‘£100k is a ridiculous amount of money’
After a short stretch of A1 motorway, on which 6ft 4in Nick finds himself enamoured of both the BMW’s fine driving position and agreeably spacious cockpit, we get stuck into a great sequence of corners. The M850i rips through, the car’s adaptive dampers and impressive composure dispatching what should, at these speeds, be a challenging stretch of road. Nick’s enjoying himself, though he’s adamant he’d be enjoying himself more without four-wheel drive…
‘Through faster corners you don’t really feel the all-wheel drive,’ says Nick. ‘But in tighter bends I prefer the more natural feel of my rear-drive 640d. This is a little Audi-like. Does it need all-wheel drive? I guess it helps in the snow, when my 6-series really struggles.
‘As for the four-wheel steering, you get used to it. Again, it’s in the tighter corners that you feel it: there’s a definite sense of the rear axle helping pivot the car.’
Nick bought his 640d Gran Coupe because it was both the perfect car for his requirements and ludicrously discounted. He needs a practical family car that’s also fun on his two-hour, mixed-road daily commute. ‘The 640d is a good compromise that doesn’t feel too compromised,’ he says. ‘The M850i just wouldn’t work on a practical level, but it’s also a lot of money; £100k is ridiculous for a BMW.’
Then the road opens up, clear of trac, and the BMW surges from nothing to 90mph in moments. ‘It does sound lovely, doesn’t it?’ grins Nick, momentarily convinced perhaps. Then again, maybe not. ‘For me, the answer might be two cars: a family estate and a weekend car. Maybe a ’69 Mustang, just to have, to look at and to drive around in pretending I’m John Wick.’