While the previous 1 Series hatch was (wrongly) criticized for its dumpy looks and sub-standard interior, I was one of the those on the other side of the fence. I thought the 1s looked good, especially when fitted with M-sport bits and bigger wheels. It looked nice and squat, and when blessed with a 3 litre straight-6, drove like magic. The small footprint allowing you to pivot the car around you and dart into small gaps of traffic, while the beefy 3 litre oozes out 265 smooth horses. It even looked like a shooting brake, automatically giving it some cool kudos points.
But great drivability and the ability to put a smile on keen drivers alone will not sell cars, so BMW has redesigned the latest F20 1 Series to be more cushy and more eco, but how does it drive? The key word I keep coming up with when behind the wheel of the latest 1 Series is efficient, more on that later.
First up, the looks. I know it sounds strange but when I first saw pictures of the new F20 on the interwebs, I couldn’t help but think of that red angrybird. Those lights, angled towards the grill look rather like a pair of angry eyes, and the bigger kidneys protruding out like a beak. It didn’t help that it’s in red too. Overall the new car looks and is slightly bigger then the earlier 1. Those headlights make it look angrier too, a trend which most car makers are now going for. All new cars nowadays look really cross and the new 1 is no exception. I think color plays a big part in how the F20 looks. I spied a white one in the showroom and it looked doubly better. In this particular shade of red, a lot the surfacing and cut lines appear to be lost and that is a waste because when you do see those surfaced edges, it gives the car a much better feel. More dynamic in a sense, the way the lower sill raises up towards the kink of the rear windows, and the tapering shoulder line which run into the rear lights. It looks tidy no doubt, but somehow a little blobby in red.
Those bi-colored wheels don’t help either. Ditch those wheels and slap on some aftermarkets. It will look all the better for it.
I even made the photoshop above just to prove my point.
Step inside the car though and all negative sentiments about the angrybird exterior are gone. The quality of the redesigned interior is a big improvement over the older car and offer a much more up market feel. The way everything just comes together, build quality, materials, the way all sub controls are again, angled towards the driver. All feel and look very good. Small complaints I have here is the rim of the steering is a tad hard, and that although it comes with iDrive there is no sat-nav which is strange. Road noise does seep into the cabin at times and you are reminded that you are in BMW’s entry level model range. But overall, it is a nice place to be.
The biggest news for this car though has to be the engine, gone are the dawdling naturally aspirated 4 Cylinders. The new 1s now come with turbo power, even on the base 116i. Coming in at a 1600 cubics, the base 116i now puts out 136 horses, up from 120. But the bigger jump is in torque figures, 220Nm in the new car, up from 160. Meaning easier overtakes and quicker getaways from the lights. What is interesting though, is a similar engine this 118i form I am testing puts out 170 horses and 250Nm’s of juice. Make of this what you will but it gets the car going from rest to 100km/h in an officially recorded 7.5 seconds. That’s pretty good when you are behind the wheel and have to keep reminding yourself the engine is a 1.6. 250Nm’s of torque on tap from 1500rpms through to 4500rpms is also readily sufficient to propel the car away from most traffic on our expressways.
How does the car drive? Back to the word “efficient”. Not only in the way it sips petrol, thanks in part to BMW’s Start Stop technology which cuts off the engine when you are stationary and keep your foot on the brake and restarts if when pressure lifts off the brake pedal. It sounds more intrusive then it actually is though, because it reality, it actually isn’t. A small shudder upon the reigniting engine is a worthwhile trade for extra pocket money from petrol savings.
Another reason for this efficiency is something BMW calls Drive Performance Control. In short, you have 4 modes to choose how you want to commute. Comfort is the default setting, Sport for when you feel sporty, Sport+ when you feel extra sporty and ECO PRO, which is supposed to help drivers save fuel by limiting the use of the air-conditioning and dulling the throttle response. It even has a little gauge below your rev counter “encouraging” more eco-minded driving. In short, ECO PRO mode is for people who hate driving. I like my cars sporty with a touch of + once in a while, but let me tell you something, even with ECO PRO mode banned, the car still returned very good mileage. This I suspect due to that little charged 1.6 up front delivering a good dollop of returns for little outlay. Efficient is also how I would describe how the engine performs, It is not as soulful as a straight 6 and it gets a little raspy when you are pushing it. Power delivery is smooth but keep it in the mid range, pushing it up towards the red line yields less rewards. The F20 feels nicely planted on the road and is a very well behaved car with predictable but good handling, if a little bit harsh on the motorway.
Personally, and this is really my own personal view. The engine sometimes feels a little bit agricultural about how it does its job, this part is quite difficult to explain, but it just does. A prolonged period of driving might change my perceptions, but this is how I feel at the end of my short fling.
The new 1 Series, drives and handles well and does it’s bit to save you petrol. And with that fantastic interior, a great entry into the World of BMW motoring. The engine just needs a bit more pizzazz.
I once read an automotive book many many years ago, in it was this quote, "A good car is like an extension of your body." These words struck a chord with me and embedded themselves into my brain as i grew up. It sounds all rather Cliché now, but when you think about it, there is quite alot of truths in those words.
Fast forward a number of years later, i find myself standing next to the door of the M135i. I know there are alot of naysayers (myself included), about the naming convention of this car, specifically to do with that letter "M" next to the numbers. I won't go into too much detail but, yes, it deserves to be there. Some might want to compare it with the 1M, but that's not being fair to the M135i, for a proper fight, let's wait for the 2M (or M2) to arrive before we bring up the baby M.
Visually, the 3 door's have always been the better looking of most hatchbacks and this 1 is no different. The elongated windows, the longer doors and those frameless windows all help to raise the appeal of the 1 Series. The 4 door might have an edge on practicality, but this just looks much better. The awkward "Angry Bird" headlights remain, but when fitted with the more menacing M-Sport front bumper, look much better. Specially designed lightweight 19" shoes barely hide the 4 and 2 pot brakes and give the M135i a squat and purposeful stance.
To understand this car though, you need to open the door, get in, thumb the starter button and awaken the 320 horses sitting up front. The car barks into lift and settles into a low burble. It sounds... good...
It feels good inside too, the seats are nicely supportive although it would have been nice to have it partly covered with some Alcantara. All the controls fall into place easily, and thumbing through the iDrive brings up a pair of gauges for more flair.
The first thing that you notice when you start to move off is just how quick the steering is, equipped with BMW’s variable-ratio geometry as standard, you'd think, maybe perhaps it would loosen up once you get on the road, but no, the steering remains just as quick. It is the fastest steering rack i have even experienced on a road car and gives the M135i a very dart-like character.
The steering feel though requires a bit of pondering, it is both sharp and slightly dull at the same time. The sharpness comes from the very low ratio steering rack, the car reacts almost instantly to all your inputs and corrections. The slight dullness, is how much output the steering gives to the driver. It has a good amount of weight to it but might lack that extra bit of road feel. You still know what's going on under the wheels, but a bit more feedback would have helped.
That said, as a driver's car, i really cannot fault the M135i in any other way. It is such a joy to bring it out and just blast around anywhere and everywhere. It really is a small compact weapon, a small compact weapon with 450Nm's of torque at your disposal and decent mileage to boot. It really is a blast.
You see some gaps in traffic, carve out an imaginary line in your head, squeeze the throttle, and BOOM, the little car just traces out that line with such tenacity and with a lovely soundtrack to match. Lift off the throttle and the exhaust emits little explosions on the overrun. Some road users might now be giving you strange looks as you fly by them in the smallest sized BMW currently on sale, while those in the know keep their distance.
The grip is fantastic, the balance is spot on, and the way the car leans into each corner feels just right. Turn into a corner, and as the front end digs in, and as you straighten out, squeeze the throttle and move on to carve the next corner. With just 4.9 seconds needed to hit 100km/h from standstill, get ready to say goodbye to your license if you drive "enthusiastically" too often. The brakes also do a pretty good job of hauling the car down from speed and unless you are on a track, probably won't be using them to their fullest potential.
Naysayers, just go take a test drive. You'd find the character of this car just oozes out M-Division magic for this car to deserve the "M" badge.
Overall conclusion? Definitely one of BMW's best. The last time i had so much fun in a car, it was the Z4M Roadster and this little hatch slots right behind that German hot rod. The more you drive this car, the more it just wants to wrap around you, almost like an extension of your body.
Not bad for an hours(ish) worth of work in the carpark eh?
In the basement carpark before i went out. Not the best lighting, so i drove it out.
Still managed to catch what little sunlight there was. I'm very very happy with the results.
Cloudy background
More bonnet shots.
Closeup of bonnet (you can see a raindrop already)
Truck going by...
Side views.
Roof shot
More roof shots.
Immediately after that last shot, i got into the car and this happened. So back home i went. The wash-car curse strikes again!!!
To say i'm happy is an understatement, the result for the money spent is really really good. Granted it might not match up to the big boy grooming centres which have access to professional grooming tools, but for a hobbyist, i'm very very pleased with the outcome. You might be using other products which work for you and give you a similar or better shine which is cool. But personally, i think the results are already worth more than what i paid.
Thanks for reading!!!
