We’re okay with the fact that the flagship 1 Series will not be a full-fat M version, but it’s a great car.
It is safe to say that the competition in the compact luxury segment has heated up. Mercedes has a more refined A-Class, while Audi is finishing the revamped A3. The Bavarians are close to launching the all-new 1 Series. While enthusiasts will have a problem switching from rear-wheel to front-wheel drive, they can at least take comfort in the fact that an M Performance version of xDrive is coming.
It was teased by BMW. This suggests that it will be unveiled on the same day as the regular 1 Series. Our good friends over at Kolesa.ru took a few spy shots of the hot hatch from Nurburgring, and converted them into renderings to show off the production-ready model M135i. It’s quite accurate. We are not sure about the kidney grille pattern, which is similar to the Z4 roadster or the M340i.
We know that the new BMW 1 Series hybrid car will be equipped with the FAAR platform. This means that we have a lot of technical details. The same 2.0-liter turbocharged gasoline engine that powers the X2 M35i will power the new BMW 1 Series. It produces 302 horsepower and 332 pounds-feet (450 Newton meters) of torque, making it the most powerful four-banger ever fitted in a BMW production vehicle. The M140i’s six-cylinder engine can be chosen between all-wheel or rear-wheel drive. However, the indirect successor will only come in xDrive.
The BMW rival to the Mercedes-AMG A35 will be the Audi S3 Sportback. An eight-speed automatic transmission will send the horses to both axles. Standard equipment will include an M Sport differential. As company representatives repeatedly stated, a fully-fledged M version of the car is not possible because it’s based on front-wheel-drive platforms.
The 1 Series and its M Performance counterparts won’t be available at a dealer in the United States. However, the 2 Series Gran Coupe will make its debut stateside. It will likely receive the “M Lite”, variant to compete with the Mercedes AMG CLA 35.