Welcome to the North American Subaru Impreza Owners Club Tuesday March 19, 2024
Home Forums Images WikiNASIOC Products Store Modifications Upgrade Garage
NASIOC
Go Back   NASIOC > NASIOC General > News & Rumors > Non-Subaru News & Rumors

Welcome to NASIOC - The world's largest online community for Subaru enthusiasts!
Welcome to the NASIOC.com Subaru forum.

You are currently viewing our forum as a guest, which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our community, free of charge, you will have access to post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is free, fast and simple, so please join our community today!

If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us.







* As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. 
* Registered users of the site do not see these ads. 
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 01-03-2008, 02:20 PM   #1
darknightohio
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 50523
Join Date: Dec 2003
Chapter/Region: MWSOC
Location: Toledo
Vehicle:
2023 GR86
Gray

Default EVO BMW 135i review



Quote:
BMW1-Series coupe arrives - complete with 300bhp engine of the year
By Henry Catchpole
January 2008

In an age when children can't play conkers without protective specs and no one dares eat anything that's out of date, it's reassuring that BMW is still brave enough to put triple tons of both horsepower and torque into the smallest car it produces. This is the 135i M Sport, the top player in the all-new 1-series Coupe range. Based on exactly the same platform as the three- and five-door 1-series variants, the Coupe is designed to appeal to the buyer who puts panache ahead of practicality. (Just ignore the fact that the Coupe actually has a slightly larger boot***8230;)

Most of the 3500 sales per annum that BMW is expecting for the 1-series Coupe will be made up of the 120d and the numerically pleasing 123d (which has a new 2-litre twin-turbo diesel putting out 201bhp and 295lb ft), but the 135i is the car that will make the headlines. It has the same 3-litre twin-turbo straight-six that we first saw in the 3-series a year ago, except that it now also has the gong of International Engine of the Year to hang round its cylinder heads.

The six-cylinder produces the same 295lb ft of torque as the V8 in the M3, but while the M-car peaks at 3900rpm, the 135i maintains maximum torque from 1300 to 5000rpm. Combined with a 100kg weight advantage, it's not surprising that the 135i's 0-62mph time of 5.3sec is just half a second behind the M3's. BMW's 4th-gear 50-75mph figures show the 135i closer still, with a time of 5.0sec to the M3's 4.9. A basic price of £29,745 doesn't exactly make the 135i a champion of the proletariat, but ***8216;The People's M3' has a nice ring to it nonetheless.

Whether it's an attractive car or not seems to depend on which angle you view it from. The main thing is that it looks small and compact (although BMW would probably rather I didn't use that last word) and feels the same from inside. You get the impression that it will fit neatly down a narrow road without your passengers breathing in nervously all the time. Despite this, legroom in the back is perfectly adult-usable.

On the road, the 135i certainly delivers on its pocket-rocket spec sheet. You never feel any lag from the two turbos and there is power available right through the wonderfully smooth rev range. The 135i is a seriously quick car. Quicker than a Cayman S? It certainly feels it.

There's a smidgen too much padding in the driver's seat and steering-wheel rim to make you feel instantly in touch with the road, but the chunky little gearshift has no slack at all and is great whatever your speed. And then there are the brakes. Finally BMW has provided a car with decent brakes, the 135i being armed with strong and lovely looking six-piston callipers at the front.

Turn into a corner and the first thing you notice is the grip. In the dry it has the tenacity of a cat clinging to soft furnishings. You keep pushing harder and harder but nothing seems to unseat the 18in wheels from their chosen trajectory. It's the front that will eventually let go first, and this, combined with steering that doesn't feel quite as precise or reassuring as you'd like, can make it difficult to commit on the entry to a bend.

If you do manage to unsettle the tail then new electronic trickery will act like a limited-slip diff and prevent the 135i from just spinning-up an inside wheel. It works well, but the rear will be fighting hard to regain grip all the time it's sliding, and in the dry there's more grip than power. Not an oversteer hero then, unless it's wet***8230;

The ride is stiff but well damped, and there isn't the bounce at the rear end that has blighted so many recent BMWs. However, the wheel control can get vague if you hit a bump mid-corner, unsettling the car disconcertingly.

The 135i isn't quite the hooligan threat to the health and safety lobby that we might have secretly hoped for, but its diminutive size and shear pace mean it is a huge amount of fun. Especially if you're sitting next to a Cayman at the traffic lights.








* Registered users of the site do not see these ads.
darknightohio is offline   Reply With Quote
Sponsored Links
* Registered users of the site do not see these ads.
Old 01-03-2008, 06:26 PM   #2
mastamind
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 110159
Join Date: Mar 2006
Chapter/Region: MWSOC
Default

But....but....but.....it's not a hatch, isn't practical, and doesn't have AWD! It can't be good!
mastamind is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-03-2008, 06:30 PM   #3
kyleblix
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 73495
Join Date: Oct 2004
Chapter/Region: NWIC
Location: Portland
Vehicle:
17 Audi Q5
White

Default

me likey
kyleblix is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-03-2008, 07:10 PM   #4
buddhas-gtb
Scooby Newbie
 
Member#: 13044
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: SFV
Vehicle:
99 Legacy GT Wagon
Quicksilver

Default

It looks like a English bowler hat. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowler_hat. I saw it at the LA Auto Show. It's nice but I would still get a 08 STI, more practical room, more all-road capable, probably cheaper whistled out, more reliable long-term, and as safe or safer.
buddhas-gtb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-03-2008, 08:21 PM   #5
amdmaxx
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 31665
Join Date: Jan 2003
Chapter/Region: Tri-State
Location: Northern NJ, USA
Vehicle:
2006 Saab 9-2x Aero
Black

Default

Caymans S needs 3.8 and DI to warrant its much higher price... Its still much lighter and more balanced than 135.
STi would win over 135 for me, since its more practical in a hatch form and AWD gives me all seasons traction.
amdmaxx is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-04-2008, 12:24 AM   #6
Superglue WRX
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 106275
Join Date: Jan 2006
Chapter/Region: NWIC
Location: Gresham, OR
Vehicle:
New Chevy SUV
Government Motors White

Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by mastamind View Post
But....but....but.....it's not a hatch, isn't practical, and doesn't have AWD! It can't be good!
I doubt anyone on here said the car was no good. But a lot of people can't justify paying that much for a semi-sports car with seating for 1 1/2 passengers and room for a backpack.
Superglue WRX is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-04-2008, 12:34 AM   #7
dowroa
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 17498
Join Date: Apr 2002
Chapter/Region: South East
Location: Durham, NC
Vehicle:
2016 Subaru WRX STi
2004 Subaru Imprza RallyX

Default

Ah, but some people can. I think they will get better gas mileage and have a more comfortable and happier wife in the passenger seat as well.

Oh, and you think I *want* passengers with me in a car like this?

- dow
dowroa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-04-2008, 01:40 AM   #8
NismoSkylineGTR
Scooby Specialist
 
Member#: 94622
Join Date: Aug 2005
Default

3 more doors and a taller back would be perfect
NismoSkylineGTR is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
2011 BMW 135i DCT - First Drive Review AVANTI R5 Non-Subaru News & Rumors 4 05-17-2010 06:23 PM
2008 BMW 135i Review AVANTI R5 Non-Subaru News & Rumors 96 08-29-2008 07:59 AM
Comparison Test: 2002 BMW M3 vs. 2008 BMW 135i vs. 2008 BMW 335i AVANTI R5 Non-Subaru News & Rumors 26 04-29-2008 11:50 PM
EVO vs BMW 135i NextCar Off-Topic 25 04-09-2008 10:05 PM
Dan Neil's BMW 135i Review skydes Non-Subaru News & Rumors 7 03-21-2008 08:42 AM

All times are GMT -4. The time now is 10:01 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.7.0
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Powered by Searchlight © 2024 Axivo Inc.
Copyright ©1999 - 2019, North American Subaru Impreza Owners Club, Inc.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission
Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.