BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe makes global debut

Having spawned the Coupe and Convertible variants off the 3 Series family to create the 4 Series range, BMW now expands the new model lineage to include a Gran Coupe variant.

Unlike the four-door 6 Series Gran Coupe, however, the rear of the 4 Series Gran Coupe opens a hatch rather than a boot, making for inevitable comparisons with the Audi A5 Sportback. It also seems positioned amazingly close to the 3 Series Gran Turismo, which sports a similar five-door aeroback silhouette, albeit with a taller ride height.

Sharing platforms with its Coupe and Convertible siblings, the F36 4 Series Gran Coupe sports exactly the same footprint as its two-door counterpart, stretching the tape measure at 4,638mm stem-to-stern and spanning 1,825mm wide, with a wheelbase of 2,810mm.

With an extended roofline, however, the Gran Coupe not only offers additional headroom compared to the two-door, but also an additional 38 litres of boot space, totaling 480 litres; backrests of the rear seats allow 40:20:40 split-folding to enable expansion of cargo volume to a maximum of 1,300 litres. The rear hatch comes standard with powered operation; a Smart Opener feature which allows Ford Kuga-like foot-triggered operation can be additionally specified.

BMW’s familiar array of 2.0-litre four- and 3.0-litre six-cylinder engines are once again called upon to power the 4 Gran Coupe. Petrol power is supplied by the 2.0-litre N20 twin-scroll turbo mill producing 184hp/270Nm for the 420i and 245hp/350Nm for the 428i. The six-cylinder 3.0-litre 435i tops the range for the time being with 306hp and 400Nm.

On the diesel front, BMW’s 2.0-litre N47 turbodiesel is offered in 143hp/320Nm and 184hp/380Nm states of tune, powering the 418d and 420d respectively. In Summer 2014, they will be joined by the 430d and 435d, with 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbodiesels pushing out 258hp/560Nm and 313hp/630Nm respectively.

Except for the six-cylinder diesels, all variants of the 4 Series Gran Coupe come with six-speed manual transmissions and rear-wheel drive as standard; ZF’s now-familiar 8-speed auto is optionally available for all variants and is standard for the 430d and 435d. The 435d will also come with xDrive AWD as standard; xDrive will initially be offered as options for the 420d and 428i, though this upgrade will eventually be offered to the 420i and 435i as well.

KON

Pictures: Official BMW release