However, work the engine hard and the encouraging gurgle from the exhaust at lower crank speeds is replaced by a rather anodyne, synthesised mechanical growl as the revs climb past 4000rpm. It’s even more noticeably augmented in Sport mode. It’s not an unpleasant sound as such, just one that’s fairly inauthentic. And it’s certainly not a patch on the howling straight six.
Accelerating hard also reveals another quirk that will be alien to owners of the old 1 Series: torque steer. It’s not much, just a subtle tightening of the wheel as the Torsen diff does i’s bit, but there’s enough corruption to let you know that this is a very different kind of BMW. Moreover, it’s not a problem that afflicts the A35 or Volkswagen Golf R. That said, traction is exceptional, the combination of the four-wheel drive and the faster-acting traction control catapulting the M135i out of corners with the sense that not a single horsepower is wasted.
On the way in to corners, there’s terrific front-end bite, too, the BMW’s nose reacting instantly to the quick steering, which delivers decent feedback, and staying resolutely locked to your chosen line. Lift off the throttle and the M135i tucks even further into the apex, with the multi-link rear axle giving enough rotation for genuine off-throttle adjustability.
Get back on the power and the front diff helps resist understeer, but with an open rear diff and a maximum 50/50 torque split, the BMW simply fires straight and true out of the corner, the only drama being that slight torque-reaction tightening of the steering. It’s fast and very effective across the ground and that mobile multi-link rear axle delivers a real sense of agility, but it doesn’t feel very BMW-like. The relative purity of the old car has been replaced by a feeling that the M135i and its various systems are trying just a little too hard to please.
What about the rest of the car? We’ll leave you to make your own mind up about the styling (it looks a little MPV-like to our eyes), but in all other respects, the 1 Series is a better car than its predecessor. Despite essentially sharing the same footprint as its predecessor (it’s actually 5mm shorter) it’s a roomier machine, with more head and leg room (up by 33mm) in the back and a bigger and class-competitive 380-litre boot.
The interior looks and feels more upmarket, too, the sweeping dashboard design, knurled metal-effect ventilation controls and wall-to-wall soft-touch plastics helping make it more than a match for the Mercedes-Benz A-Class. Another area where it matches its rival is in the tech stakes. It lacks the Merc’s slick, full-TFT dashboard, but the BMW’s standard 8.8in touchscreen infotainment system is easier to operate, thanks mostly to the fact that it continues to use the firm’s intuitive iDrive rotary controller and hot keys. It’s also packed with all the latest connectivity and live services, plus its own version of the ‘Hey, Mercedes’ voice control. Oh, and you can also unlock and start the car using your smartphone - no key required.
Refinement has been vastly improved, with less wind and engine noise in the cabin. Our car was fitted with the optional two-stage adaptive dampers (Comfort and Sport), which have an underlying firmness even in their softest setting but do a decent job of isolating you from bumps, on Germany’s smoothly surfaced roads at least. Potholes and sharper imperfections are less ably dealt with, the suspension thudding awkwardly and stiffly over these more jagged obstacles.
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Takeitslowly
Rear drive to X drive, one step forward, etc, etc....
Given the writer is correct about present M140i owners being one of the target markets for this version, could BMW simply have left RWD in place for this one model, saved on weight and therefore cost of the new car...surely a more enticing proposition for any prospective buyer?.
Luap
.
Not really possible, as the drivetrain layout is entirely different. The platform is now FWD based with a transverse engine.
Its basically the same car as the Mini Clubman/Countryman and BMW X1/2
eseaton
A really horrible and
Summed up by the replacement of a truly great sounding engine with fake synthesized noise.
Cheapskate. And no way 4 stars.
StuM82
Grille
Expect the .2 version of this car to have a much smaller kidney grille. They just don't suit this car. They make it look like the 'mummy wagon' 2 series. Hardly 'aspirational'.
ricequackers
Is it me or does the new 1er
Is it me or does the new 1er look a bit too much like a compact MPV? It looks more like the Ultimate Carting the Kids to School Machine than a hatchback.
Anyway, enthusiasts should stick with the 2 series coupe as BMW aren't going to mess with the six up front and power to the back formula.
Lanehogger
Change of engine is one thing, but it's those looks!
With the previous M135i/M140i always having not just a 3.0 litre, but also a turbocharged, engine it was always going to be a bit of an issue when it came to replacing it, whether it was RWD or FWD orientated, even if BMW went to the expense of creating a new V6 to slot in transversely. The performance gap and engine spec between the M135i/M140i and the M2 wasn't huge and neither would it have been against the new M340i either which also has a 3.0 litre engine turbo unit. While it gave the M135i/M140i so much character and punch continuining with a large lazy, torquey engine in a 1 Series just wouldn't have sat comfortably in BMW's M/M Performance line-up. Though I'm sure BMW could have eeked more power from the 2.0 engine for this new M135i to make up for the lack of cylinders, character and reduction in pace compared to its predecessor.
But what does it for me is the look of thing because I too think this new 1 Series looks more MPV (and SUV too) than a hatch and at some angles it looks and has the proportions of the 2 Series Active Tourer and X1, and for a hot hatch it just doesn't quite work.
The Colonel
Trading Up?
I'd be interested to know more about where BMW see buyers coming from. I doubt (on no other basis than instinct, to be honest) that they really don't see current 140 owners as future owners of the new 135. I think they'd see them - older, more encumbered with offspring and pets, perhaps - trading up to a 3 or something X-ey.
On the styling, I do agree on the MPV like nature of it, which I believe is the current X styling filtering its way down...resulting in this, the MPV-a-fying of a hatch. Korean at the rear, A-Class at the sides, and Oh Dear at the front.
Hey! Maybe, after all, they did design it for the "oh no, I've got kids what do I do now?!?" 140 trader upper.
Anyway, either way it'll be a roaring success and come February there'll be loads of, MOA, nearly new, sub-£30k examples on the BMW Approved website, just as there typically are 140s, which makes them great value hoots.
The Colonel
Bad edit:
I doubt that BMW really DO see current 140 owners moving into the new 135.
mfe
Future BMW
AddyT
mfe wrote:
C63 ALL day long. Far cooler with a lot more character and doesn't have the whiff of a BMW driver. Tell him from me that's the weapon of choice! A lot more respect and admiration will come his way as a result of his decision!
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