2018 BMW 6-series GT review, road test

Love the BMW 5-series but find the long-wheelbase new Merc E-class’ space hard to look beyond? BMW might have just the car for you in its new 6GT.

Published on May 16, 2018 08:00:00 AM

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6GT is much better turned-out than its predecessor but still has its bulky angles.

The driving environment is very similar to what you’d get in a 5-series, but you do sit higher up in here.

Lest the model nomenclature leads you to believe the 6GT gets a lusty 3.0-litre straight-six petrol engine, know that ‘630i’ today implies a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, twin-scroll, single turbo, petrol engine under the hood. It’s the same unit that powers the 330i and 530i, but, interestingly, the engine makes slightly more power and significantly more torque in this application. The 630i’s power figure reads 258hp (vs the 330i and 530i’s 252hp), while torque is up to 400Nm (vs 350Nm) here. The 630i’s power and torque numbers look particularly shining when seen in light of the comparable petrol E-class; the E 200’s 2.0-litre turbo-petrol makes 184hp and 300Nm. And the difference in performance is rather telling too. We managed a launch control-assisted 0-100kph time of 6.94sec for the 630i. That’s a full 1.7sec less than what the E 200 takes; even in kickdown acceleration, it’s the Bimmer that has the big lead.

Of course, you get the best out of the engine and gearbox with the drive mode set to Sport. Press down hard on the throttle pedal and what you’ll get is a sustained pull right until the top end, following which the slick eight-speed auto will snap in with an upshift (you can shift manually too) and get the engine right into the heart of the powerband, ready for another long lunge to the limiter. There are no flat spots and the feeling is of power being evenly distributed across the rev range. Accompanying the strong performance is a satisfying snarl from the engine that just adds to the experience. How many owners will experience this exciting side of their 630i though remains to be seen.

Comfort mode dials things down a bit but still never leaves you wanting in terms of performance. There’s a steady stream of power when you need it, so Comfort works just fine as a default setting. Eco Pro mode dulls responses in the quest for best efficiency but the good bit is it’s not entirely unusable. Sure, responses are borderline lazy, but in bumper-to-bumper traffic, it’s really not an issue. A happy consequence of Eco Pro shifting to the highest possible gear is that the 630i runs at its quietest in this mode which is something owners might appreciate. Our sound tests reveal the 630i is quieter than the E 200 at idle and at max revs, but trails the Merc on noise levels at 50kph and 80kph. The BMW’s engine runs vibe-free and refinement levels, in general, are of a high order.