BMW teases M6 Gran Coupe

BMW has released a batch of shadowy teaser images of the forthcoming M6 Gran Coupe ahead of its expected global premiere at the Detroit motor show in January.

The fearsome four-door will wear the same muscular exterior styling enhancements – and feature the same ballistic twin-turbo V8 engine – as the M6 coupe and convertible models launched in Australia earlier this month.

The four-door coupe is slated to go on sale in Europe from the middle of next year, meaning an Australian debut is unlikely before the end of 2013.

Chief rivals will include the Mercedes-Benz CLS63 AMG and the limited-edition Audi S7.

Design accoutrements carried over from the two-door M6 models include aggressive front air dam and intakes, M-badged side intakes, five-spoke 19-inch alloy wheels and the same extensive use of lightweight materials such as aluminium and composites on various panels.

Pricing is unconfirmed but is likely to start at about $300,000 plus on-road costs, half-way between the M6 coupe ($292,500) and convertible ($308,500).

This pricing structure would be in line with the regular 640i Gran Coupe, which at $184,800 also sits between the comparable two-door versions.

The potent 4.4-litre V8 engine – also used in the $229,500 M5 uber-sedan – will almost certainly produce the same figures in the Gran Coupe as it does in other applications, meaning 412kW of power at 6000rpm and 680Nm of torque at 1500-5750rpm.

Power will be delivered to the rear wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, instead of the eight-speed ZF torque-converter unit used in the standard 6 Series.

Acceleration from zero to 100km/h can be expected to take less than 4.5 seconds, since both the M5 and M6 convertible take 4.3s, and the M6 coupe a lightning 4.2s.

Further details remain scarce, but BMW promises to reveal more next month.