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Unless it's a LOT quicker then the NA 6, it's a dumb move. Slight fuel economy is no reason to dump a 6 cyl engine that stands for something and been perfected for years (and does not have a turbo that could, say... BREAK one day or wear the engine sooner!). Again, the ONLY thing that would convince me is significant torque difference over the 6, which I doubt there is given the engine is so much smaller.
Now, for European markets this may be a good move. I remember our great dilemma one year when mom was buying a car (2000 Nissan Altima). We could not decide whether we could afford 1.8l engine over the 1.6l (that was the choice! 1.8 was considered a rocket!). Can you believe that!? We've ended up with the 1.6 as it was more affordable. Take that into perspective guys. I know both sides of the story (born in Europe, living in Canada), so I get why BMW did it... it just does not make enough sense for our continent, where 4-door sedans are often seen with V8's in them and that's in the very much affordable $30k area. We consider 6 cyl a bare minimum (like me in a small '99 E46!), over there 6 cyl is a pure waste and environment killer.
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