Bucket Seat: The new BMW 4 Series

It's been a hot topic for the past few months in the motoring world, will BMW really have that massive grille on the new 4 Series? Well last night it was confirmed, as BMW announced the reveal of their second generation premium midsize coupe which will be launched globally in October this year. Amongst all the noise, the design of the new BMW 4 Series is unique and distinctive, separating itself from the rest of the line up with key design characteristics that is true to this model only. With most of their latest designs, there's always one aspect that gets a lot of attention, that is the grille. For the first time in a long time BMW have chosen to elongate the iconic kidney grille, which harks back to sports models of the past from the brand. There's an element of history and nostalgia to this and in my opinion it looks fantastic. The overall design is sharper and has a lot of character compared to the out going model which simply follows the lines of its 3 Series sibling. The wider body line, more aggressive front and smooth back really make the new 4 Series Coupe look agile and capable. 

Engine wise, the range will be flagshipped by a 440i xDrive which has a six-cylinder in-line petrol engine delivering 275kW and 374bhp. Two other petrol engines will be available in four-cylinder configurations with another diesel option. BMW will make use of mild hybrid technology for the six cylinder engines which will help reduce emissions as well as fuel economy. A big plus with the new 4 Series is that the diesel engines will have two-stage turbocharging. The gearbox that will be fitting in these cars is an eight-speed Steptronic with optional sport transmission available as an extra. 

Interior wise, not much is different from the G20 3 Series with similar styling and cockpit design, I'm glad they kept it this way as its a form that works, the large 10.25" infotainment screen is easily navigable either by touch screen on the joggle dial, the digital instrument cluster is also available as an optional extra on the 4 Series, I feel that this feature should have been standard on this model, seeing that it is a sports model but any way to keep the price down I guess. The car comes loaded with all the fancy tech and the list of optional extras that we've come to known with BMW over the past year, nothing really sticks out as new. The car will be made available in the various packages with the M Sport being the most popular as always, they have even launched a range of M Sport parts for the model. Overall the model looks good, there's still a while to go before sales start around the world, so maybe by then the emotions over the radical design of the grille would have died down. I can see this one doing well in the market, the lines on the model are simply breathtaking and synonymous of coupe's that hark from Italian shores.