Here at DT, we love BMW tuner Alpina for its surgical styling enhancements and raw ambition. If BMW is truly ‘The Ultimate Driving Machine,’ we admire Alpina’s quest to create something that’s, well, ultimate-r?
The 2016 Alpina B6 xDrive Gran Coupe has just been unveiled, and it’s a beauty. It may be relatively unchanged aesthetically from the 2015 model, but its rippled hood, blue brake calipers, and new badging are enough to set it apart from the pack. The 650i Gran Coupe (from which the B6 is based) isn’t exactly an ugly duckling to begin with, after all.
Plunge beneath the car’s cool blue paint and you’ll find that the mechanicals have been thoroughly buffed and retuned.
While the 2015 variant boasted 540 horsepower and 540 pound-feet of torque from its ‘TwinPower’ V8, the 4.4-liter engine has been massaged to 600 hp and 590 lb-ft for 2016.
With the Alpina-tuned eight-speed auto, that allows the vehicle to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.6 seconds with a limited top speed of 200 mph. That’s enough to leave the 560-hp M6 Gran Coupe in the dust, left to stare at the Alpine’s lovely rear end and stainless steel exhaust.
In a straight line, that is.
The B6 has historically been a heavy way to get around, due to Alpina’s penchant for soundproofing and added luxury. When DT Automotive Editor Nick Jaynes reviewed the 2014 B6 Gran Coupe last year, he remarked that the Alpina felt heavy “not just by car standards but by cosmic standards.”
The car manages its weight the best it can with adjustable Dynamic Damper Control, xDrive AWD, and Active Roll Stabilization, but the fact remains it will always be heftier than its 6 Series cousins.
The Alpina also offers Full LED Adaptive Headlights as standard.
The B6 Gran Coupe will be available to special order starting in March, with pricing being released closer to the on-sale date. The 2015 model starts at $117,300.
