Mark Williams takes a 640d
Gran Coupé for a spin to
see if it might turn out to be his ultimate Grand Tourer.
It looks elegant yet
imposing and goes down the road with a relaxed gait.
Most new cars on sale in the UK
today can be categorized by a list of parameters. A set of attributes which
ultimately define their type and usage. Hot hatchbacks for example, exceptions
such as the M135i and Golf R32 aside, are resolutely front-wheel drive,
normally three doors in configuration but occasionally five, replete with split
fold rear seats and a good useable boot. There's likely to be some body kit
tacked on to the outside of the 'cooking' version and inside, tarted up
interior trim with seats 'blessed' with side bolsters reminding us of 1980s
shoulder pads. Underneath, we find modified (and lowered) suspension and maybe
a bespoke differential or other unique appendage dedicated to the art of going
faster. Fail to equip your offering thus and it will sell in tiny numbers
(although perversely, go too far and the sales performance will be even worse.
When was the last time you saw a Renault Megane R27?).
There's likely to be some body kit tacked on to the
outside of the 'cooking' version and inside, tarted up interior trim with seats
'blessed' with side bolsters reminding us of 1980s shoulder pads.
Sports saloons? Easy.
Four-doors, five-seats, a big boot (but not necessarily a saloon), loads of
toys, a surfeit of power and oodles of torque. And a two tonne kerb weight.
Fancy the same but don't have children? Buy a performance coupé in the shape of
the new M4 and join the ranks of those queuing up to buy something which is not
quite as practical, but which looks good and tickles your trousers. Oh I know
all this sounds quite cynical, but even with the relentless niche
creation-'n'-fill of recent years, all the resultant products fall into these
and other bandings.
And then Mercedes went and made
the CLS. What is it? A coupé? A saloon? Well it seats four and has a boot. But it can't
seat five as that would be too practical and they wanted to market it as a
four-door coupé. I don't want to get into the subjective discussion over
the styling other than to say the rakish profile resulting from slicing the
traditional saloon roofline is clearly one of the segment's attributes and a
key reason why there are thousands of them about. So naturally enough, Audi got
in on the act and more recently, BMW has also joined the fray with this, the 6
Series Gran Coupé.
As
soon as you experience the power and sound of the diesel engine, you won't give
petrol a second thought.
But first, let's address how to categorize
the Gran Coupé and its peers. They're not saloons, nor coupés. They're not
even four-door coupés. To my mind, these are the modern interpretation of the
Grand Tourer. But how do you pigeonhole a Grand Tourer? What defines a GT these
days? Do they even still exist, at least when viewed through rose-tinted
spectacles which remind us of what a GT used to be (front-engined, rear-drive,
generally quite exotic but temperamental two-seaters)?
You need something which covers
distance with ease and minimal strain. You need comfort, a hushed cabin, a
smooth ride at speed and a generally quite tranquil demeanour. I owned a
Ferrari 550 Maranello many years ago, which was the perfect companion for the
first two or three hours of a long drive, but thereafter became somewhat
tiring, especially in traffic. And you need luxury through space, not only for
luggage but oddments space too, plus space for passengers. If you're covering
distance, there's nothing to say that you can only do it in the company of one
companion. But here's the killer fact: you need range. There's nothing worse
than stopping to brim the tank on something like the aforementioned Ferrari,
only to have to stop to do the same again barely three hours later.
The
beauty of this model’s first four-door coupé is immediately apparent, with its
powerful contours, athletic lines and prominent kidney grille.
So what we have here, I believe,
is the best Grand Tourer on sale today. Space enough for four passengers, ample
power (313hp) plus a long-legged range afforded by near 40mpg economy. And a
big boot. To my eyes at least, it looks simultaneously elegant yet imposing
(even in white... trust me the colour grows on you after a while) and goes down
the road with a relaxed gait. A real gentleman's express, a cut-price Aston Rapide if you will. So
the plan was to take one for a drive, long enough to get a feel for the car and
thoroughly understand it.
