It seems as if a car is remotely swoopy in design then it's referred to as a coupé. BMW is the latest to tack the coupé name onto a four-door, this time to a huge design study called Concept Gran Coupé. Revealed at a pre-Beijing Motor Show design night it's possible the Gran Coupé will reach production as a Porsche Panamera or Mercedes CLS rival, but not yet certain. What is certain though is that its styling demonstrates the design direction for the brand for the foreseeable future.

There's little radical about the Gran Coupé's styling, the show car's look certainly tamer than the BMW CS Concept the firm unveiled in Shanghai in 2007. BMW claims that the Concept Gran Coupé 'concentrates the fundamental values of the brand. Its body design authentically captures a sense of superior dynamic performance and high-quality elegance.'

If that's the case then don't expect future BMWs to exhibit anything like the styling bravery they did under Chris Bangle's design tenure. Some may consider that a good thing, but with rivals like Audi and Mercedes-Benz throwing away styling conservatism and building exciting, dramatic looking cars BMW seems to be doing the opposite. But then, better to be a leader than a follower; perhaps BMW is judging the current zeitgeist better?

Only time will tell, but we can't help but think that when BMW's people pulled the covers off the Gran Coupé in Beijing the response among those attending would have been polite rather than rapturous applause.