2 Series BMW 2er Gran Coupe Speculation

[secrum]

Here you go

 

[bimmer6]

It hurts my eyes and my soul to see something like this coming from BMW. I'm afraid even the first gen CLA looks better!

 

[Matski]

I look forward to all new additions to the company's product portfolio, and I'm not personally offended by FWD cars.

So there.

 

[klugscheisser87]

The nostrils are placed pretty low, there is a huge hint it will get the Active Tourer like front. They are pretty lost what's going on in their Lineup below the 3er .

 

[Der Hofmeister]

I don't get it why this model has not developed on the rear-wheel-drive platform that is to stay for the next generations of 2er Coupe and Convertible (if the open-top will continue after the current model series). It is pretty strange - I somehow get the idea of the FWD 1er and the FWD MPVs, but the 2er Gran Coupe should have been RWD. It will look like an unwanted member of the family when the future 2er Coupe/Convertible generations arrive.

 

[Matski]

I don't get it why this model has not developed on the rear-wheel-drive platform that is to stay for the next generations of 2er Coupe and Convertible (if the open-top will continue after the current model series). It is pretty strange - I somehow get the idea of the FWD 1er and the FWD MPVs, but the 2er Gran Coupe should have been RWD. It will l...

Packaging and cost efficiency vs what the market will accept I would guess. People buying compact four door saloons would seem not to give a **** about them being RWD or not - since they sell well as they are and nobody is feeling the need to make one.

 

[Sunny]

I don't get it why this model has not developed on the rear-wheel-drive platform that is to stay for the next generations of 2er Coupe and Convertible (if the open-top will continue after the current model series). It is pretty strange - I somehow get the idea of the FWD 1er and the FWD MPVs, but the 2er Gran Coupe should have been RWD. It will l...

BMW, these days is run by bean counters. Not a bad thing... if you are into counting beans, that is. But horrible if you are a car enthusiast.

People buying compact four door saloons would seem not to give a ****

Yes, but I wish the company would give a f#ck what it is building.... oh well

 

[Matski]

Yes, but I wish the company would give a f$%k what it is building.... oh well

Maybe building a car that suits the actual buying demographic shows they care more about the typical buyer than sticking to dogma's that are held by lots of people who wouldn't be buying the car anyway.

BMW, these days is run by bean counters. Not a bad thing... if you are into counting beans, that is. But horrible if you are a car enthusiast.

Oh c'mon, BMW still build plenty of cars (and Bikes) for "enthusiasts", even with bean counters on the board.. as do lots of other brands. The A class isn't FWD because it makes it a better Mercedes, or the A3 a better Audi, it's because it makes for a more suitable proposition technically and commercially for its position in the market. Porsche didn't decide the Cayenne would make a good sports car, they decided it would make them a ****-tonne of money and to hell with heritage... these brands all have bean-counters dictating what they do, are they not making cars for enthusiasts also? It makes no sense to hold BMW to a different standard.

 

[bimmer6]

Maybe building a car that suits the actual buying demographic shows they care more about the typical buyer than sticking to dogma's that are held by lots of people who wouldn't be buying the car anyway.



Oh c'mon, BMW still build plenty of cars (and Bikes) for "enthusiasts", even with bean counters on the board.. as do lots of other brands. The A cla...

I agree with you but design wise this just looks like a very bad attempt to making a FWD car. If it will be fun to drive is a different question we can not answer yet.

 

[klier]

They just need to look at the next A3 and the current A3 Sedan for inspiration IMO.

Nope, because those also look like hot FWD crap.

We have got to stop pretending VAG is a FWD magician. FWD looks extremely crappy and poor on every sedan. So A3, CLA/A sedan and soon 1er included IMO of course

 

[Matski]

I agree with you but design wise this just looks like a very bad attempt to making a FWD car. If it will be fun to drive is a different question we can not answer yet.

I agree there's something weird going on at the back end, other than that I would suggest that (thanks to the heavy camo) that we can't answer the question of how well it works design-wise yet either.

 

[klier]

BMW, these days is run by bean counters. Not a bad thing... if you are into counting beans, that is. But horrible if you are a car enthusiast.

Not more so than any other car company. Porsche for instance is a far bigger disgrace with their crappy VAG love affair and Porsche badged Audis. We're lucky they still have a 911, because for the rest it's a joke.

BMW is an independent car maker who can do whatever they damn well please. Because they have had amazing management for many many many years. They don't need anyone else. That alone is an incredible feat.

All they need is a f'ing sportscar to silence the haters.

 

[dalab]

autoexpress.co.uk:

The Gran Coupe model will form part of a broader 2 Series range; the two-door coupe will arrive first, followed by the Gran Coupe, then the Convertible towards the end of 2020. A high-performance M2 version will also be introduced at a later date.

What seems to be wrong is that the 2 door coupe arrives first since the prototype of the grand coupe is rolling long ago and the prototype of the 2 door was not seen yet.
Interesting that says there will be a convertible which I think is right

 

[Sunny]

Maybe building a car that suits the actual buying demographic shows they care more about the typical buyer than sticking to dogma's that are held by lots of people who wouldn't be buying the car anyway.

Sure, in other words, blindly chasing sales by building to the lowest common factor vs building what you stood for and what people liked you for.

Oh c'mon, BMW still build plenty of cars (and Bikes) for "enthusiasts", even with bean counters on the board.. as do lots of other brands. The A class isn't FWD because it makes it a betterMercedes, or the A3 a better Audi, it's because it makes for a more suitable proposition technically and commercially for its position in the market.Porsche didn't decide the Cayenne would make a good sports car, they decided it would make them a ****-tonne of money and to hell with heritage... these brands all have bean-counters dictating what they do, are they not making cars for enthusiasts also? It makes no sense to hold BMW to a different standard.

I wish I could make a long winded eloquent post, but time and writing skill severely constraints me, so will stick to brief points -

(Motorrad, yes). Cars, yes, but very few. And one of them will be killed with this new thing.
And, even the rest keep losing their USPs and feels more like going through the motion, checking off a list of stats.
Just look at the number of crossovers/suvs BMW comes up with vs cars targeted at enthusiasts.
As for Mercedes and Audi, I couldn't really give a fcuk, they never excited me (with the rare exceptions and that continue to be the case).
But have to give it to Tobias and what he is doing for AMG. Don't like the designs least bit, but at least he is gunning for Porsche - something I long believed M should have done ("M3" was one brand that could taken on "911", instead they broke it up so they could charge a few thousands more - typical short sightedness).
As for Porsche, I was equally critical of their SUVs, still am. But at least they still make many cars that warm the cockles of my heart. BMW? one, may be two (and I am not talking sheer performance here, but the fuzzy/warm stuff). If they did more I could look past the gazillion raised montstorities as a necessary evil to pay the bills.

I know all this seems harsh, but only cause I care and pains to see where BMW was and where it is... It increasingly looks to me like BMW is just slowly sleep walking into mediocrity. Unmoored from it's past and without a future vision it is truly committed to. I could be wrong, I sure hope so. #duck, #stillafanboy

 

[Sunny]

Because they have had amazing management for many many many years. They don't need anyone else. That alone is an incredible feat.

If you said that 10 years ago, I would have whole heartedly agreed. It must have taken a lot of conviction back then to abandon BMW's traditional focus on performance, driving, the F1 team etc and instead refocus the company on sustainability, launch i brand, invest in advanced materials (brand new cf factory) etc.

As an enthusiast, I was obviously disappointed then, but understood why and even admired it. It was great move, anticipating the future and investing in the pieces to make yourself the leader. If BMW pressed that advantage they would have been head and shoulders above others now. I am on record right here saying so, back then.

But instead, they seem to have dropped the ball since (I guess there was a leadership change?). i brand was launched in 2011, and except for about 100k i3 and i8 in sales they have nothing to show for it. Now, looks like Merc/Audi will have comparable EVs same time, if not before BMW. How do you let 7 years of leadership slip? Same with the investment in CF. i3 with CF cell was a master stroke, making it the best affordable EV in market when launched. What if they carried over the same to the new versions of 3/5/7? It would have been a transformational change, like bringing a gun to a knife fight. Merc/Audi would not have been able to compete. But alas, nothing substantial came out of that either.

All they need is a f'ing sportscar to silence the haters.

I actually don't think they need one. I am not buying a C class, cause MB has a GT R or a A4 cause of the R8. All they just need to do is to make the normal cars fun to drive again.

 

[Centurion]

Maybe building a car that suits the actual buying demographic shows they care more about the typical buyer than sticking to dogma's that are held by lots of people who wouldn't be buying the car anyway.

BMW, Audi and Mercedes have quickly woken up to the reality that premium/luxury needs to be accessible. When millennials have options of ride hailing, cars need to be affordable enough to entice purchase. The A4/3/C have grown substantially in size over the past decades, leaving room for smaller cars for customers who will mainly need front seats but like the occasional practicality of rear seats.

Furthermore the A4/3/C are evolved conservatively and the A-Class and 2-Series are models that designers can be a bit more liberal with without alienating customers that value tradition.

 

[SCOTT27]

AutoBild unwraps the 2er Gran Coupe?

 

[Matski]

Looks fairly believable based on the spyshots.

Fairly "m'eh", but believable.

 

[hovabongZA]

AutoBild unwraps the 2er Gran Coupe?

Looks better than I had anticipated from the camo...has a lot of previous F10 5er in it.

 

[Deleted member 1071]

AutoBild unwraps the 2er Gran Coupe?

Rather nice looking actually.