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Luxury brands’ bean counters have severely stretched their products’ DNA. Merc’s bank vault gestalt took an enormous hit over the last twenty years. Bimmer’s SMG gearbox, iDrive multi-media controller, run-flat tires, SUV and dumbed down steering are a worrying divergence from their Ultimate Driving machine ethos. The aforementioned Lexus IS’ harsh driving dynamics bear scant resemblance to their magic carpet LS flagship. Only Audi creates a range of automobiles with brand-faithful consistency. – TTAC

I’m seriously impressed by what the GT-R accomplishes, and it serves out ferocious performance for the money. I get it. But I just can’t love it… The GT-R is too heavy and too computer controlled for my taste. Editor MacKenzie recently blogged about a similar drive in the new BMW M3 coupe and preferred it to Nissanzilla. I drove the same BMW the day before and arrived—independently—at the same conclusion. I’ll take its sonorous, high-winding V-8, its live, lithe feel, even more useable interior and trunk, and elegant look. The M3 gives up a smidgen of performance edge to the GT-R, but it’s a far more harmonious package and better satisfies my urges as a driver. - Matt Stone, Motor Trend

Unique among the current BMW line-up is the sublimely effortless, torque-rich delivery of its all-new, direct-injection 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8, which develops 400bhp from 5500 to 6400rpm and 442lb ft of torque between 1750 and 4500rpm, wafting the 50i to 62mph in a claimed 5.4sec. There’s no M Power-flavoured lust for revs here. [The X6’s] eight-speed auto with the option of changing gear via steering-wheel paddles might seem like a recipe for a conspicuous work-rate, but the delivery is almost Bentley-like in its laid-back lack of drama. – evo

I’m fairly critical of cars that manufacturers cobble together in a hurry and charge more for whether they be body on frame SUVs, sedan-based coupes, hardtop based convertibles, or the new strain of ‘four door coupes’ (e.g. MB CLS, BMW X6, VW Passat CC) if only because the consumer seems to be getting a raw deal when paying a premium for what is in many ways an inferior, more compromised car.

But as this quote reminds us, in some cases such cars are a second chance for a carmaker to make right a previous attempt. And if I take off my cynic’s cap for a moment, you have to applaud anything that leads to more choice for the consumer and fewer dull, ‘me-too’ cars on the road.

The whole idea seems an extravagant folly, a marketing indulgence of almost Phaeton-like magnitude. But then the regular Passat, while a competent car, is hardly an object of desire. The CC offers a chance of one-upmanship sufficient, maybe, to secure a purchase instead of passing the Passat by. [The resulting car offers] Mercedes indulgence at a sensible price – evo

(As an aside, note a comment that applies to the standard Passat and most front drive sedans in general):

Best version? Not the V6 3.6 4Motion, which feels too heavy and clunky. It’s the entry-level 1.8 TSI with 158bhp, a crisp, punchy engine powering an agile, comfortable car. Less is more here, too.

In an age when advertising and moviemaking’s flooded with computer generated work and even more flooded feature lists, the commercial ‘M3 Revolution’ was a revelation.

You can see the spot – and how they made it – here.

I’ve complained before about the ergonomic nightmare that occurs when you style a dash before you think about usability, about how there’s a sense that BMW designers are deciding what wheel size must be used or how low a car must sit and the consequences, and the inefficient packaging and poor visibility that’s stemmed from sketching a car that looks good on an autoshow turntable but cares not about visibility or ingress/egress.

Which begs the question: is the subpar side impact performance another example of the designer’s pen having disasterous consequences? Is the sharp tumblehome (or slant of the side glass) to blame for not only the sense of clausterphobia but the inability of the side curtain airbag to protect the driver as well as they’d be protected by other, less designed and more engineered BMW models?

A: Personally I far prefer the 3.0i – the added weight of the V8 dulls the agility and the sound of BMW’s I6 under load is far more thrilling than the one note rumble of the V8. It’s more BMW like.

Think of it this way: BMW went to great lengths to reduce weight on the nose of the X5, why put it back there?

UPDATE: Angus Mackenzie’s blog entry after first driving the X6 is a great read and can be found here.

ORIGINAL POST

“Perfectly pointless.” After taking the X6 xDrive 35i home for a night, that’s how editor-in-chief MacKenzie summarizes the X6. It’s a damning critique of BMW’s latest as a flawless execution of a worst-of-both-worlds concept: sport-coupe practicality with SUV-like handling… While you don’t exactly flop and flail about in the BMW, there’s… a feeling of sitting on top of the car, rather than in it, especially as it leans into corners. Reynolds was ultimately displeased by this driving machine: “The X6 wobbles, shudders, plows at the limit-and does so much damage to BMW’s reputation for building fine driving automobiles, it’s almost obscene… “They’ve missed the target with the X6,” he continues. “It’s ungainly and awkward to drive.” the X6 tends to toss people around… Kiino sums it up: “Unless I really wanted one of the X6’s new engines or was completely smitten by the styling, I can’t figure out why would I buy the X6 over the X5. It’s basically the same car-just less practical and more expensive.”...Slaves to fashion will look no further than this boulevard strutting beauty queen. Shame she doesn’t drive as good as she looks. – Motor Trend

Hard to say whether it was a matter of the chassis not being happy with the needlessly large 20” wheels or that the XDrive with Dynamic Performance Control doesn’t wake up fast enough for quick 5000lbs and sitting this high is going to feel sporty but never sporting.

Actually as a fan of cars in BMW’s past, it’s hard to say what BMW was thinking other to point to this:

says Vance, “I guarantee that for the first six months they’re on sale, the X6 will be the hottest ride in L.A.!”

“As soon as the asphalt cracks up, the ride shifts into hammer time-way too stiff for comfortable motoring, even if you’re in attack mode,” carps St. Antoine. Technical editor Kim Reynolds opines, “Over many areas of non-smooth surface, the car just goes into a blur.” In addition to its intolerable ride over patchy pavement, the 550i disappoints with fatigue-inducing front seats, a still frustrating and unintuitive iDrive, a dark and cold cockpit, and a monster engine that somehow doesn’t feel that monsterlike out on the road. – Motor Trend

While I’m not sold on the idea of a turbocharged BMW and lament the passing of the 330i, you have to admire the dynamic package of the 335i. The extra torque in without the extra weight of a V8 really wakes the chassis up, restoring the balance of power to handling that made cars like the E34 M5 or E36 M3 great…

The 302bhp twin-turbo 3-litre straight-six, which had just been voted Engine of the Year, had oodles of creamy torque absolutely everywhere. It was matched with a chassis that was deliciously taut and controlled; the slightly lowered M Sport suspension, 18in M alloys and Bridgestone Potenza runflats put you on intimate terms with the road surface. The steering was pleasingly weighty, responsive and confidence-inspiring. Even without deactivating the DTC you could sense lovely little slip angles developing at the rear as you felt your way around the limit. And with the rising snarl of the engine and the heavy but satisfying action of the six-speed manual box, the 335i had bags of character. All of which meant it was engaging to drive at any speed, but quite brilliant when you were really pressing on. In terms of cross-country pace and sheer involvement, I reckon the 335i isn’t far off the current M3. – evo