Latest reiteration of all-wheel drive hot hatch has become more civilised than before.
The BMW 1 Series has always been a popular choice amongst those who wanted a small everyday premium car. And hardcore enthusiasts that wanted to tear up the streets.
But over time with the advent of the world going SUV-crazy, the BMWs 1 Series has become more of a niche car. And with the change from the old days of them being rear-wheel driven and powered by those legendary N54 and N55 engines, dare I say it, the car has become more civilised in M135 xDrive guise.
Just like the VAG boys have moved from 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, VW Golf Rs to 2.5-litre, five-cylinder, AudiRS 3s for breaking records. With the new M135 now running the same 2.0-litre B48 four-cylinder powerplant as before, it’s no longer considered a weapon for the BMW guys that want to tear up the streets and dragstrips. Today they are spending stupid money on S58 3.0-litre straight-six powered M2s, M3s and M4s.
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New naming strategy
A quick lesson in BMW badging might also be in order right now. BMW have dropped the “i” from the naming of their gasoline powered cars because this letter is now reserved for their electric cars like the i4 etc. But the diesel cars still get a “d”, and the plug-in hybrids get an “e” and the mild hybrids don’t crack a mention.
I think these corporate execs have too much free time on their hands like the Audi guys who decided the 30 TFSI and 40 TFSI means something to them and only them. So, when I type M135 and M135i, I am actually referring to two different cars and have not just made a typo.
This is in no way a VW Golf 8 R versus BMW M135 shootout. But almost everybody I spoke to had to chip in and say that the Golf would smoke the M135. So, for what it is worth, these two are separated by mere hundredths of a second here and there at any measured distance. And by less than one kilometre too as you can see from the comparison chart.
BMW M135 faster than before
This does not mean the BMW M135 is slow by any means. It is in fact now very much back on par with the VW Golf R. And also somewhat quicker than its predecessor despite making less power and torque, while almost weighing in the same. But how? Let me give you the numbers first, so that you too can try figure this out, before I add my two-cents.
The BMW M135 hit 100km/h in a fraction better than claimed 4.77 seconds, while the previous M135i did this sprint in 5.41 seconds. At the longer 800m mark, the new car is doing 212km/h, while the old one is lagging at 199 km/h. This is an advantage that stays all the way to their electronically limited top speeds of 250 km/h. Even in the roll-on acceleration runs, the new M135 outguns the old M135i.
For 2025 the F70 BMW M135 xDrive produces 221kW of power and 400Nm of torque. The previous F40 BMW M135i xDrive with the same engine churned out 225kW and 450Nm. 50Nm of lost torque is not easy to overcome, especially when the listed kerb weights are only a mere 5kg in favour of the new car.
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Speed-seven double clutch
The power now comes in a bit later, as does the torque. Yes, the power holds a bit longer, but the torque starts running down at the same place on paper. But this alone can’t explain the difference in performance on the road.
I have only two explanations that make some sort of sense to me. One, put the two cars on a dyno and you might see graphs that indicate different power and torque figures throughout the rev range that differ from the claimed numbers. Two, the change in transmissions from the previous gen’s eight-speed, torque converter back to a seven-speed dual-clutch unit has had a bigger effect on the performance than we thought it would.
I thought the old transmission was really good, but my off the line data indicates that the dual-clutch set-up gets up and bolts away from torque-converter. And without anything else to work with, unless I got a dud M135i from the manufacturer a few years ago, I am just going to say that the new F70 BMW M135 is quicker than the old F40 M135i. And I have no idea why.
BMW M135 road test data
