A volcano has erupted in Munich some time during the past decade, spewing out all variety of BMW sub-models, seemingly hellbent on seeping into every niche segment nook and cranny like hot magma through a turf maze. This year we, the bewildered villagers below, have been hit with more blue-and-white debris in the form of the new 2015 4 Series Gran Coupe. It's a liftgate four-door, riding on a tweaked two-door platform with C-pillars and window glass that are divorced, sans manual transmission.

This is a car that literally tens of people have been screaming for BMW to build.

Though not actually shot from a fiery mountain cannon, our 428i Gran Coupe tester was still plenty exciting to look at in person. Wide hip flanks and chiseled M Sport fascias really do the exterior justice, while a plunging roofline scores points in the silhouette department. Frameless windows sex up the greenhouse, and its overall proportions (0.4 inches longer, 1.8 inches lower, and 0.6 inches wider than the 3 Series sedan) disguise the stout rear hatch well. It's a neat trick—from many angles, you won't even notice its trunk is hinged above the rear glass. Visually, this incarnation is far less obtrusive than the 3 Series Gran Turismo.

BMW

CAUGHT TESTING: 2014 BMW 4 Series Coupe

Naturally, headroom takes a slight hit in Gran Coupe guise, though storage volume increases to 45.9 cubic-feet with the rear seats latched down. Two supplemental doors constitute a 140-lb weight penalty over the 428i Coupe (3470 lbs versus 3610 lbs), and that auto-opening hatch spoils the 50:50 weight distribution, shifting 51.4 percent of the Gran Coupe's burden rearward.

Not that any of this is noticeable on the road, mind you.

As per usual, BMW's excellent F3x chassis compensates diligently for other shortcomings. With (optional) M Sport dampers, it's eager to hop into a tidy, syncopated rhythm of trail braking, turn-in, and calculated throttle-exit oversteer though a stretch of slithering pavement. Both EcoPro and Comfort modes are seriously pedestrian, where low- to mid-speed steering feel is lacking and accompanied by overly-manufactured weighting. Bump up past Sport to Sport Plus, and things improve markedly. Still, there's just enough feedback delay to leave you pining for that instantaneous hydraulic-steering finger tingle once things get hairy past seven-tenths. Good enough, but a ways off from the Golden Standard 3 Series of yore.

BMW

SPY PHOTOS: 2014 BMW 4 Series Coupe

The Gran Coupe's punchy 240-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter offers a 5.7-second 0-60-mph time, in step with the regular 428i. There's no hi-fi amplified engine soundtrack, so you're left with organic four-cylinder noises, which are somewhat muted inside the cabin. Windows down, you're treated to some pleasant induction whistles and twin-scroll sneezes during full-boost lift-off (we didn't sample the 300-hp 435i Gran Coupe, but would assume its turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six offers a more visceral engagement). The paddle-shifted, eight-speed ZF gearbox is punctual and unobtrusive, letting you fraternize with the 6500-rpm redline through sweepers without forcing an upchange.

If all this sounds familiar, that's because it is: The 428i Gran Coupe drives exactly like a 3 Series.

While we dig the liftback configuration, this car does little else to differentiate itself from its four-door siblings. On the merits of a tolerable $41,225 price tag and fine styling, the 428i Gran Coupe is spared being the Cousin Oliver of BMW's 3/4 Series Brady Bunch. But why this wasn't just the 3 Series Gran Turismo from launch is beyond us. Oh, yeah, that's right. The volcano thing. BMW tells us this will be the last F3x variant, and that's probably a good thing. All of the niches are filled now, and we, the bewildered villagers below, are waving our white flag.

CAUGHT TESTING: 2014 BMW 3 Series GT

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