MotorWire Classics 2 - BMW 6-Series (E63)

From its launch, the first 21st Century 6-Series was slated. Deemed ugly by most, predicted to be a sales flop by everybody else, it didn't seem to have many fans at all. Granted, the looks are divisive, perhaps even challenging, but ugly? No.  For his efforts at BMW, Chris Bangle was heavily criticised; the forums were ablaze with derision, and Bangle's name was burning.

So let's start on the 6-Series' so-called 'ugliness', starting at the nose. It looked like nothing else, but in a good way; look at cars nowadays, styling is converging into a world of homogeny, and the 6-Series was so radically different that people simply weren't ready for something as creative and left-field. The headlights and grille were aggressively styled, but in a subtle, non-cliche way as per the cheesily-aggressive, cartoon tackiness of the SSC Ultimate Aero. It had a sinister look about it, in an incredibly classy yet simple way, and without a doubt looked unlike anything else on the road.

The rear end is what really caused all the fuss though; the concaveness of the rear end gave the 6-Series a particularly futuristic appeal, but again in such a left-field way that people quickly dismissed it as ungainly, however, the 'Bangle Butt' quickly gained infamy and adoration in equal measure. Balancing the Bangle Butt were the wedge-shaped rear lights, matching the front's ferocious look with the same mixture of menace and elegance.

So what was the 6-Series? One of the first of BMW's efforts to fill every single niche ever imaginable, the large coupé filled segments currently occupied by the Jaguar XK, and in most cases, trounced the competition; seemingly, its only downfall was BMW's then infamous iDrive system. And the 6-Series sold in droves, although it was thought by Jeremy Clarkson himself to be "The next 8-Series", in that it was a stunning car, but didn't have enough mass-market appeal.

Like all other critics though, he was wrong. BMW is even now expanding the successfully exploited 6-Series niche after the third incarnation of the 6, with a rival to the Mercedes CLS filling another place in BMW's line-up in the 6-Series Gran Turismo. Albeit less striking-looking than the previous generation, something of a Bangle Butt remains. Bangle's heritage lives on.

So why is this car featuring in MotorWire's Classics section? Simply because it dared to be different in an age when it's becoming more and more difficult to differentiate cars from one another (more of this in a later post, there's a new section coming, so expect an announcement very soon) It used simple yet daring aesthetics and design to create something completely different from everything else. Among the swathes of increasingly samey-looking cars in the market, was a beacon of individuality.

Couple this left-field design with BMW's solid reputation and a nearly faultless driving experience, range of engines in both diesel and petrol, 6-cylinder and rumbling V8 powerhouses and a refinement and market gap which only BMW could attempt and succeed in; the 6-Series was and still is a head-turning sight on roads, and the 6-Series E63 was a formidable competitor in its segment.

(Images courtesy of Alexandre Pracvot on Flickr)