# An article on the 645Ci



## London Talking (Mar 1, 2003)

*BMW 645CI
I wouldn't kick this out of my garage*
_By John Simister_

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*SPECIFICATIONS *

Model: BMW 645Ci: 
Price: £49,855. On sale March; 
Engine: 4,398cc, V8 cylinders, 32 valves, 333bhp at 6,100rpm; 
Transmission: Six-speed gearbox, rear-wheel drive; 
Performance: 155mph, 0-60 in 5.5sec, 24.1mpg official average; 
CO2: 283g/km.










It is fashionable to be rude about the way the new generation of BMWs looks. The opprobrium has made BMW's design director, Chris Bangle, a household name in the house of cars. Everyone has an opinion, most feel they could have done a better job. Opinions flourish when there is safety in numbers.

Now, Mr Bangle's act of sabotage: he has just derailed a bandwagon-load of this opinion-fodder, because BMW has just launched the first Bangle-BMW that is understandable, desirable even, in conventional terms. Meet the 6-series coupé, launched as a 645Ci but with other engine sizes to follow.

Yes, it is weird in places, but would you kick it out of your garage? I would not. This BMW bends the rules but does not break them. Aspects of it cause eyebrows to raise, the downward curve of the rear wings to emphasise the bootlid seemingly plonked on an otherwise sloping tail, for example, but they do not seem wilfully odd.

But Mr Bangle hotly denies selling his design soul. He cites the Z9 concept car of a few years ago, and how people railed against this first signpost to the new BMW look. Yet the 6-series is almost that car, with a higher bootline and without the gullwing doors, and here I am saying it looks almost normal. Maybe we are just shellshocked from what has happened since: 7-series, 5-series, Z4 et al.

Many BMW-lovers recall fondly the last 6-series which finished in 1989, but I thought it slab-sided, heavy-handed and devoid of BMW's usual elegance. This new one occupies today's version of that market niche; that it has a 4.4-litre, 333bhp V8 instead of a 286bhp straight-six shows how expectations have changed.

Today's 6-series has a benign, bleary-eyed face instead of the old one's pointy aggression, and technology is rampant beneath the paintwork. For example, the doors and the bonnet are made of aluminium, as are, in line with the 5-series, major parts of the suspension and the frontal structure.

Then there are the plastics: flexible mouldings for the front wings, as used by cars as diverse as the Rolls-Royce Phantom and the Renault Clio, and a resin-soaked, sheet-moulded composite for the bootlid. Various shapes show they cannot possibly be of metal, and BMW does not pretend they are.

Digging more deeply, we discover the same active steering offered, similarly optionally, on the new 5-series. This speeds the steering response at lower speeds when you want agility, slows it at higher speeds so you can sneeze without crashing. Dynamic Drive is another option, fitted to the car we drove; it counteracts body lean to force the BMW level in corners.

But, joy of joys, this tech-fest is not flaunted to the BMW's occupants. On the contrary, the cabin is a haven of restraint, modern and curvy and soft to the touch every where it should be, with just a casually-placed iDrive knob to hint at what circuitry lies beneath, stereo, navigation, air-conditioning and so on. But it has one big flaw: if you take a wrong turning through its menu path, you cannot just go back one notch. Often, you have to return to the beginning via the separate menu button. So it still infuriates.

But you will be surprised and delighted by the scuff-plates on the door sills. They contain a BMW graphic, which glows red as the interior lights come on. Had you earlier looked through the rear window along the centre tunnel, you might have seen a crossover of lines which, Mr Bangle says, calls to mind the legs of a pretty woman in a short dress. It's a view.

To drive? Will the 645Ci be a soft boulevardier such as the Lexus SC430, a hard-edged driving machine such as the Porsche 911, a cruiser with attitude such as the Mercedes SL? In fact, it is none of these things, and all of them. That is what it is one of the most beguiling car indulgences you will meet.

The engine begins the multi-tasking of the 645's personality. It hums like a six-cylinder at low speeds, building to a V8 beat as the pace rises. It thrusts up to high speeds with effortless, steam-engine-like energy, pulling happily up hills at just 1,200rpm then surging far past 6,000rpm, all in the same gear. Those outside hear a lovely crackle-edged exhaust note denied to occupants unless a window is lowered; it is worth doing.

The most enjoyment comes from a 645Ci with the standard six-speed manual transmission, because that best matches the huge grip and an agility hard to believe in a hefty car. Engine singing, thick-rimmed steering wheel flicking, this big BMW feels like a grown-up, more supple M3 after you have got used to the steering response quickening as you slow for a corner. It does not take long.

The best way to enjoy this car is as a full, driver-involving manual. That 645Ci is one of the most captivating cars I have driven this year.

*THE RIVALS*

Jaguar XK8: £48,700 
Closest conceptual rival is getting old now and lacks the BMW's rock-solid feel and road dynamics. More expensive, the supercharged XKR is still a desirable hot-rod.

Mercedes-Benz SL350: £56,345 
This cheapest SL makes do with a V6 engine and really needs the optional adaptive suspension to shine. Expensive, but you do get an excellent folding roof.

Porsche 911: £56,630 
Still the default choice for pace with agility and quality, the 911 remains a unique experience with its sound and its rear-mounted engine. Every drive is an event.


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