BMW 1 Series

BMW's done an about face and turned to front-wheel drive for performance – should rivals from Volkswagen and Renault be worried?

Volkswagen's Golf GTI has long been the go-to for fast, affordable and reliable. Can BMW beat the hot hatch hero at its own game?

How will BMW's new-generation hot hatch go against a Korean screamer developed by experts poached from BMW M?

The most aspirational Mazda 3 model yet is our current mainstream small-car benchmark. Now it faces its toughest test – against the most affordable version of the new BMW 1 Series.

BMW claims affordable electric cars have a place in the company’s future line-up, all but confirming the future of its entry-level 1 Series hatchback and 2 Series sedan.

BMW is said to be introducing entry-level electric vehicles, named the i1 and i2.

BMW Australia has added two limited-edition, entry-level variants to its 1 Series hatch and 2 Series Gran Coupe sedan ranges, with a lower price but fewer features.

BMW recorded a strong performance in 2021 despite semiconductor challenges, delivering more than two million cars to customers around the world.

It’s no secret we love the 2018 BMW M140i. So much so, CarAdvice recently bought one. It’s a proper quick hot hatch and is a fun and affordable European option at around $60,000.

Welcome to the first of a little series intended to highlight some of the best, most challenging, and most fun roads we (occasionally) get to drive on.

Soapie star discusses why she wants to shoot every episode of Neighbours from behind the wheel of her BMW

It was my first diesel car, so I gravitated towards performance, and the BMW 123d was one of the fastest available at the time.

Probably the most hated one series ever made but I could beg the differ, I think it's better. The new one series is a step ahead of it's predecessor in some areas, yes it's lost the beautiful B58 and has switched to a transverse layout but gains an AWD system too. This won't just be a comparison to the old one but also the car from what it is, a good handling and quick hatch. Lets start with the front end, I honestly can't see much wrong with it in the MSPORT package and if you pick the right colour, the car is fine to look at... Just avoid getting a one series in white and with that toothy chrome grille (118i), otherwise you'll have bruce the shark on wheels. Pick your colours and trims correctly, that's my advice with the M135i and it won't look so subjective at all, furthermore you can black the car out completely and it looks great. Rear end is perfect and I won't touch base with that much, just wish it had square exhaust tips not round. The Interior, This cars strongest point and its predecessors biggest down fall, I'm just going to be point blank here, the interior of the old 1 series was pathetic for a car that once had an 80K - 90K price tag RRP. The current generations interior is leaps and bounds ahead and it looks great, you have mood lights throughout the car that appear in some abstract form and not just light strips like other cars. The infotainment system is great too and I like the dash cluster layout however sometimes the voice activation can be hit and miss if the car doesn't have proper phone signal coverage. The Interior is probably one of the best in class and it makes cars like the golf R look dated and cheap. As for cars like the Merc A class, I absolutely detest that tablet style dash/info screen across the dashboard for me it looked lazy and just felt like merc wanted to shove a TV in the dash. I wanted a car, not harvey norman on wheels. Absolutely love the seats, they are hard as they look in the photos but that's expected. Great quality leather too. The drive, (Handling and drive train) It handles good, very good and confidently. The B58 might be gone but it's little sister is under the bonnet, the B48 which is a complete carbon copy of the B58. Get a B58 and chop away two cylinders, there's your B48 they are nearly identical. Both engines are showing a good reliability track record so far. The B48 like it's sibling is closed deck block and in addition to its strengths, it's lost that pathetic electric water pump setup and gone back to conventional belt driven design. The car is still quick, a touch slower then the previous generation but it's still good for what it is. BMW acclaimed it to be 4.8s 0-100, that is tangible but you need to set the car on every performance setting to reach that. My car personally feels like 4.9 - 5ish when launching it on sports mode (Depending on the weather too) in comfort or eco mode it will bomb out at 5.8 - 5.5s without doing anything special. So for max performance just leave it in sports mode. As for fuel economy, drive it hard and it drinks like a fish, simple. Drive it normally and you'll get good results. The transmission: If I were to tell you that this gearbox would the least of your worries I wouldn't be joking. It's a normal torque converted box, it's smooth and its very well tuned. Doesn't fumble or hunt either and you'd mistaken it to be a ZF, it's not. The 8 speed transmission in this car is a Aisin/Toyota group gear box found in the humble Kluger, Lexus RX and Camry V6, the very same. I would not look at this as a bad thing at all, you now have a German car with a piece of Japanese reliability and you don't have any ridiculous DCT setups to worry about unlike other German rivals where DCT is controversial. The performance of the Aisin is fine and BMW have utilised it very well and like I've said before BMW are absolute geniuses when it comes to the harmonics between the Gearbox and the engine combination. The performance of this 8 speed and the rest of their other torque converted boxes (ZF) will make DCT a distant memory. The AWD system: I get it, not many people like FWD cars and everyone misses the RWD layout but honestly with the Xdrive system, you will not miss the old model. There is such a minute touch of torque steer when you mash it but it's quickly resolved when the car sends power to the back and it does that often. You have confidence in the wet, around corners and through s bends. You can flog this car around any bend and you'll remain confident. Conclusion: The BMW M135i is the model to go for, the looks are great (Just get the trim and colour combo right), it's fast and the interior space is nice. It's much better balanced then it's old model and a lot of people will argue that the previous gen had more soul but let me put it to you this way, It's still fast and it's just been more modernised to the world around us but a souless car wouldn't have 225 KW, 450 NM or an AWD system. BMW could have canned this model all together. If you want a perfect example of a souless car, sit in a kia rio or a base model Hyundai sonata for 2 hours listening to Enya on repeat. This car has become more premium than ever and it shows it, the old model would be comparable to a Ford Falcon has your best interests at heart but doesn't show it (interior). For me personally I bought the car for what it is, it does everything I want it to do. It's quick, it's got good interior looks/space and I couldn't care less if there's another car brand who makes a hot hatch that's 0.1 of a second quicker someone will always bring out something new every 6 months that's life.

Ah, finally, cruising in the BMW M140i! A sporty, practical, 5 door, 5 seat, 250kw, 500nm beast! Before we get to the Beemer, let me tell you how I came to choosing it. So I was trapped in the YouTube black hole for many months; Golf R, second hand M2, etc etc. I drove the Golf R and was very impressed with it. After all, anything new after a 15 year old Audi would feel nice. It launched well, interior quality was excellent, the door weighting when you open the door, the lighting, the new leather smell. I wanted one. I then drove the special edition akropovic edition and was impressed, but not at 67k. I spoke to my local friendly amazing client partner at BMW, who suggested I should take the M140i for a drive. I arrive to a beautiful white M140i with black wheels, looking quite nice! I was immediately impressed with the driving position, the steering, the seats and the exhaust note. Taking off in the M140i was a blast. There was just so much power accessible, and that too, smooth power! If you haven't driven a semi powerful car before, you are gobsmacked as to the fist punch into the back of your seat. Putting the car into sports mode, naturally, firmed up the car and made the throttle response more sporty, holding the revs, more aggressive, and made the car sound more sportier. I then used the paddles and was overwhelmed with the continuous delivery of paper coming from BMWs B58 twin scroll turbo 6 engine. It just kept pulling, with no fuss and no wheel spin (save that for sports +) The beemer did draw some attention from the office workers, even though it's not a fully fledged M car. Not that it matters, but it was good to see some fellow humans appreciating the baby M car. It started to drizzle, so I quickly pulled over and took some photos of the car. It looks quite nice in alpine white and black wheels; the white really brings out the lines of the car, the signature bmw side cut, the front end with the signature kidney grilles, and the rear... well not exactly signature but nevertheless nice, and the two blacked out exhausts. With my test drive almost up, like any minute now, I called my client partner letting him know I was on the way back. With very little time, I gave the m140i a bootful, it just kept pushing and pushing me into my seat. Stopped at the traffic lights, the beemer had tinted windows, so I put into neutral and gave it a few revs. Crackle crackle pop pop! It sounded nice, and "expensive", without being too loud or over the top. After I had settled down, I put the Beemer into comfort mode and out of paddles, and it drove, well like a normal comfortable car. Do I use comfort mode much now, definitely not! Even though I'm a beemer fan, I have to admit that neither of my choices were perfect. The golf R had awd, a seemingly higher quality interior and build and seemed you could chuck it around a bit easier. It also had a more features such as adaptive cruise, blind spot monitoring, lane assist (the car would steer you back into line), reverse assist, and generally felt a bit more solid. My local euro mechanics also suggested the Golf R would have a less troublesome life (subjective of course). This doesn't discount VWs DSG or dieselgate past. However, at around 59k + on road costs, the BMW was more appealing. It was more sports car like with the 6 cylinder turbo engine, Rear wheel drive, low slung driving position and the interest in wanting a BMW in general. It was the last time I could own such a car with these characteristics, for a relatively affordable price and that brand new too. I decided I could always get a Golf R at a later stage, whether a MK7.5 or the nee MK8. I could have ordered a built to order M140i, but missed out and almost came to the model being discontinued. It had to be white, blue or grey with black wheels. Time was running out. A brand new grey M140i was available from my dealership. I drove past and saw it sitting there in all its beauty, Mineral Grey, bmw signature kidney grille, all the leather wrapped in plastic. It looked mean. I pulled the trigger, got a great deal and put my $1000 deposit down and waited for my finance approval. My client partner greeted me with a some BMW goodies and I drove off into the sunset. The smile on my face was massive, it felt amazing. Finally making a big purchase that was for myself and for my own happiness. I ended up with a 2018 Mineral grey m140i. The options included were a sunroof (mandatory for me), black leather with blue contrast stiching, wireless charging, auto park and tinted windows. I waxed the car myself with Autoglym HD wax and put some custom euro plates on and I was all done! Out in the sun, the car definitely didn't look as "phat" as I was hoping it to, but the metallic mineral grey in the sun, took my mind off it. I have grown to really appreciate the m140i, say compared to an M2. It's quieter, a sleeper you could say, practical, as I learnt the magic of a hatch back with foldable rear seats and just an all around comfortable place to be. My favourite part of the car would be the front end, the front looks much more aggresive than the back, and reminds me of the aggresive M2. Overall I do appreciate the sutle nature of the car. No boy racers trying to race me as they might in a more aggresive looking vehicle. As for the interior, though it's lacking in some notable safety features mentioned earlier, and is now a "dated" cabin, I find the M140i interior to be a lovely place to be. The ergonomics are spot on, the chunky steering wheel, the low slung supportive seat, the relationship with the controls while driving. The iDrive system is a pleasure to use whilst driving, with little distraction. My Samsung galaxy note 10+ unfortunately doesn't work with the wireless charging due to its larger size and no work around has been offered yet. The GPS sometimes isn't clear enough in its directions especially when in big cities. Android auto is still not available (or not installed in my car yet) by the dealership. So it does feel quite lacking in these areas and one would want to be more impressed especially when upgrading from a 2006 Audi to a 2018 BMW, when most cheaper cars even have these features. The same goes for the lack of blind spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control etc. But these last two features don't make a difference to me, as tested in some other vehicles, they can be over intrusive and counter intuitive (as in the Subaru loan car I have at the moment). The auto park function didn't work too well, I tried a few times and it just wouldn't park, missing the parking spot all together, and worried about my new wheels (first world problems), so back to good old fashioned DIY driving! The m140i is a pleasure to drive as mentioned above; smooth when you want it to be, and then fast and aggressive in sports mode. You'd want to be very careful as the speed packs on rapidly, enabling a couple hundred dollars fine from the local policeman in his bmw m5 patrol car. The suspension can be quite firm and harsh when on rough surfaces and potholes. You would want to test drive it on such surfaces to see if it's acceptable. The handling is very good, though the beemer can get a little overwhelmed if throwing it around at rapid paces. Enthusiasts highly encourage a limited slip differential and perhaps lowering the centre of gravity a little to alleviate some of this. Though I am not keen on doing any modifications while in warranty and want to wait a while and decide whether I modify it or go for an M2 or even an M340i next. The passenger space was an improvement over the Audi a4 B7, but can still be a little tight depending on how the front passengers had positioned their seats. My particular M140i has has some issues. The beemer would "creak" when going up driveways. BMW partially fixed this by applying a special sealant into the inside of the door on the rubber seals. The rear wiper plastic bolt cover fell off and cracked while washing the car, another common issue apparently. The biggest issue was receiving a drive train error while driving the car around town. Something to do with cylinder 5. BMW picked up the car and made some changes to the software but the issue is not yet fully resolved. All these small niggles go away when you turn on the beast and just go for a drive. My favourite driving mode is sports+ and manual mode, using the gear selector to change gears. The noise is lovely and you get the added exhaust and engine noise to go with it, while having better control of the car in manual mode. When toning it down, I like to drive in auto and use sports mode. Just be careful when accelerating as it can go up to the red line, finding yourself in license suspension territory. The Beemer would definitely be more usable for pure speed and acceleration on track, which I am yet to do. Thank you BMW for making such a cracking car and excellent value towards it's end of life. I am very pleased with it and in the age of downsizing engines and emissions regulation, it's the best car I could have purchased. My client partner was extremely thorough and accommodating towards me and my OCD, and thanks to him I am a happy chap.

I walked into a BMW dealer nearly 9 years ago, desiring a compact, economical car with that little bit more luxury and pizazz than the Golf I had been checking out. I was drawn in to the showroom by a BMW advert - $42888 drive away for a 118d manual diesel with leather. I was told there were no manuals available. I complained to BMW about bait advertising and a few weeks later, my manual BMW arrived with the added bonus of cruise control and voice "control", a very euphemistic description of a system that can sometimes call home, but no amount of cajoling or shouting can persuade it to call anywhere else. Fortunately Siri has now come to my rescue. Three years later, I walked back into the Volkswagen dealership, ready to trade the BMW for that Golf, was offered a derisory amount as a trade-in and decided to persevere. My main complaint was the road roar and harshness of the ride - I know BMWs are advertised as the "Ultimate Driving Machine", but I was fed up with constant sound inflicted by every coarse chip in the bitumen and the transmission of every imperfection in the road surface to my aching rear. I was desperate for the OEM Bridgestone run-flat tyres to wear out. After 45000km I decided I could justify their replacement with conventional Yokohama Advan tyres with their claim of quietness and comfort. This was when I started to fall in love. The ride and noise were transformed, not necessarily plush, but perfectly liveable. At last I started to experience the "More Driving Pleasure". Acceleration is rated at 8.9s to 100 km/hr, fairly sluggish by today's standards. It's not able to hustle from the lights at any great pace, but get it into third at around 60 km/hr and there's a sudden sense of urgency as you hit peak torque. Back in 2010, diesel wasn't quite the dirty word it is today and one of the motivations for my purchase was the fuel consumption figure: officially 4.5 l/100km on the combined cycle. On my thrice weekly 120km commute along Melbourne's choked freeways, average consumption works out at 4.8 l/100km - I don't think many other cars come within cooee of that. The start-stop system works flawlessly on this manual car and undoubtedly contributes to the economy - you come up to some red lights, depress the clutch and the engine cuts to eerie silence as you glide to a stop and then reactivates the very instant you depress the clutch - very impressive. As long as you're up front in the BMW, you're in relative comfort - the leather seats have finally conformed to my body contour and are wearing well. Space in the rear is more cramped, necessitating positioning behind the shortest person to ensure adequate legroom. Ride comfort in the rear isn't too bad on the flat, but you need to watch for any approaching speed bumps and duck slightly to stop your head hitting the roof. The BMW hasn't let me down after 157000km, but has had a few gremlins - a leaking rear differential, a defective oxygen sensor and some bizarre electrical issues. Apparently the leaking rear differential is fairly common and required a complete (expensive) disassembly to replace a couple of seals. The oxygen sensor showed up as an engine management issue and could only be resolved with another expensive trip to a BMW dealer for diagnosis and replacement. The electrical issues involved the computer randomly scrolling through the functions on the dashboard display - solved with a new battery. After the initial 3 years of BMW servicing I have been taking the car to an independent who charges less than 50% of the price. BMW will be replacing the rear wheel drive 1 series with a front driving version next year and I get a sense (perhaps unfounded) that this will degrade the handling of the car. My wife catches me glimpsing at the current 1 series on the BMW website, but no diesels or manuals are featured. I've never kept a car for this length of time before, but feel this one will go on for some time yet. My son has just started to learn to drive. Maybe I'm an outdated luddite but driving a manual just gives you that extra engagement with your drive making it a true "Joy to Ride".