• jalopnik reviews

    2009 BMW 135i, Part Three

    Why you should buy the 2009 BMW 135i:
    You like the idea of a driver’s car, but you don’t really like driving that much. You heard the 135i was the car to drive this fall. You’re a life-long BMW fan and you have a penchant for blinders. You’re a badge snob. You’re all of the above and you really don’t have an eye for a deal.

    Why you shouldn't buy this car:
    You want a four-seat coupe that drives like a sports car. You have a collection of old BMWs and want the modern equivalent to use as a daily driver. You’re one ticket away from losing your license. Your garage floor is only rated to hold 3383 LB. You’re spending your own money.

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    Feature

    1:30 PM on Fri Sep 12 2008
    By Wes Siler
    5,819 views, 117 comments

    Most discussed long_live_the_E36: Poseurs: No? This seems perfect for poseurs. more »

  • jalopnik reviews

    2009 BMW 135i, Part Two

    Exterior Design: ****
    Easily the best-looking Bangle BMW, the 2009 BMW 135i excels in proportion, if not in detail. Straight from the front, there’s little indication of the 135i’s purpose, but from there back it’s classic BMW two-door updated for the 21st century.

    Interior Design:***
    Restraint and simplicity do the 135i’s interior many favors. Still, it would have been nice to see an even simpler approach taken without sacrificing the quality. Leather-clad Recaro sport seats would have been a good starting point. The 1-series European economy car roots show in the cheap secondary plastics used on the center console and dash. Not something we’d want in a $46,000 car.

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    Feature

    4:00 PM on Thu Sep 11 2008
    By Wes Siler
    5,699 views, 82 comments

    Most discussed Mad_Science: It baffles me that the same company that delivered so well on the Mini could screw this one up. Minis get more »

  • jalopnik reviews

    2009 BMW 135i, Part One

    Perhaps more than any other car in its range, the 2009 BMW 135i carries the weight of customer expectation on its shoulders. Supposedly the antithesis to the soft, the bloated and overcomplicated cars dominating BMW’s range for the majority of this decade, people want the 135i to herald a return to the simple, well-engineered driver’s cars the company became famous for. And with a 300 HP twin-turbo inline-six mounted longitudinally in a small rear wheel drive coupe, on paper at least, it looks like the 135i could be that car.

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    Feature

    4:00 PM on Wed Sep 10 2008
    By Wes Siler
    11,639 views, 147 comments

    Most discussed TheTooth: @layabout: I'll scrap the analogy for you. What I was trying to say is that while the cars they more »

  • bmw 135i

    $55,000 "Projekt1" BMW 135i Takes Gold In Dealer-Installed Optioning

    If Classic BMW of Plano, Texas endeavored to build the most optioned BMW 135i ever, we think they were successful with this tii lookalike. We were only able to up-option a 1-series to $52,550 but the clever mechanics at Classic are just better at this than we are. Starting with an already loaded 1-series with an MSRP of $42,900, the Texas tinkerers successfully added $12,372.42 in a "Performance Package" consisting of more carbon fiber and custom paint than we knew existed. It's expensive, but at least it's all covered under warrenty. The car is for sale on eBay so maybe you can snake the price down further away from M3 territory. A description from the dealer of how they made it work below the jump.

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    4:20 PM on Fri Aug 22 2008
    By Matt Hardigree
    3,775 views, 50 comments

    Most discussed Pete Gaines: @marcus56: A woody package would be redundant, as this car will obviously be purchased by a prick. more »

  • tuners

    HARTGE Gives BMW 1-Series The Carbon Fiber It Was Missing

    We can imagine that tuners have been anxious to start hawking their gear for the 2008 BMW 1-Series as the car has a lot of potential and lacks an "M" version. HARTGE, which also tunes the hatch version, has their first round of offerings available and they include the expected wheel/tire combinations, an adjustable sport suspension and all manner of carbon fiber bits for the interior (carbon fiber is the new ball bearings). The company's approach to the 1-series is more about handling and performance than it is about wild looks. They offer one exterior tweak: carbon casings for the exterior mirrors.
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    1:30 PM on Thu Mar 13 2008
    By Matt Hardigree
    1,494 views, 15 comments

    Latest by sciamop: Screw the pretentious 'M-car' V10/V8 -- the 1er is begging for the twin turbo V8 from the new X6! more »

  • custom cars

    AC Schnitzer Takes On The 1-Series With The ACS1 3.5i

    The tuners of all things BMW and Land Rover have taken on the new BMW 1-series coupé with what they're calling the ACS1 3.5i. AC Schnitzer's tunage is highlighted by — a "Turbo logo on the front spoiler." OK, they've done much more than that, but that's what the release starts out with so we couldn't just leave it alone. Some of the many enhancements include dropping a full bodykit on the new two-door along with aluminum struts and some enhanced torsional stiffness. For the 1.8d and the 2.0d oil-burning versions of the BMW 1-series, AC Schnitzer offers diesel performance upgrades taking the power up a notch by 30 HP or so. On the petrol side they're even claiming they're getting power up to 360 HP and the top speed from 155 MPH to a touch over 186. Not too shabby for the 2002 wannabe. Full release after the jump.
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    8:00 AM on Thu Nov 29 2007
    By Ray Wert
    2,009 views, 13 comments

    Latest by crevans: @long_live_the_E36: It's an appropriate pork belly for this overweight little coupe. Go back to the drawing board and bring us something more »

  • news

    BMW 1-Series & Mini Clubman Prices Announced

    The guys over at Kicking Tires have the scoop on pricing today, with announcements for both the BMW 1-Series and Mini Clubman. BMW's Mini Clubman is going to start out just under the $20K mark at $19,950 for the stock version (before all the real charges) and $23,450 for the turbocharged Clubman S. That's a premium of $1,900 over the regular-sized version. More »

    4:30 PM on Thu Nov 15 2007
    By Matt Hardigree
    5,856 views, 54 comments

    Latest by xenti: $5K too expensive, no diesel, no hatch = no interest. more »

  • frankfurt auto show

    Frankfurt Auto Show: BMW 1-Series

    From the old BMW 2002 reborn with a 300 horsepower twin-turbo inline six department comes the new BMW 1-Series 135i Coupe. Flame surfacing denies any retro styling from resurfacing, but the rear-wheel drive and 300 foot pounds of torque is something that gets our vote. The little turbo spools up and starts delivering rear wheel amusement at a mere 1400 rpm. The big turbo takes care of the rest. Make sure to set traction control to off. Press release once again after the jump. More »

    1:30 PM on Wed Sep 12 2007
    By Mike Bumbeck
    3,974 views, 38 comments

    Latest by eCurmudgeon: This *is* BMW, after all. While it might start at $32K, I doubt you'll be able to drive one off more »

  • how the one went west

    BMW 1-Series Coming to US Spring 2008

    Whether or not you think the new BMW 1-Series is the spiritual successor to the beloved 2002, or just a message of false hope from Munich, the car's entry date is set. BMW 128i fan site, ahem, BMW128i.com, procured two images from a BMW Flash page. The slideshow compares the coming 1er to the 1968 BMW 2002, and confirms the miniature coup-ay will debut in Spring 2008. Will it do better than the company's previous dabblings in the downmarket? We're optimistic. [via BMW128i.com]

    1:00 PM on Wed Jul 18 2007
    By Mike Spinelli
    5,436 views, 23 comments

    Latest by jrcatsbily18: i saw the BMW 1-series coupe in Vermont a day ago driving right in front of me. It looked like more »