Is Top-Down Motoring Enjoyable in the 4500-pound 2013 BMW M6?

Two of the great things about living in Southern California — as we often point out — are the plethora of easily accessible driving roads and weather almost always suitable for taking advantage of them. In a way, it almost takes some specialness out of the exercise of ‘going for a drive’ to the point that it takes a special car for me to get off my ass and spend part of my weekend up in the mountains. A car like the 560-horsepower BMW M6 Convertible.
The operative word here is convertible. Were it the M6 coupe, I probably would have stayed home or instead taken my motorcycle out for a quick run up Angeles Crest Highway. Why? Because the new M6 is fat. Yes, BMW shoved a twin-turbo V-8 good for the aforementioned 560 horses and 500 lb-ft of torque, but the laws of physics are what they are. Automakers may be able to bend them when it comes to performance test results — this M6 can run a proper-quick 3.9-second 0-60 mph sprint, dust off the quarter mile in just 12.3 seconds, hold an impressive 0.98 g on the skidpad — but when it comes to the driving experience, 4500 lbs is 4500 lbs. That said, open-top motoring is open-top motoring and it’s not something I get to do that often, so off I went.
My final destination was probably my favorite road in Southern California, Route 33 north of Ojai. My first, destination, however, was Malibu’s Decker Canyon Road. The autocross-tight road proved a challenge for the big BMW, and its often oddly-cambered pavement sent the Bimmer’s traction control haywire in many a turn (I wasn’t adventurous or foolish enough to turn it off), but it’s hard to focus on that when your view of the scenic mountains is only obstructed by the A pillars and the temperature is, well, absolutely perfect for driving around with your top off — especially since, unlike on a motorcycle, you’re not spending most of your energy concentrating on your continued survival and can actually take a moment here and there to enjoy said scenery.
Decker dumps you into the 101 in the suburban city of Thousand Oaks. From there, you have the choice of a direct or highly indirect route to get to Ojai. The direct route involves the 101, the indirect involves Highway 23 and some rural backroads. Given I had plenty of time, I went with Option B, though the main advantage of these is that they’re not the freeway. The fun started once I got past Ojai’s tourist district and to Highway 33 proper. Well, it would have been if the M6 were a fun car.