Monday 7th November 2005

BMW M6 arrives

Super-coupé officially launches this month

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BMW officially launched the 205mph, V10-powered M6 this week, and sent us some pics.

Packed with F1-inspired technology, BMW described the car as the first production BMW to compete with cars "from Newport Pagnell, Maranello or Sant’ Agata, while taking the challenge once again to the best that Stuttgart has to offer".

Engine technology

Under the aluminium bonnet is the high-revving 5-litre V10 with a max torque figure of 383lb-ft at 6,100rpm and a red line of 8,250rpm. It completes the dash to 62mph in 4.6 seconds and its 507bhp figure gives it a specific power output of 101.4hp per litre.

BMW explained the link with its F1 engines: "The V10 is not, of course, directly related to the F1 racing car’s unit– it has 5.0 litres and the F1 engine is 3.0 litres – but apart from sharing the V10 layout it is a high revving engine, like the F1 unit, and much of the inspiration for the electronics and engine design was drawn from F1 experience.

"The high-speed nature of the engine is a case in point. The new ‘ten-cylinder’ has broken the 8,000rpm barrier and reaches a maximum of 8,250rpm. At 8,000rpm each piston covers 20 metres a second. At 18,000rpm the pistons of the F1 engine move at 25 metres a second. The difference is that the M engine must last for a ‘lifetime’ while the F1 engine only has to travel 500 miles or so."

BMW went on to talk about the "Formula 1-inspired bedplate design for the crankcase that provides a compact and extremely stiff configuration to withstand the very high engine speeds, combustion pressures and high temperatures. Another motorsport-inspired technology is that each of the ten cylinders has its own throttle butterfly and each cylinder bank is served by its own activator."

Stuttgart talked too about the weight-savings it made in the 240Kg engine, including the 21.8Kg six-bearing, forged steel crankshaft and the 481.7 gramme pistons. Overall moving masses in the valve train have been reduced by 17.5 per cent when compared with the new M5’s predecessor, the E39 V8 powerplant, according to BMW.

Other changes

Engine aside, key elements in the car's design include a seven-speed sequential gearbox and carbon fibre roof that's bonded to the body and contributes to a 45Kg weight reduction over a standard steel car. This lowers the centre of gravity by 60mm, helping to improve handling and performance. BMW said that its F1 experience helped its engineers bond carbon fibre into the M6 on both the roof and front and rear bumper supports.

Chassis changes over the 6-Series include stiffening the front subframe and changing the bearings at the front while at the rear additional supports, links and joints add mean more precise handling. The final drive casing is made of aluminium and finned to reduce weight and improve cooling. Lightweight but stiff tubular drive shafts keep moving masses low.

Other details are available on BMW's Web site.

Only 400 cars will be available in the UK in 2006 and BMW reckoned that the waiting list already covers that allocation. It costs £80,755.

Still not what you'd call a handsome car though, is it?

[Doughnuts]

Have driven this vehicle last week and am still grinning!! Keep getting flashbacks of being held back in the driving seat while the F1 sounding engine screams is in your ears!

The launch control feature is the absoloute D's B's. Its such a buzz to get a race start from the lights and leave everybody else wondering how the hell you did it AND what it actually was that left them standing there!

Take a look at the Classifieds, have one in my local BMW Dealership for sale in the same colour as the write up - enjoy! (www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/52333.htm)

[aerospoke]

Dosn`t rock my boat really.
But it still comes from Munich, Bavaria not from Stuttgart .
Cheers jens

[GlynMo]

At the end of the day, it's still an ugly barge though

[r988]

I dont mind it, looks quite good in those photos, I'd rather get a mint original M6 though

[JapsEyeDesign]

[quote] Still not what you'd call a handsome car though, is it?
[/quote]

It's not that bad!

[b2tus]

My boss took delivery of one a couple of weeks ago.
Reckon my bonus has gone down the tubes cause he asked me if I liked it.
Like George Washington - I could not lie!!

[inttap]

It seems they have restricted supplies to 400, because they cannot sell any more.

If the car was not so ugly, and not so overpriced, they would have sold loads (this was comment from a BMW Dealer!!!). The Dealer told me the car should have been priced at least £10k cheaper

[vinceh]

I was taken for a spin in a mate's 645 recently and couldn't get over the acres of cheap plastic inside. So, its ugly on the outside and crapsville on the inside too. I sat in the M6 at Goodwood on the Beemer stand and can't say that the extra trinkets made it feel significantly better. What a let down.

[PhillT]

We have one outside the office at the moment. Looks nice in blue. Would look even nicer on my drive...

[MILF]

Really like the link to F1 "it has 10 cylinders & revs a lot".

Brilliant. Such a shame that next year the F1 grid will be comprised of V8s.....which presumably will also "rev a lot".

[havoc]

MILF said:

Really like the link to F1 "it has 10 cylinders & revs a lot". Brilliant. Such a shame that next year the F1 grid will be comprised of V8s.....which presumably will also "rev a lot".

I can only guess on that basis that the Honda S800 and S600 were based on F1 tech too...they "revved a lot" 30+ years ago!!!

[DoctorD]

I have driven an M6 over a good few miles and it is a wonderfully impressive car - a real 'Pistonheads' type of car. It's quicker than a 996 Turbo yet even more driveable, how BMW manages to harness 507bhp and yet make it as easy to drive as a 3 series is amazing. The problem with the M6 though is how it looks, it actually looks quite good particularly in some of the better colours (Indi Red, Interlagos Blue, Silver Grey) but it doesn't say £80-90k because it's based on a £45k car. That's a shame because if its V10 engine and chassis were transplanted into something looking like an AM V8 we would all be heralding it as one of the best cars in the world.

[huge]

"Still not what you'd call a handsome car though, is it?"

maybe not........Purposeful is probably a better word.....
but then the Impreza or Evo are hardly good looking,but doesnt stop them
being fantastic cars.Supercars,due to their aerodynamics, tend to be "handsome" (Veyron excepted,which is the automotive equivalent of Vanessa Feltz),but super-coupes tend more towards aggressive and functional.

[anniesdad]

Doughnuts said:

Have driven this vehicle last week and am still grinning!! Keep getting flashbacks of being held back in the driving seat while the F1 sounding engine screams is in your ears! The launch control feature is the absoloute D's B's. Its such a buzz to get a race start from the lights and leave everybody else wondering how the hell you did it AND what it actually was that left them standing there! Take a look at the Classifieds, have one in my local BMW Dealership for sale in the same colour as the write up - enjoy! (www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/52333.htm)

Hey Don,

Nice first post.....welcome to PH..........are you Chris Bangle by any chance?

[lightningghost]

I hate the way it looks

[nickbell3]

I think my problem with the M6 might be the lack of heritage. BMW seem to want to put M badges on everything at the moment. I know they want to broaden the M appeal and sell more cars, they know people will buy it whatever. I just think M5's and M3's have so much more about them, more pedigree. I couldnt get enough of the spy pictures of the new M5, even when I see one know I think wow.
I saw my first M6 at the ring earlier in the year, in black, it looked ordinary. I appreciate, like all bangle cars, its very colour sensitive, its just my pulse remained steady when I clocked it.

[Doughnuts]

anniesdad said:

Doughnuts said: Have driven this vehicle last week and am still grinning!! Keep getting flashbacks of being held back in the driving seat while the F1 sounding engine screams is in your ears! The launch control feature is the absoloute D's B's. Its such a buzz to get a race start from the lights and leave everybody else wondering how the hell you did it AND what it actually was that left them standing there! Take a look at the Classifieds, have one in my local BMW Dealership for sale in the same colour as the write up - enjoy! (www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/52333.htm) Hey Don, Nice first post.....welcome to PH..........are you Chris Bangle by any chance?

[pesty]

Those that are calling this car Ugly have you sen one in the flesh?

I saw a black one in france. My god it was something special alright.

[nickbell3]

Not special enough in black, looks too much like a 645. Unlike say a CSL which IMO looks better in black.

[R988]

nickbell3 said:

I think my problem with the M6 might be the lack of heritage. BMW seem to want to put M badges on everything at the moment. I know they want to broaden the M appeal and sell more cars, they know people will buy it whatever. I just think M5's and M3's have so much more about them, more pedigree. I couldnt get enough of the spy pictures of the new M5, even when I see one know I think wow. I saw my first M6 at the ring earlier in the year, in black, it looked ordinary. I appreciate, like all bangle cars, its very colour sensitive, its just my pulse remained steady when I clocked it.

how can you tell when you see a new M5? They are practically indistinguishable from a specced up ordinary 5er, there's only a couple of subtle clues, like the lack of foglights, exhaust, badges, very hard to spot, though it does make it more rewarding when you do.