I first tried BMW's exclusive active steering technology in the new 5 and was completely blown away. As it seems I wasn't the only one impressed, with Automobile Magazine just honoring the system with its 2004 Technology of the Year award. Basically its electric motor assisted, planetary gear motivated rack-and-pinion system adapts the steering ratio to vehicle speed, but it goes way beyond more common speed sensitive steering systems. At slow speeds, such as when parking, it only needs 1.7 turns lock to lock. The ratio loosens up to as much as 5.0 turns to lock at higher speeds so more input is needed, benefiting stability. Active steering counteracts understeer and oversteer as well.
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| BMW's exclusive active steering technology won Automobile Magazine's 2004 Technology of the Year award. (Photo: BMW Canada) |
Also part of the coupe package, the new convertible will feature BMW's Dynamic Drive. It flattens the car out amid curves, while simultaneously making adjustments to pavement imperfections before the bumps or dips occur.
Expect an M6 version to debut about a year after this convertible hits dealerships, which is expected for spring of 2004 as a 2005 model. Prices? Your guess is as good as mine.
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| The performance, attention to detailed quality and superior technology make the 6-Series Convertible worth an estimated $115,000 base sticker price. (Photo: BMW Canada) |
It'll be well over $100,000, being that the coupe should be starting around this mark. It would be easy for BMW to add $15,000 or even $20,000 to the price of the hardtop and still have no problems selling as many as it chooses to build, within reason of course. In Europe an 80,000 euro price point has been targeted, which would translate directly into CAD$127,800 (USD$97,000). That's a lot of money, of course, but generally foreign markets don't directly affect the price of Canadian models, normally arriving with reduced stickers to compensate for lower expendable incomes.