The 2-Series Gran is built on a Front-wheel drive platform which ensures better practicality
The new 2 Series is currently the smallest four-door sedan in the German carmaker’s portfolio. The car made its maiden appearance at the Los Angeles Motor Show last year. BMW has decided to bring its entry-level coupe sedan the 2-Series Gran Coupe to Indian shores on October 15. Ahead of official launch has now been spied undisguised at an authorized dealer. Images are credit to Rohin Raj Sureka from Elite Car Club India
The 2-Series Gran Coupe is going to be the new entry-level model in India from BMW. The upcoming sedan is built on a front-wheel drive (FWD) platform and will lock horns with other German nemeses namely the upcoming Audi A3 sedan and Mercedes Benz A-class sedan.
While the FWD setup would upset purists and enthusiasts, there are plenty of practical reasons why BMW has decided to go with this new design and architecture. The primary interest is that the front-wheel platform will free up a lot of interior space.
The lack of a bulging transmission tunnel along with a rear differential allows more space inside the cabin as well as in the boot. BMW has always been criticized for providing less than sufficient space at the rear on its more affordable models and it has tried to address this issue with the upcoming Coupe sedan.
Design
The 2-Series Gran Coupe gets the latest design treatment of the Bavarian automaker although it is a lot more modest than the current crop of cars. It receives round yet sharp LED projector headlamps, a decent size kidney grille and a wide air dam below. The overall stance is low-slung with a sloping roof towards the rear and beautiful pillar-less doors.
Dimension & Space
The 17-inch alloy wheels complement the creases at the sides beautifully. At rear, we see a pair of wide tail lamps resembling those from the ones in 8-Series. The spoiler integrated with the tailgate gives the otherwise chubby looking rear section a sporty appeal. In terms of dimensions, the new 2-Series Gran Coupe measures 4,526mm in length, 1,800mm in width and 1,420mm in height and is offered a wheelbase of 2,670mm.
Given it has a coupe-style silhouette, the sloping roof means that it eats up a lot of headroom at rear. Although knee room and legroom is decent for a car of this size. The trunk is spacious enough at 430 litres, however, some of it will be taken up by the spare wheel which is mandatory for Indian roads.
Powertrain Options
It is speculated that BMW will launch the 2-Series Gran Coupe in two derivatives- 220d and 220i. The 220d is powered by a 2.0-litre turbo diesel engine that churns out 190 bhp and 400 Nm of torque. While the 220i draws its power from a 2.0-litre turbo petrol engine which belts out 192 bhp and 350 Nm of peak torque. The one in the images above is 220i.
Expected Price
Since it is going to be an entry-level model in parallel with X1, pricing is expected to start from Rs 35 lakh for the base model and go up to Rs 40 lakh for the top-spec trim (Both prices are ex-showroom, India). Bookings are now officially open at BMW India website https://www.bmw.in/2 for a sum of Rs 50,000.
