It's inevitable when considering the BMW M6 that you will not immediately compare it to the cars we had it together with on the cover last issue - the likes of Aston Martin Vanquish S, Bentley Continental, Ferrari 612 Scaglietti, Merc SL65 AMG and Porsche 911 Turbo. It matches them all in technical excellence and beats most of them in performance and it's the cheapest of the lot - half the price in fact, of most of them.

No, M6 will by virtue of its mechanical mastery being cloned with its M5 sedan sibling, is more often than not be compared to that car. Which is in a way unfair, for put next to an almost R4-million Ferrari, a three-and-a-half bar Aston and a two and a half Million Bentley, it certainly has the measure of all of them in just about every respect.

The 507kW 500Nm V10 M6 has it all - from that 7-speed robo-box through its chameleon double character M-power setting that turns it from better than 650i to Ferrari basher at the touch of a button, this Bavarian bullet has the pedigree to match the very best. It handles as well as anything out there and is perhaps even better than its hand-built rivals - even with that M-suspension tuned at its tautest. Totally predictable, M6 is a pleasure to drive hard - its well sorted, predictable and poised - significantly more so in fact than its more relaxed and heavier M5 cousin that also has a taller centre of gravity. There we go again - comparing it to M5...

But M6 is built to be a bit sharper, a touch more precise and a little bit better handling than the bigger sedan. Its carbonfibre roof panel, bumpers and bits; a lower centre of gravity and a couple of other definite if subtle characteristic changes make sure of that - it's a bit harder than M5 - but nothing you'd notice if you never drove them back to back, louder too - it's the sportier sibling.

So yes, M6 is a completely different animal to M5 - it's more pointed and direct, sportier than the sedan and it definitely is a Granturismo where M5 is not. See, M6 appeals to a very different person to what M5 does and therein lies the rub - it attracts perhaps an older driver - the established bachelor or empty nester who does not need the practical advantages of the M5 that a family man does.

And M6 will always be a rarer beast than M5 too - they're simply just building less of them, so it'll always be the more exclusive option - and that much is clear by the amount of extra attention the coupe gets. Look, M5 is a show stopper of note, but if being the centre of attraction appeals to you, then M6 is definitely the better bet - you'll find people just standing and staring at it when you return to the car after parking it - they ask all kinds of questions about it too and will want to take a picture inside, too. It's that type of a car.

And that's the difference - the man in the street sees the M6 as a real supercar because it does everything a supercar sets out to do, while the M5 is mos just a sedan. And in my book, that's what makes all the difference...


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