2017 BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe

Style rarely comes cheap. Just ask any woman wearing Christian Louboutin shoes or anyone behind the wheel of a 2017 BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe. Both sacrifice some comfort in the name of fashion. In the case of the BMW, it gets a sloping coupe-like rear roofline to give it a sleek, stretched appearance. Yes, it certainly looks better, but it results in a reduction of headroom for rear passengers.

Rear passengers fare even worse in the standard 6 Series coupe which is a traditional two-door coupe. With that in mind, think of the four-door Gran Coupe as a stylish middle ground between the regular coupe and the more conventional 5 Series sedan on which it's based, at least in terms of comfort.

That's because the 6 Series Gran Coupe is expensive, even for a luxury-badged car. Base model to base model, it's almost $30,000 more than a 5 Series and more than $12,000 more than its closest rivals. In direct competition with the Gran Coupe is the Audi A7 and Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class, both of which suffer the same lack of rear headroom. Ignoring price for a moment, they're all competing on an even field in terms of quality, prestige and luxury.

Standard safety equipment for all 2017 BMW 6 Series Gran Coupes include antilock brakes with advanced standby and drying features, traction and stability control, front-seat side airbags, front knee airbags and active front head restraints. Also standard are front and rear parking sensors, a rearview camera and the BMW Assist emergency communications system, which provides automatic crash notification, remote unlocking, stolen vehicle recovery and on-demand roadside assistance.

The optional Driver Assistance Plus package features front-side and top-view cameras, speed-limit information and BMW's "Active Driving Assistant," which bundles a blind-spot warning system, low-speed collision prevention (with pedestrian detection), lane departure warning system and a frontal collision warning system.

In Edmunds brake testing, a 640i Gran Coupe with summer tires came to a stop from 60 mph in 110 feet, while a similarly outfitted 650i stopped in 114 feet. These are short distances compared to typical vehicles, but average for this segment.

The 2017 BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe is a midsize luxury sedan with seating for five. Available trims include the 640i and 650i and are largely based on engine type. A high- performance M6 Gran Coupe is covered in a separate review.

Standard features for the 640i Gran Coupe include 18-inch wheels, adaptive sport-tuned suspension dampers, adaptive LED headlights with automatic high beams, LED foglights, automatic wipers, front and rear parking sensors, a rearview camera, power-folding and auto-dimming mirrors, keyless ignition and entry and a tilt-only sunroof.

Inside, you get dual-zone automatic climate control, heated eight-way power front seats (with four-way lumbar adjustment), driver memory settings, leather upholstery, a power tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, Bluetooth phone and audio connectivity, a wireless charging pad, a W i-F i hotspot, a navigation system, voice recognition, the iDrive infotainment system with an integrated touchpad on the controller, smartphone app integration, and a nine-speaker sound system with a CD player, HD and satellite radio, a USB port and an auxiliary audio jack.

The 650i adds 19-inch wheels, 16-way power-adjustable seats (with passenger memory settings and adjustable side bolsters and thigh support), upgraded leather upholstery, a 16-speaker Harman Kardon premium sound system and BMW concierge services.

There are several optional packages available on both models. The Cold Weather package provides heated rear seats and a heated steering wheel. The Driver Assistance Plus package features front-side and top-view cameras, speed-limit information and BMW's "Active Driving Assistant," which bundles a blind-spot warning system, low-speed frontal collision mitigation (with pedestrian detection), lane departure warning system and a frontal collision warning system.

The Executive package adds power-closing doors, a head-up display, four-zone climate control and ventilated front seats. The 640i's version of this package includes multicontour seats, Harman Kardon stereo and concierge services, while the 650i's version adds a power rear sunshade, manual rear window shades and ceramic-trimmed controls. These items are available as individual options on the 640i.

The M Sport package includes unique 19- or 20-inch wheels, an aero body kit, a sport steering wheel, a simulated-suede headliner and a higher top-speed limiter. There's also an M Sport Edition package that roughly combines the M Sport package and the Executive package. The BMW Individual Composition package lets you special-order leather and wood trim hues, while the Black Accent package equips the Gran Coupe with gloss-black exterior trim and a two-tone extended leather interior.

Individual options include some of the above items plus adaptive suspension stabilizer bars (known as Adaptive Drive), enhanced "Integral Active Steering" with rear-wheel steering (not available on xDrive models), a night-vision camera, adaptive cruise control, active front seats, automated parallel parking assist and a 16-speaker Bang & Olufsen surround-sound audio system.

Under the hood of the 640i Gran Coupe is a turbocharged 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder engine that produces 315 horsepower and 330 pound-feet of torque. The EPA estimates fuel economy at 23 mpg combined (20 mpg city/29 mpg highway). Opting for the all-wheel-drive 640i xDrive drops that estimate to 22 mpg combined (19 city/28 highway). In Edmunds performance testing, a rear-drive 640i Gran Coupe reached 60 mph in 5.7 seconds, which is average for this class of car.

The 650i Gran Coupe comes with a turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 that makes 445 hp and 480 lb-ft of torque. Fuel economy is estimated at 20 mpg combined (17 city/25 highway) for the rear-drive 650i and 18 mpg combined (15 city/24 highway) for the 650i xDrive. In Edmunds testing, a rear-drive 650i Gran Coupe reached 60 mph in 5.2 seconds, which is slower than its primary rivals.