BMW

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The smallest BMW hybrid is the 225xe. And the technology is amazing

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Unfortunately for BMW, the 2-series arrives after a Jaguar F-Type Coupe and before a Lamborghini Huracan. The lifeless styling of this five-door hatchback leaves me cold but it should be refreshing to drive something with so much technology on board.

The BMW hybrid range now includes some cracking cars, like the 740e and 330e. The 225, I suspect, will be less of a driver’s car but still hugely competent as an everyday family motor.

And the best bit of all is that unlike some of the opposition, the 225 charges really fast – around three-and-a-quarter hours from a standard house socket. That’s mighty impressive.

It means you can play with the three, driver-selectable electric modes that give the car up to 24 miles of silent motoring via the battery.

Ultra low emissions and nippy performance (0-60mph in 6.7 seconds) mean the Active Tourer has plenty going for it…

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Are V8s like the BMW M6 about to follow the dinosaurs into extinction?

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Some people think the age of big-engined, normally aspirated V8s is coming to an end. Even Porsche is going small turbo instead – are car’s like our BMW M6 the last of the dinosaurs?

Well, I for one hope not. I’m reminded of that wonderful piece-to-camera Clarkson did with the Aston Martin Vantage V12 a few years back. The car made him sad because he knew it was the end of an era.

There’s nothing like the rumble of a 5.0-litre monster on start up – the massive grunt when you floor it and the shove in your back. Somehow a turbo just doesn’t do it the same.

Car Couture is off to Australia today to try another potential dinosaur – the Jeep SRT. A 6.4-litre SUV that’s available in the UK but hugely overlooked. Join us in a few days for a 1,500-mile return trip up the Coral Coast…

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The M6 is BMW’s most expensive petrol car….

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According to my calculations, the BMW is the most expensive petrol car that BMW sell. There is the i8 but that boasts hybrid technology that always adds to the bill.

M6 is certainly worthy of the honour. More stylish than the M5, hugely practical for a coupe and very, very fast. The 4.4-litre twin turbo at the heart of this wonderful machine is sensational – considering the car weighs two tons.

All coupes are designed to seduce and M6 has plenty to lure you in. The sumptuous interior, squat profile and handling that belies its size makes this a fantastic drivers car.

The steering, engine and suspension can all be adjusted to suit conditions – including beating the Audi RS7 in almost every department…

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The BMW M6 – a refined super tourer in an age of noisy exhaust pipes

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I have to declare an interest from the start. The last car I owned was a 630d – it took me 48 years to find the perfect car for my needs but we got there in the end.

Now I’m testing the Big Daddy version. The rumbling M6 V8 that looks and sounds discreetly powerful without upsetting every other road user.

It would be easy to argue the case for other fast coupes but when it comes to styling, I think the 6 Series is difficult to beat. It’s also very roomy, beautifully screwed together and ‘feels’ like a refined muscle car.

Not sure who is going to pay £93k to buy one but I digress. The M6 is a masterclass in performance with discretion – especially in an age of noisy ‘sport’ exhausts and in your face styling…

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Goodbye Batmobile – hello BMW M6

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Surely it’s the old chaps with beards who would love the Batmobile best? I was wrong. Parked up at the Silverstone Classic, it was the younger generations who went weak at the knees over the spoilers and decals.

I thought I was going to have to drag one woman out of the passengers seat – she was slightly drunk but fell instantly in lust with maddest BMW every built.

I’m also sure some of the teenagers who came to talk to me just thought I had bought an old Beemer and gone a bit over the top with the spoilers. Most were horrified and when I told them the car was worth about £150,000.

To me, driving the Batmobile just made me realise how much cars have improved in 45 years, especially when compared to our incoming M6 test car .

I could drive the Batmobile a long way. It’s soft, comfortable and not that noisy. It took me back to a time when you actually had to ‘drive’ a car – not just press a button and let technology take over.

I love it for that reason alone but I’d definitely was an M6 on the side to keep me sane…

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The retro interior of the 1972 BMW Batmobile is as funky as the exterior

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Back in the day, they made car interiors like this. The photo of our 1972 BMW shows just how far we have come in 45 years – and this was a pretty expensive Beemer too!

Oddly, the Batmobile has window winders (remember them) for the front doors and electric ones at the rear. Makes sense if you think about it but what a joy to get some arm exercise for a change!

The windscreen wiper speed is operated by a pull toggle next to the four-speed gearstick and the only controls on the steering column are for dipping the headlights and an indicator stalk.

While the cassette-radio was probably state-of-the-art back then, now it seems to be lacking the very essential aerial. Well, I can find an aerial to pull up anyway.

Favourite feature? It has to be the wonderful, wood veneer shelf in front of the passenger seat. Super practical for holding you Led Zep and Floyd tapes, which then proceeded to melt in the sunshine…

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Quick, to the Batmobile? What’s it like to live with a retro BMW supercar?

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There is a hint of madness about the car sat on my driveway. It has more spoilers than a bad film review and could have driven off the set of a Mad Max movie.

Even today, sitting in a 1972 Batmobile isn’t for the shy, retiring type. It looks absolutely bonkers from any angle but still screams BMW.

First introduced as a 2800 CS in 1968, this one acquired a bored out engine of 3153cc. To make it faster on the track, thinner gauge steel was used on the chassis and the boot and bonnet were cut from aluminium – ground-breaking 34 years ago.

It has no carpet, electric windows or power steering – oh and how am I going to get on with a four-speed manual gearbox again?

Can you live with a classic like this on a daily basis? Quick, to the Batmobile to find out! (Just bring your ear-plugs).

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Is that a BMW X3? No is the latest Nissan X-Trail

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You have to look twice with the X-Trail. Unlike the pig ugly Juke, the family-orientated Nissan is starting to look more German than a BMW.

It’s surely no coincidence that the latest X-Trail has gone all curvy and upright like BMW’s X crossovers. Just add in a funky bronze colour like our test car and suddenly it even has an air of premium motor about it.

Underneath it’s a different story. The X-Trail shares the same platform as the Qashqai (a name I still have to look up every time I write it).

And while it’s some 90kg lighter than the old X-Trail, that 1.6 diesel engine means performance is left wanting. A petrol model is coming but really, you won’t be buying this SUV for on-road thrills.

Still, first impressions matter and I find the X-Trail easy on the eye. More from inside the cabin tomorrow…

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The styling of the BMW M4 is compromised by the curve of the folding hard-top

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I’ve always harboured a dream of owning another soft top. I’m not worried about the security of a fabric roof – I don’t care if the a cabriolet is more noisy.

So the M4 convertible will prove the answer for many people because it has a folding roof. It drops in about 20 seconds, eating into a rather large slice of boot space.

The roof is so good that I’ve almost forgotten I can enjoy open air motoring. Except for one thing, the M4 convertible doesn’t look half as pretty as it’s coupe sibling, seen in the photo.

There’s something about the back of the roof that doesn’t quite work aesthetically. The BMW is all sharp lines and aggressive bumps. The gentle curve of the folding roof spoils the profile of an otherwise terrific car.

I love driving the M4 but I simply wouldn’t but the drop top because a £60,000 open car should also be a beautiful thing, not a compromise.

With summer coming to an end, I’m off to Italy for a week to ride a Harley-Davidson on a grand tour. We’re back September 25 with another weekly car test…

 

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Beauty or the beast? BMW’s M4 looks a bruiser from every angle

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Faced with the choice of a BMW M4 or a Maserati Ghibli S – which car would you choose?

A friend of mine is faced with with this rather lovely dilemma. It’s either the beautiful Maserati, or the beast-like M4. Both have been styled to opposite ends of the spectrum – both are ‘super’ cars in their own right.

Wherever I’ve driven the BMW this week it’s attracted the attention of a certain type of car enthusiast. Usually the ones who wear a baseball cap back to front and drive a modified Vauxhall Corsa. All those muscular bumps suggest power and aggression.

When Car Couture had the Ghibli on test last year, heads turned for all the right reasons. It’s a glorious car to look at from the inside out, although few could say it is as much of a driver’s car as the Beemer.

If you’re an aesthete, the Maserati should win every time but after days days in the M4, I could be tempted to buy a baseball cap too…