I wish it would, but it's got 2 fewer doors than an A3 and the last time I checked the A3's weren't exactly flying off the shelf. Who chooses the six in this over the Z4 coupe? What you think this is more practical?

On a side note, if I was really loaded, I think it's cool and sexy. Oh, and I owned a '96 318ti. :cry:

Back to looking for my S54 M Roadster.

My bet is that BMW's going to price it high enough to protect the 3-series. That means we're only going to get the 135i, and at a starting price higher than the 328i.

That's an awfully small niche, and there's no way it competes with the A3 3.2. And for those who don't need the twin turbo, the C30 offers a sexier-looking machine with respectable performance and for less dough.

It all depends on price. Let's figure they keep pricing exactly the same as Audi's A3 (stripped at $27,000 - $3K less than an A4 - with my tester of the A3 2.0T being something like $33K).
Audi sold 8,040 A3s last year vs 42,694 A4 sedans.

A3 sales were down year to year for the month of Dec. by 20% The A4 up 40%.

Both being roughly the same age as far as new models.

I don't think the premium hatch is going to catch on in the U.S. with the prices the way they are especially with the more conventionally styled A3 doing mediocre business.

i want it to succeed wildy, so i can autocross a salvage titled number in ten years, with a strong parts market to back it up when it gets stuffed.

and I still say I don't believe they're putting the twin turbo in this thing. That makes no sense.

My point exactly, DT. For 27k, you can get a kickass Mini or a stripper 1. The 1 has the advantage of that lovely six and RWD. But the Cooper S is the most fun I've ever had in a stock FWD car. We need an RWD sport hatch in this market, methinks. But the 1 is simply the wrong car for it. And people who don't care a whit for carrying anything will likely go for something like a 350Z. People who do will buy Jonny's hatchback.

We thought it was going to bomb in the UK too, being overpriced, under-specced, soft on performance (unless you sell a few vitals organs to fund the M), didn't handle particularly well and looked like it had already been in a crash.

With all that against them, there are still a surprising amount of them around, even though we have some amazing hatchbacks for far less cash. Grab a GTI, a Focus RS, a Renault Megane 230 or a Civic type R and you'll still come home with change. In a relatively non-hatch friendly market like the US, I think they're badly misjudged it.

Still, it just goes to show - some people will buy anything with a prop badge on the front. Maybe it'll take off...

Of course it'll survive, it's cheaper, faster, and more capable then the R32 in comparable form. Just watch the topgear episode. oh wait. it's not. erm... no.

I've been a big apologist for this car, but I'm about to throw in the towel. Sears just aligned my Rodeo for $80 and there is a six month warranty on the alignment. I'm pretty sure they will be able to do the same for my MR2 Spyder. They could NOT align my old BMW, and the people that could charged $180-200.

In summary, fuck BMW. Anyone that buys one of these from a BMW dealer will be treated like shit. The 350Z has the right price but it's overweight and bland. The company that could make a car like this at the right price, insanely, is GM. Throw a shooting brake roof on a Sky or Solstice, put in the 2 liter, 270hp turbo, charge 20-25 and pretty soon, for lack of a better cliche, all your GTIs are belong to GM.

Slush:
The Sky is an absolutely perfect candidate for this treatment. Give it a skosh more wheelbase for some rear seats and more carrying capacity, the stonking Ecotec (a motor which has SUPER AFTERMARKET POWER-PRODUCTION POTENTIAL), price the stripper slightly north of 20k and they'd have a winner on their hands. I bet it'd even sell in Europe with the wuss motor or a diesel. And it'd even have jaded ol' me saying That's a Saturn?. It would also help differentiate it from the Solstice. Essentially, it'd be just like the Nomad concept, except not, you know, retro-modern dumb.

It will sell to those who want a small premium car, but think the MINI is too cute or trendy.

I'm guessing there's enough around for a market.

All I'm going to say is that there comes a point where the pseudo-luxury market is saturated...

*IF* BMW can bring to market a 1 series two door sedan like the original 2002 at a price point that does not encroach on 3 series territory *and* keep it simple stupid in terms of the driving environment, I'd be all over it. i.e. no freaking iDrive bullshit. Oh yeah, no Bangle styling either. A clarion call back to unadulterated, pure driving that made BMW great is what this automobile should be.

I wanted to touch on the point brought up that the mini is more for you money then the one. I recall an episode of Top Gear where Clarkson said it just wasn't as good as a Golf; and now by extension the new GTI is in the fray as well around that price bracket, and just as loaded as the Mini.....

I'm not a huge fan of the 1 series but BMW needs something that is smaller than the ever growing 3 series (which now as large as the previous 5 series). I don't think that the 1 series is it - its too heavy, too expensive and has even less rear legroom than the Golf.

Maybe a 2 series coupe?

dozerslobber, i don't think the 1-series and the Audi A3 are competing for the same market. BMW = rwd, Audi = fwd. As you mentioned, the A3 has two more doors (which not everyone wants!). The A3 is bigger/heavier (more rear seat room than an A4, believe it or not!) and it offers Quattro for those who want it. Vastly different cars.

Brian E, why exactly would BMW overprice the 1-series into 3-series territory? That'll cause sales cannibalization. If it's sized directly between the Mini and the Z4 coupé, why wouldn't it also be priced appropriately? Oh, I forgot; we're talking about BMW. They can always command ridiculous prices, as mainstream auto journalists will sit, beg, and roll over at BMW's command.

My guess on recent soft A3 sales is that 1) many are anticipating the new TT and much-awaited A5, and 2) bargains can be found on the A4. I have visited more than one Audi dealer, glanced at an A3, and had a salesperson actively try to steer me to the "superior" A4. Both fine cars, but with the exception of Torsen Quattro availability in the A4, the A3 offered everything one could want in a small wagon. BMW's 1-series is not a wagon, but a hot hatch, and therefore will sell very well if they don't overprice it.

Yes, this looks like a hot little racer. One can only hope BMW offers a Club Sport edition.

Please contact me if you're selling your old M-coupé to buy a new 1-series.

Pricing the 1-series in 3-series waters won't cause sales cannibalization in the US; it's actually how they will avoid it. Instead of offering a cheaper route to the roundel, the 1-series will be a niche product for those who aren't willing to pony up a few thousand more for the full 3-series experience.

Audi did the same thing with the A3 2.0T. The base model is less, but the options are much, much more expensive than the equivalents on the A4. An A3 2.0T with automatic, leather seats, heated seats, and a 6-disc changer stickers for $31,070. An A4 2.0T with the same options stickers for $31,940.

If it's priced anything like the 318ti (and I believe it will be), then it'll fail too.

Furthermore, it'll sully the BMW name. Remember, Lexus was created in America, because Toyota understood Americans don't want to pay $60K for a car from the same nameplate as a car that is small and costs a lot less.

Think Jag X-Type.

The thing is, I see Jag X-Types everywhere. I live in Orange County, and you can sometimes walk across the street on a carpet of Merc C230s, BMW 328is, Audi A4 2.0Ts, and Jag X-Types. I don't think that the 1-series will go over well in Wisconsin or Kansas, no. But on the coasts and particularly wherever image-obsessed ladder climbers are, there will be 1-series owners, especially if BMW overprices it like I think they will. I'm thinking that they'll price it somewhere around $5,000 less than the equivalent 3-series, which puts the base 130i at about $27,500, maybe $30k tops. That puts in in prime territory for a whole new segment of buyers with loose grasps of personal finance management and an over-inflated need to be seen as someone of consequence who couldn't even swing the cost of the most basic 3-series.

"That puts in in prime territory for a whole new segment of buyers with loose grasps of personal finance management and an over-inflated need to be seen as someone of consequence who couldn't even swing the cost of the most basic 3-series."

Wow, you figured what someone's all about based on their choice of car? Tell us what you drive then.

Let's see:
1. I live in Orange County too - check
2. I plan on buying the 135 - check
3. I can afford the 335 - check

There goes your theory genius. The 335 is way too long and unappealing. It looks like something my uncle would drive. I'm 28, a doctor, and can see myself in this one easily. Inline 6, rwd, twin turbo hatchback with BMW engineering? Sign me up.

Update: BMW 1-series is the #3 best selling car in Germany, with #1 being the Golf, #2 C-Class and #3 3-series.
I think it might survive, just.