BMW 4 Series (2013-2019) review | A smooth, suave coupe and convertible with an added dash of practicality

What is the BMW 4 Series?

In the beginning there was the BMW 3 Series. An icon of executive motoring, it stood alongside the Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Audi A4 as one of the three default choices for this type of machine. As well as the saloon, BMW sold the 3 Series Coupe, which removed a couple of doors and added some swooshier design for those that prioritised looks over practicality.

In 2013 though, BMW decided to spin off the 3 Series Coupe into its own number, and so the 4 Series was born. Then, as the market diversified into ever-more niches, the German company added the Convertible model to the 4 Series line-up, which features a three-piece folding metal roof that deploys in 20 seconds at up to 8mph. In 2014, it added the 4 Series Gran Coupe, which is a hatchback that looks like a saloon but wants to be a coupe – it’s for those that still want the 4 Series style, but need more practicality. But don’t want a 3 Series. Clear?

In 2020 this first-generation car was replaced by the all-new G22 BMW 4 Series.

How practical is it?

As you’d probably expect, the 4 Series has more than a hint of 3 Series to it, both inside and out. But with the coupe silhouette you lose a bit of rear headroom, so the BMW 4 Series Coupe version particularly is not for those who’ll regularly be using the back seats. Sure, a pair of adults will just about fit, but it’s a fiddle getting in and out.

That’s even truer of the convertible – the mechanical apparatus required to raise and lower the roof means that there’s even less room in the back seats and boot. In the coupe, you get an impressive 445 litres of boot space; in the convertible, that shrinks to 370 litres with the roof up, and 220 with it lowered.

On the plus side, the rear seats split and fold down in both cars, enabling you to load longer items – a facility not usually offered in cars like these. What’s more, both cars offer plenty of storage for odds and ends around the front seats, and even cupholders and storage trays for those in the back.

As you might expect, the Gran Coupe fastback is more spacious for rear occupants, and access is vastly improved thanks to those extra doors. But it’s still a touch cramped for the loftier occupant, although you’ll get three in the rear seats rather than two. The boot’s a good size at 480 litres as well, and you get a big, wide-opening boot lid which helps when loading bulkier items.

What’s it like to drive?

Whichever 4 Series you’re interested in, you’ll find a properly sorted driver’s car that tread a nice line between everyday comfort and dynamism. The steering is nicely weighted, and it feels agile and alive from behind the wheel. While it’ll cruise motorways all day, it’ll also bring a smile to your face on a B-road.

The Convertible models aren’t quite as nippy – they’ve got the extra weight of the roof to haul around, for starters – but they still offer an enjoyable driving experience, and are maybe even a touch more comfortable when it comes to the ride quality. The Gran Coupe models hardly suffer for their extra size, feeling assured and confident wherever you point them.

There’s a range of engines available, both petrol and diesel, and they’re all rather good. However, the diesels are particularly accomplished and relatively easy to find on the used market, as they were the default choice for company car buyers when new. Both manual and automatic gearboxes are available.

The diesel line-up started with a 148bhp 2.0-litre 418d, although that was soon dropped. Later cars then began with the 420d, which has 187bhp. Next up is the 214bhp 425d, then the 430d, which has 254bhp and was also available with all-wheel drive, rather than rear-wheel drive. The 435d was only available with all-wheel drive, and has 309bhp.

The petrol line up at launch started with the entry-level 420i, which had 181bhp and could be ordered with all-wheel drive. The 428i gave you 242bhp, while the 435i put out 302bhp.

The petrol range was changed in early 2016, with the 428i and 435i replaced with the 249bhp 430i and the 440i, with 322bhp.

Technology, equipment & infotainment

Early cars came with a choice of five different versions, from SE to M Sport, but the 2017 facelift saw the trims, er, trimmed to just the Sport and M Sport models.

As befits its premium, luxury positioning, even in relation to the 3 Series, every 4 Series has leather upholstery and plenty of standard equipment, including seat heaters and parking sensors.

BMW’s central screen system, known as iDrive, was not universally loved when it first debuted, but by the time of the 4 Series’s launch it had been refined to a capable system controlled by a fairly intuitive capstan controller between the seats.

Thankfully, you don’t have to use it to adjust the climate control as you do with many modern cars – there are proper, physical knobs and buttons to allow you to do this. Indeed, the way the 4 Series is laid out means it’s a very easy car to learn your way around, and everything is where you’d expect it to be.

The 4 Series range was facelifted in 2017, although you’d be hard-pressed to notice the differences without seeing before and after models side-by-side. The newer models got LED lights and revised alloy wheels.

BMW 4 Series running costs

4-Series prices are starting to get pretty affordable, with the highest-mileage, least desirable examples now becoming available for less than £5,000. But bear in mind that prices still stretch up to more than £20,000 for the very best. The smartest, tidiest M4s, meanwhile, will set you back closer to £50,000, while the hallowed DTM special edition will cost you considerably more.

If fuel economy is a big concern for you, you’ll want to look out a 418d. One of these should return somewhere around 50mpg on average in real-world driving; that said, we reckon the 420d is a much better all-rounder, and the fuel consumption penalty isn’t vast – you should be able to see 45mpg relatively easily.

Choose a petrol-powered 420i instead, and you can expect that figure to drop to around 35mpg, with automatic models achieving similar figures to manuals. Don’t forget, however, that if you want the xDrive four-wheel-drive version, the extra weight of the additional mechanicals will mean it’s less frugal than the rear-wheel-drive model.

More potent models are thirstier, as you might expect; don’t expect to see more than 30mpg on average in a 440i, and that’s with careful driving. And that drops down to around 20mpg with the blistering M4.

Convertible models, meanwhile, suffer a fuel economy penalty of their own, due to the extra weight of the convertible roof mechanism and extra stiffening.

Turning to tax costs, once again, the cheapest options are going to be the diesel models registered before April 2017. CO2 emissions on these are so low that most of them slot into the two second-lowest tax brackets for cars of this age; petrol models will cost more to tax, though even the most powerful M4s still only slot into Band K, and therefore aren’t as expensive as some rivals in Bands L and M.

Cars registered from April 2017 onwards are taxed under the newer ‘flat rate’ regime, which means they cost the same to tax regardless of their output. That means it’ll be cheaper to run a diesel registered before that date as opposed to one registered thereafter. Conversely, the more powerful petrol engines got cheaper to tax when the new system came in, so if you want one of these, you’ll save money by buying a later model.

BMWs of this era were serviced using a Condition Based Servicing system that pings up a message on the dashboard to tell you when a service is required. That means there’s no hard and fast rule as to how often they should be serviced, but expect to see it pop up every 12,000 miles or so, or every year, depending on which crops up soonest.

On that note, take care when buying second-hand to ensure that there’s evidence of prior servicing; BMW didn’t provide a service book, and instead allowed services to be recorded within the car’s software, with the service record accessible on the central screen. Make sure you check this for evidence of servicing, especially if there are no invoices to prove that the car’s been serviced before.

BMW 4 Series reliability

BMW’s performance in independent reliability studies doesn’t make for comfortable reading, as it’s regularly towards the bottom of them. The 4 Series as a model hasn’t particularly wowed in such studies either.

Early 4 Series models with four-cylinder engines, both petrol and diesel, suffered from problematic timing chains whose tensioners are known to break down, resulting in sudden and catastrophic engine damage. It’s thought that poor maintenance contributed to these failures, as they resulted in insufficient lubrication.

As time went on, these problems were gradually dealt with, though it’s worth being extra-cautious about cars with a sketchy history of servicing, as these are more likely to suffer from timing chain problems. BMW has released an upgraded tensioner, and if a car has had this fitted, it’s a good sign.

There have been several recalls on the 4 Series, so check to see if the necessary work has been carried out on any vehicle you’re thinking of buying. You can do this through a BMW dealer, or by checking the DVSA’s website. The issues raised included insecure front seat fixings, airbag problems and power steering gremlins, as well as malfunctioning seatbelts and potential fuel pump issues.

In addition, we’re heard reports of corrosion on the alloy wheels, particularly around the centre caps and especially on diamond cut designs.