6 Series

E24:

The E24 was launched in January of 1979 and the first of the 6 series breed. A head turner for the middle class of the early 80’s this model was a pinnacle of style.

The E24 only came as a 2 door coupè option, however, came with a variety of powertrain choices ranging from 2.8L – 3.5L, all petrol.

There were two types of 3.5L engines available, the M90 and the more powerful variant M88. In 1989 this engine was then branded the S38 which was used In the first generation M6. The M88/S38 was the only DOHC engine used in the E24 range.

BMW produced roughly 86 thousand E24’s which makes finding one today (in good condition) a very ambitious task with an average price fetching in around £60,000.

E63/64

Production began for the E63 after a 14 year hiatus of the 6 series after 1989. Then in 2003 a new generation of luxury performance coupes again became available.

The E63 was actually based of a concept design BMW Z9, by BMW’s design chief at the time named Chris Bangle.

The controversial styling of the E63 quickly earned a nickname amongst critics calling it the “Bangle Butt”.

But the E63 was not a car to be laughed at, it packed out some serious punch with its powertrain options ranging from a 3L, 4.4L and 5L petrol engines and a 3L Diesel engine. Paired with numerous transmission options from 6 speed manuals and autos to a 7 speed SMG III.

The 6 series of this generation also came in a convertible variant, named the E64, which still came with a cloth roof as opposed to other convertibles of its generation which had sliding folding steel roofs.

A notable mention for this generation would have to be the E63/64 M6 with one of BMW’s masterpiece engines, the S85, a naturally aspirated 5 litre V10 which is derived from a formula one engine and also used in the E60 M5.

F12/13/06

The F generation is going to be our final line up in the 6 series lifespan. Much like the E generation that came in a coupè and a convertible, BMW rolled out a Gran Coupè which was even longer than the standard coupè and convertible measuring a staggering 5007mm

With the exterior designed by Nader Faghihzadeh (which would have been his last design with BMW) and the interior designed by Christian Bauer it is still considered a modern day executive car even though it was discontinued in 2018.

There was a great choice of petrol powertrains including a 3 litre inline 6, a 4.4 litre V8 and a more powerful 4.4 litre V8 housed in the M6, along side a 3 litre twin turbo diesel.

The N57 diesel engine in the 640d has some remarkable figures which are extremely similar to the N55 petrol found in the 640i hitting similar 0-60 times of sub 5.5 seconds, however, naturally the N57 diesel hits torque figures of 630nm which is extremely noticeable with spirited driving.

The 640i and 650i were also available in xdrive formats opening up the comfortability to take this car on long journeys no matter what the weather, but in the same breath it gave drivers the option to track them and have confidence to throw a nearly 2 tonne car around a corner.

The poise, passion, performance and comfort this car embodies makes it an absolute all round gran tourer.