’s in sinew-stiffening sport plus, but even in comfort, its damping is always controlled.
You can also shift the steering’s weighting across three modes, but in none does its stylish rim provide much info about grip and slip-angles, this tactile shortfall a disappointment in such a driver-oriented car.
So is the sometimes surprising lack of response from the transmission, even in the most hectic modes – often, it’s better to paddle your way to performance.
These shortfalls, plus a ride likely to turn busy on British surfaces in sport, make a faintly less satisfying device of the M6 than it ought to be. Especially when it costs over £20k more than an M5, and much the same for a nimbler, if slower, 911.
BMW M6 Coupe
Price: £93,820; 0-62mph: 4.2sec; Top speed: 155mph (189mph delimited); Economy: 28.5mpg; Co2: 232g/km; Kerbweight: 1850kg; Engine: V8, 4395cc; Power: 552bhp at 6000rpm; Torque: 502lb ft at 1500rpm; Gearbox: 7-spd dual-clutch
I have probably missed the point of this, but if I was spending £100k on a car I doubt it would be my only car so I would not be planning to use it on trackdays and would not need the Sport setting on the suspension given that I use UK roads; I would also want 3 pedals in the footwell while I still have 2 working legs!
For a similar budget why not buy a 650Ci to waft about in and to tow a trailer carrying a Caterham, Ginetta, or something similarly focussed for the trackdays!
toptidy@
Is the Vanquish a hnudred grand better?, and in what way?,it's no faster,not any more better built,and near identical top speed,so what are we really paying for?.....the kudos of saying i've got an Aston,no, give me the BMW,gives me what i want for £100,000 less.
Peter Cavellini.
Come to think of it, this car's even more boring than the new Yaris. How can BMW make a car like this so boring? My £100k would go on a far superior GT-R and I'd keep the significant amount of change. And if I really wanted a BMW (which I don't, especially at this price), I'd get an M5 and keep the change and have a more practical car. This thing fills a pointless gap in the market and commands a steep pricetag for the 'privilege'.
The only diesel engine to accompany the A3 saloon at its launch is smooth, refined, and of worthy consideration
We find out whether Audi's turbocharged 1.4-litre petrol engine is up to the challenge of hauling around the bigger, heavier A3 saloon
The Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid is the world's most advanced luxury petrol-electric hybrid, but can it live up to its 91mpg billing?
The new Maserati Ghibli is a premium saloon, based on the same root architecture as the Quattroporte, that's designed to rival the BMW 5-series
It's the world's most appealing electric car – but does that make it an appealing car?
