Business Car Manager car review verdict

The BMW 4 Series is just so good looking, and so well sorted on the road, that it takes a hard head to not be seduced.

Yet at the price point of the car tested here, you are well into the 5 Series, or indeed a very well specced 3 Series with much greater utility, or indeed Porsche Cayman territory, if sporting enjoyment is your goal.

But for the 9000 buyers who BMW confidently predicts will snap up a BMW 4 Series in its first full year, nothing else ticks the box. Some of them have been waiting all summer for the car to go on sale, as it did on October 5, and were queuing up with deposits.

The appeal to a business user ranges from good practicality – such as a real world boot – and four seats, and an immensely grown up, luxurious package, to potentially very stealthy running costs if opting for the accomplished 20d version.

In the external looks department they are surely right. The rear arches are the widest dimension of the BMW 4 Series Coupe, giving the car a really muscular, svelte road presence that will elicit glances of envy from all directions.

You also sit lower, in keeping with the sporting vibe. And yet BMW has not thrown away the EfficientDynamics tricks under the skin, including the distinctive ‘breathers’ at the front, which re-rout the air around the front tyres and bring down drag and emissions.

Realistically, the 20d version, which starts from a more modest £31,575 OTR, is going to be enough for many. But in for a penny, in for a pound. If you want the car to go and sound as it looks, you’ll want a six cylinder engine, and that’s where this model, the 435i, is a real contender.

Our only caveat is that while the BMW 4 Series Coupe delivers on the dynamic front, its real appeal is still doing what the 3 and 5 Series do so well: soak up long distances with the minimum of fuss.

It is more GT than outright sports car, and never really urges you to go faster, unlike other BMWs such as the M135i.

With that in mind, getting the engine and spec right require careful thought, and the real hero of the range may still be the two six cylinder diesels due out in November, the 430d and 435d, the latter with 4×4 as standard. Possibly, they will suit this car even better with their immensely laid-back muscle and endless waves of torque.

Until then, if you’re a small business owner or a director of an SME business, you can’t fail to be seduced by the 4 Series.

And you’ll be driving a brand new model in the BMW range.

Or if you need a little more space, click here to read our car review of the BMW 3-Series Gran Turismo.

The Low Down…

…and what it costs