2012 BMW 640d xDrive revealed

This is the 2012 BMW 640d xDrive - and that last bit is important. The German manufacturer's xDrive moniker is significant because it means instead of power just being sent to the rear, as is conventional for any BMW, the car's front wheels receive drive too.

The 640d xDrive retains all the standard features of the normal big BMW GT - that means a decent 460-litre boot, four-seats and plenty of refinement thanks to a liberal dose of premium equipment.

The xDrive variant of BMW's 6 Series coupe musters 230kW and a solid 630Nm of torque between 1,500 and 2,500 rpm courtesy of the firm's familiar twin-turbo 3.0-litre litre straight-six diesel engine.

Coupled to a four-wheel-drive system, the 640d xDrive will hit 100km/h from rest in 5.2 seconds - 0.3 seconds quicker than the time BMW quotes for the standard 640d, the increase in weight from the four-wheel-drive transmission offset by the extra traction it affords off the line.