2015 BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe Luxury Sedan First Drive and Review

Infinite diversity in infinite combinations was the guiding philosophy of the Vulcan people from cultural touchstone 'Star Trek,' but vehicles like the 2015 BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe prove that 'IDIC' has had a strong influence on the German luxury brand as well.  The 4 Series Gran Coupe is a new addition to the BMW family that combines the name and platform of its entry-level coupe (4 Series) with a four-door, sloped-roof body style (Gran Coupe) that we first saw last year on the larger 6 Series Gran Coupe.

It's confusing, I know - a two-door product line offering a four-door variant - but it's all a part of BMW's master plan to occupy every possible automotive niche and provide potential buyers with the widest number of options as they waltz through the showroom.  After having driven the new 2015 BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe from Greenville, South Carolina to Savannah, Georgia, I was pleased to discover that cutting through the marketing talk that bookends this 'four-door coupe' is a solid premium effort that should please style-conscious premium shoppers.

Given that the four-door 2015 BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe shares its platform and drivetrain options with the two-door 4 Series, the most glaring difference between the two models is styling.  Why buy a Gran Coupe when you can get a 3 Series sedan at a discount?  It's all about the sleek and  flowing lines of the 4 Series and the way the short rear deck interacts with the car's long hood in a way that simply doesn't compute on the more staid 3er.  You also get a plunging roofline that adds a certain grace to the Gran Coupe that isn't available with the more affordable four-door BMW.

It's not just the extra set of doors that give the 4 Series Gran Coupe an edge in practicality over the standard coupe, as there's also the presence of an enormous hatchback that pushes the Gran Coupe past the 3 Series sedan.  Not only does its gaping maw facilitate the swallowing of larger items with ease, but with the rear seats folded forward there's just under 50 cubic feet of total storage space back there, a figure that you'd have to buy an X3 SUV to best.

There's always a price to pay for beauty, and for the Gran Coupe it's measured not just in the extra dollars tacked on to the MSRP versus the 4 Series coupe or 3 Series sedan, but also back seat headroom.  Although it's not quite as dire a situation as in, say, the Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class, the 4 Series Gran Coupe's design does effectively limit rear occupancy to those under six feet in height.  Interior trim is lifted completely from the 3 Series, which means generally high quality materials with a somewhat dull presentation compared to other, higher-dollar BMW offerings.  You also sit an inch lower inside the Gran Coupe, which accentuates the car's high sills and pillarless doors as one looks out onto the surrounding environment.

I mentioned that for the most part the 2015 BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe is a mechanical clone of the standard 4 Series model range, but I'm not about to gloss over what a good thing that is for luxury car buyers.  The base 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder found in the 428i Gran Coupe can be counted on to produce 240 horsepower and 255 lb-ft of torque, which is sufficient for daily motoring, but the real prize is the 435i Gran Coupe's 3.0-liter turbocharged inline six.  This engine is rated at 300 horsepower and 300 lb-ft of torque on paper, but my butt dyno tells me there's more than meets the eye lurking under the hood of this Gran Coupe model, as acceleration is immediate and authoritative at all speeds with the pedal down.  All-wheel drive is optional with both versions of the four-door coupe, and an eight-speed automatic transmission is standard.

Chassis-wise, the 4 Series Gran Coupe mimics its two-door namesake in all of the important ways, including track width (which pushes out past that of the 3 Series) and wheelbase.  It also features a roofline that's about 1.5 inches lower than that of BMW's most affordable sedan.  The latter point is crucial, as it helps the GC avoid the ungainly proportions associated with the 3 Series GT hatchback - a model that looks just a bit too big for its britches.

Smooth and comfortable on the highway, yet respectably nimble in the corners, the 2015 BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe is at least as engaging as the 3 Series sedan despite the 200 lbs of additional weight it carries compared to the standard 4 Series coupe.  Starting at an MSRP of $40,300, it also makes a stronger visual impact than the more tepid 3, while simultaneously adding the extra utility of its practical hatchback trunk. 

Is all of this worth a $3,000 premium over a similarly-equipped 3 Series sedan?  I'd have to say yes.  You can't get a cheaper, stripped-down version of the 4 Series Gran Coupe like you can with the 320i, but BMW has taken the same ingredients it uses in its 3 Series soufflé, added a dash of 4 Series style, stirred it all together and come out with a more attractive and arguably more useful result.  Your tastes may vary - however, you owe it to yourself to at least drive a Gran Coupe before plunking down a deposit on the less intriguing sedan alternative.