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Car and Driver pits the BMW M6 Gran Coupe against the Audi RS7 and Mercedes-Benz CLS63 AMG S-Model. The M6 Gran Coupe is powered by an S63Tü high-revving V8 engine with M TwinPower Turbo technology delivering 412 kW/560 hp and 680 Newton metres (502 lb-ft) on tap between 1,500 and 5,750 rpm, while maximum output is developed between 6,000 and 7,000 rpm. The engine revs to a maximum of 7,200 rpm. 0-60mph is achieved in 4.1 seconds with a top speed limited to 155mph. The engine is matted to a 7-speed M Double Clutch Transmission. The BMW just placed second in this comparison. Learn why on this excerpt below:
BMW’s M6 Gran Coupe, on the other hand, faces an uphill battle. Its good looks can’t mask its close kinship to the disappointing M5 that placed last in our previous test. The Gran Coupe rides on the same 116.7-inch wheelbase, is powered by the same 4.4-liter blown V-8, and uses many of the same chassis components as its 5-series equivalent. Ponderous and plodding, the M5 shuns M-brand hallmarks of litheness and agility. But it should be noted that the M division’s philosophical approach with the Gran Coupe—how it tunes the bushings, springs, dampers, and anti-roll bars—sounds closer to how it views the sharper, sportier M6 coupe than the bulky M5 sedan.
We’ve been tough on the 6-series Gran Coupe, which isn’t even a coupe. You know, one more example of a brand-expansion scheme that’s out of control. But if Mercedes and Audi get a pass with their mid-size, four- and five-door “coupes,†why shouldn’t BMW? There’s an even better rationalization for the M6 Gran Coupe, though: It’s a stronger car than the M5.
That discovery is difficult for us to wrap our heads around, as the two cars are so similar. Yet the M6 Gran Coupe was repeatedly praised for its performance in this test, both subjectively and objectively. It recorded the fastest slalom time thanks to prodigious grip and unflappable stability. The optional carbon-ceramic brakes have great top-of-pedal response, and the M6’s stopping distance was just one foot longer than the RS7’s.
The weighty steering isn’t as quick as we might like, but it reacts to every small adjustment. And in the Gran Coupe’s body motions, there’s no evidence of the M5’s nervous up-down clip. The Gran Coupe masters ride and handling trade-offs in a way that’s been notably missing from other recent BMWs. Even in sport-plus mode, the M6 retains a suppleness that’s absent from the Audi and the Mercedes.
The torque delivery from the 4.4-liter engine is especially linear, smoothing out the typical turbo wallop and placing both the power peak and redline higher in the rev range. The 552-hp M engine also sounds like no other turbo eight-cylinder. Higher pitched and with a prominent turbo whir, it’s part sci-fi special effects (some of the soundtrack actually comes from the stereo speakers) and part race-bred howl.
