Can BMW’s baby four-door coupe stand up to the competition?

If you’re looking to get your bum into the driver’s seat of a new BMW saloon, there is now a more affordable alternative to the evergreen 3 Series. Well, saloon is a debatable term, as BMW calls it the 2 Series Gran Coupe, following the same naming system that sees sporty two-door models gain even numbers while saloons stick with odd numbers. The Gran Coupe moniker refers to four-door variants of those sportier numbers. Confused?

So the 2 Series Gran Coupe is the youngest sibling as it were in the GC range that also includes the soon-to-be-replaced 4 Series Gran Coupe and the svelte 8 Series Gran Coupe - currently one of the best looking cars that BMW produces. However, it seems that the 2 Series Gran Coupe still has some way to go before it transforms from an ugly duckling into a swan.

The concept is fine, the execution is another thing, and in the cold light of day, it’s quite frankly hard to find a flattering angle. There’s excess metal sitting over the wheel arches, and the rear looks like it has been hit from behind. The black paintwork does help and hides the trim bar that joins the rear lights and is black irrespective of exterior colour. One of the upsides is that BMW still fits proper exhaust pipes to its cars, so you don’t get any fakery in that aspect at least. 

It primarily goes in to bat against the Mercedes-Benz CLA, but the forthcoming Audi A3 Saloon is also in there as a serious rival. They are both attractive cars in their own right and leave the BMW lagging in the style stakes both inside and outside. If looks are important, you may want to look beyond the Sport version, which gets 17-inch alloys as standard that leave it looking a bit under-wheeled. Upgrading to the M Sport version gets 18-inch rims as standard along with different styling for the bumpers and sills. 

Most of the bad aspects of the 2 Series Gran Coupe go away once you sit inside it. The look and feel of the cabin are all but identical to the 1 Series though in the base Sport specification there are some cheaper aspects that BMW aficionados might not like. The standard cloth seat upholstery isn’t all that special, but the seats are more comfortable than they look and there is plenty of adjustment for the driving position. Oddly, I prefer the look and layout of the simpler Live Cockpit Plus instrument display over the more advanced Professional version. It’s easier to read at a glance and it more like the older analogue systems. 

The latest iDrive remains one of the best infotainment operating systems out there. An added benefit of having Apple Carplay connect wirelessly is excellent for those who use it. Rear passenger space does have limited headroom due to that sloping roof although there’s adequate legroom thanks partly to how the backs of the front seats are sculpted inwards. Although that boot section appears small, the BMW still manages to provide 430 litres of cargo space. 

Thanks to that torque-filled diesel engine the 220d can comfortably eat up the motorway miles. There’s also a reasonable amount of sound insulation, adding to its comfort during a long schlep. The eight-speed automatic transmission that BMW uses these days is one of the best and helps to exploit the diesel engine’s strengths. With peak torque available at 1,750rpm the automatic gearbox keenly works up through the gears to keep the revs down further aiding the BMW’s fuel-sipping tendencies. Cruising at dual carriageway speeds will easily see it returning upwards of 100mpg, while the official combined figure of 57.6mpg seems entirely realistic. During my time with it covering a whole variety of different driving scenarios, it averaged 53.2mpg. Not too shabby for an engine with little more than 600 miles under its belt. 

Fuel economy is one thing, but one of the keystones of any BMW is driving dynamics and how it handles. The Bavarian brand has shifted all of its smaller models away from the traditional rear-wheel-drive format in favour of sending power to the front wheels to better aid packaging, though you can still have this Gran Coupe with an all-wheel-drive transmission. Not that it needs it as there’s plenty of grip to be had when power is only going to the front wheels. What’s more of a surprise is how neutral the steering feels. It isn’t as communicative or progressive as some of the larger BMWs, even if you toggle into Sport mode, it leaves you anticipating a more weighty, chunky feel that never arrives.

There’s less change between the different drive settings than you might expect, so leaving it in the default setting will satisfy most. If anything you’re possibly more likely to switch to the EcoPro mode that helps to get the most from your fuel tank. The BMW’s automatic transmission will also shift into a neutral function when you lift off the accelerator at higher speeds allowing the car to coast. It’s a useful feature, especially for those who frequent motorway driving more often, and it is surprising at just how well it maintains its speed as it rolls along. 

Yes, it wears the Gran Coupe badge, and yes it has the requisite frameless doors, but this is a poor effort from BMW. At least in the area of design. BMW is a company that has a tremendous pedigree of creating attractive cars and ones that age very well. The current 8 Series Gran Coupe is a prime example of how BMW’s designers can get it very right at times. Were this car a scaled-down version of that 8 Series, then BMW probably wouldn’t be able to make them fast enough. However, lined up against its nearest rivals on looks alone it doesn’t cut the mustard. It looks slightly more appealing in its current range-topping M235i guise, though you’ll need to stump up the better part of another £6,000 for that option. However, at that point, you could already get yourself into the larger, more appealing 3 Series. 

Looks are, of course, subjective, and as I’ve mentioned there are many positive aspects to the 2 Series Gran Coupe, most notably that strong diesel engine that makes it adept at covering ground at ease. It’s missing the obvious appeal of its competition and nor doesn’t deliver the same honed driving experience as the more mature 3 Series, but it doesn’t lack in comfort, and for the most part, it provides a smooth and refined drive. 

Model: BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe 220d Sport 

Price: £32,020

Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel

Power: 187bhp

Torque: 400Nm

0-62mph: 7.5 seconds

Max speed: 146mph

MPG: 57.6mpg WLTP combined

CO2: 129g/km

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