Road Test: BMW 2-Series Gran Tourer solves the space problem

Spare a thought for the troubled parents who find themselves pushed from the premium car market due to a profusion of progeny.

This is the premium car quandary: what happens to the financially comfortable family, used to life in German premium transport but with more offspring than can be squeezed into the back of a BMW 3-Series or 5-Series? This first world problem was partly solved by the advent of the seven-seat SUV, but not everyone feels comfortable negotiating the school run in these behemoths. They also cost a lot more than the smaller premium cars many families would be trading in.

Well, BMW has finally come up with a solution and it’s one that looks likely to prove a huge hit amongst the badge-conscious family buyers across Europe. Seemingly against all it has stood for in the past, BMW has created a front-wheel-drive seven-seat people carrier. For traditional fans of the Bavarian – a firm that prided itself on making sporty rear-wheel-drive cars – that line should be enough to make them blow a gasket.

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Yet the 2-Series Gran Tourer is the solution to a problem that should have been answered more than a decade ago. With the massive growth in people carriers in the 1990s, it’s ridiculous that the premium brands didn’t answer their customers needs at the time. Instead they forced them to abandon the premium badges in favour of more mainstream models like the seven-seat versions of the Nissan Qashqai, Hyundai Santa Fe or Citroën C4 Picasso. It seems silly that those with €40,000 to spend on a new car couldn’t find an answer to their seating needs in the premium market – until now.

Boxy

So what’s the Gran Tourer like to live with? Well, first things first: whatever BMW suggests about the styling, it’s just as boxy in profile as the rest of the people carriers out there. This car is an extension of the recently launched Active Tourer, measuring in at 214mm longer and 53mm higher. That leaves room for the third row but also bootspace, with the seats down, of up to 1,820 litres. In layman’s terms, that’s a decent-sized van.

There was never going to be a way of creating all that space and retain some sort of sporty styling, but they’ve done a decent job in keeping BMW’s characteristic front end while adding some of the traditional creases and curves of the brand along the side. Standard for the Irish market will be 16-inch wheels, but if you care about any sort of looks then you really need 17-inch. Overall, it’s a good-looking people carrier – and we’ll leave it at that.

The big news, of course, is inside. Up front it’s pretty much standard fare BMW, but with an improved layout of the switchgear on the central console and larger storage areas, such as the door pockets to cater for the greater detritus of family life. BMW has retained the wraparound effect for the driver and you still sit quite low to the ground in the car. It feels like you are driving a small BMW and it’s only when you look in the rearview mirror that you realise how much metal you are bringing along for the ride.

Tiered seating means the second-row passengers sit higher than the front and therefore get good visibility. The second-row seats can slide forward and back to offer improved legroom and also access to the third row. Getting in and out of this very back row requires a little dexterity but, just as with the likes of the Opel Zafira or its ilk, two adults can sit back there for a short haul trip without having to amputate their legs. Children should have no problems.

There are cupholders and a 12-volt charging point back there as well so it’s not as if they are completely third-class travellers. At the launch we managed to have three adults sit in a row from front passenger seat through to third row – where yours truly was ensconced – and everyone had enough legroom. For the vast majority of families the third row will be a workable and very useful addition. What’s more, BMW has come up with a way to fit three child seats across the second row (admittedly using one of their own bespoke child seats), something many families have been calling for. Very few cars can manage this at present so that’s a major boon for young family buyers.

Power comes from a choice of five engines – two petrol and three diesel – starting with the 1.5-litre 116bhp three-cylinder diesel in the 216d. A better buy for those on longer routes is the 218d, powered by the 2-litre 150bhp four-cylinder diesel with emissions of 115g/km and a 0-100km/h time of 9.5 seconds. It’s probably the best buy of the bunch when balancing power and price, as it starts at €39,450 for the SE version.

Along with its new front-wheel-drive format, BMW has also introduced a four-wheel-drive version of the Gran Tourer, popular in European markets where winter invariably means snow. Standard power on this xDrive version comes from the 2-litre 190bhp diesel with eight-speed automatic transmission and prices starting at €48,490.

Great pedigree

The car handles much better than you might expect, though we never bothered to throw it about in the same way you would the 2-Series coupe. For the record, the M235i coupe remains the best car I’ve driven in the last 12 months and the regular 220d coupe isn’t far behind, so the underpinnings of this 2-Series platform has great pedigree. We didn’t get a chance to try it with the 1.5-litre diesel of the 216d, but past experience would suggest it’s a practical buy but won’t set the world alight when hauling a driver and six passengers.

Standard features in the Gran Tourer include parking assist, collision warning with city brake that will prevent all those little prangs in the city, two-zone auto air-con and rain sensor and auto headlight activation. The Sport version and the M Sport variant both add aesthetic elements but it’s hard to see why you would bother. Better to use this money on the options list and go for the panoramic sunroof that really brightens up the interior, along with cruise control and the aforementioned child seat system for the second row.

BMW hasn’t reinvented the people carrier class but they’ve brought some long-overdue premium cachet and engineering tricks to this segment. You could dismiss it as the ridiculous snobbery of well-heeled parents to be annoyed that they couldn’t get a premium people carrier until now. So they have either sacrificed the premium features they used to like in their cars or opted for the more expensive seven-seat SUVs. I’ve heard from many parents who admit they find these large SUVs too big to comfortably negotiate the traffic chaos at the school gate every day. This Gran Tourer is the answer.

It has been a long time coming but BMW has provided family buyers a car that fits the bill. And despite some reservations amongst the engineers, I suspect the brand will have a hit on its hands with this car.

The Lowdown: BMW 2 Series Grand Tourer

Engine: Five engines – three diesels and two petrol – on offer starting with 1.5-litre 116bhp diesel putting out 108g/km in emissions and 4.1 l/100km (68.9 mpg); 2-litre 150bhp diesel putting out 115g/km and 4.4 l/100km (64.2 mpg); in the xDrive version powertrain is 2-litre 190bhp putting out 129g/km and 4.9 l/100km (57.6 mpg). Petrol versions are 1.5-litre 136bhp putting out 123g/km and 5.3 l/100km (53.3 mpg); 2-litre 192bhp putting out 145 g/km and 6.3 l/100km (44.8 mpg)
Prices: 216d SE – €37,360; 218d SE – €39,450. 218 SE (petrol) – €36,750; 220i Sport (petrol) – €43,810. 220d xDrive Sport – €48,490
Arriving in Ireland: June 6th