Topic: Test Drive: 2014 BMW M235i

[Fobroader]

As always, great review!! I love your writing style Jacob, funny and informative. As for the car.....I love it, this is my kinda bimmer, sport, licht und kompakt. $55K is a lot of money, but 330 horses in a small, nimble chassis, wooohoo. Im sure the CLA and S3 are cute and all, but this is a proper sports car.

"Licht?"

This porker weighs almost 3,600 lbs. I know the 1-Series was a porker, too, but I really hoped BMW would do better with its replacement.

Maybe I'm living in the past, but there's no way I'd consider a 3,600 lb coupe a "proper sports car."

Those are the realities of today. With the amount of safety crap, amenities and sound deadening that cars have, light has to take on a new meaning. You want a proper, light sports car, import a Caterham, Ariel or a KTM Crossbow....otherwise, everything is heavy.

[Sir Osis of Liver]

As always, great review!! I love your writing style Jacob, funny and informative. As for the car.....I love it, this is my kinda bimmer, sport, licht und kompakt. $55K is a lot of money, but 330 horses in a small, nimble chassis, wooohoo. Im sure the CLA and S3 are cute and all, but this is a proper sports car.

"Licht?"

This porker weighs almost 3,600 lbs. I know the 1-Series was a porker, too, but I really hoped BMW would do better with its replacement.

Maybe I'm living in the past, but there's no way I'd consider a 3,600 lb coupe a "proper sports car."

That's almost the same as the current Mustang GT. And it has far more power.

Sent from my G3 using Tapatalk Pro

[mmret]

Great review and the new 235i is much improved in the styling department vs. the 135 IMO. If I was shopping for a performance coupe the M235i would be high on the list. Now an M2 might be real interesting.

I'm probably in the minority but I think the old one looked better.

The overall width and rear end of the M135 has way more "purpose" IMO. Flared wheel arches reminiscent of the CLK63 Black Series - sets itself apart immediately from that rich spoiled teenager's 128/228 down teh street.

[HeliDriver]

As always, great review!! I love your writing style Jacob, funny and informative. As for the car.....I love it, this is my kinda bimmer, sport, licht und kompakt. $55K is a lot of money, but 330 horses in a small, nimble chassis, wooohoo. Im sure the CLA and S3 are cute and all, but this is a proper sports car.

"Licht?"

This porker weighs almost 3,600 lbs. I know the 1-Series was a porker, too, but I really hoped BMW would do better with its replacement.

Maybe I'm living in the past, but there's no way I'd consider a 3,600 lb coupe a "proper sports car."

Those are the realities of today. With the amount of safety crap, amenities and sound deadening that cars have, light has to take on a new meaning. You want a proper, light sports car, import a Caterham, Ariel or a KTM Crossbow....otherwise, everything is heavy.

What bugs me the most is that it's not much lighter than a 4-Series. May as well just get one of those.

What's the FR-S/BRZ weigh? Somewhere around 2,900 lbs, IIRC, and it has all the modern safety gear. Amenities, not so much, but even if you stripped all the luxury stuff out of the M235, it could never get close to that weight.

Problem is, BMW just took a 4-Series and cut a few inches out of the wheelbase. I'd love to see a 2-Series designed from a clean sheet of paper to be the same size (or even a bit smaller) and about 700 lbs lighter. It could be done, but could not be done profitably, I'm sure.

[Fobroader]

As always, great review!! I love your writing style Jacob, funny and informative. As for the car.....I love it, this is my kinda bimmer, sport, licht und kompakt. $55K is a lot of money, but 330 horses in a small, nimble chassis, wooohoo. Im sure the CLA and S3 are cute and all, but this is a proper sports car.

"Licht?"

This porker weighs almost 3,600 lbs. I know the 1-Series was a porker, too, but I really hoped BMW would do better with its replacement.

Maybe I'm living in the past, but there's no way I'd consider a 3,600 lb coupe a "proper sports car."

Those are the realities of today. With the amount of safety crap, amenities and sound deadening that cars have, light has to take on a new meaning. You want a proper, light sports car, import a Caterham, Ariel or a KTM Crossbow....otherwise, everything is heavy.

What bugs me the most is that it's not much lighter than a 4-Series. May as well just get one of those.

What's the FR-S/BRZ weigh? Somewhere around 2,900 lbs, IIRC, and it has all the modern safety gear. Amenities, not so much, but even if you stripped all the luxury stuff out of the M235, it could never get close to that weight.

Problem is, BMW just took a 4-Series and cut a few inches out of the wheelbase. I'd love to see a 2-Series designed from a clean sheet of paper to be the same size (or even a bit smaller) and about 700 lbs lighter. It could be done, but could not be done profitably, I'm sure.

Yeah, the toyobaru is smaller and has a lot less stuff....I agree, Id love to have this BMW around the 3000lb mark, but yeah, that would take a lot of money. Remember, anytime you have a lightweight version of a car (RS/Superleggera) it costs way more than the standard car and is noisier and has a lot less equipment.

[JacobBlack]

This thing is only 50 kg (90 lb) heavier than the E46 M3, with a shedload more gear and about 10x the safety rating. Be realistic. There is only so much weight you can chop out before something feels tinny and cheap - like a BRZ or an FR-S.

[Fobroader]

This thing is only 50 kg (90 lb) heavier than the E46 M3, with a shedload more gear and about 10x the safety rating. Be realistic. There is only so much weight you can chop out before something feels tinny and cheap - like a BRZ or an FR-S.

Here ya go!! 

[JacobBlack]

Here ya go!! 

Touche!

[aquadorhj]

This thing is only 50 kg (90 lb) heavier than the E46 M3, with a shedload more gear and about 10x the safety rating. Be realistic. There is only so much weight you can chop out before something feels tinny and cheap - like a BRZ or an FR-S.

i don't know which countries scale you are using, but 50kg  is over 110 US pounds.   

[Blueprint]

"How so? It has a suite of neat tricks, It has a suite of neat tricks, like a clutch-activated auto-shutoff for the engine to save fuel (...)"

Burnouts burnout ? 




Sorry, can't get the editor out of the reader.

[JacobBlack]

This thing is only 50 kg (90 lb) heavier than the E46 M3, with a shedload more gear and about 10x the safety rating. Be realistic. There is only so much weight you can chop out before something feels tinny and cheap - like a BRZ or an FR-S.

i don't know which countries scale you are using, but 50kg  is over 110 US pounds.   

So it is. Yo soy boludo.

[SaskSpecV]

by the way, given the price of this car, would anyone rather have the 228?   

Fob, avert your gaze for a moment....

I'd at least consider the 228 - but I think a serious test drive would be in order.  Might come down to:
1)  How much of the 235's extra power could I actually use?
2)  Is there a significant difference in handling with the lighter 228?
3)  Does the 2.0L's better mileage outweigh the awesome engine noise/silkiness of the inline six?
4)  In typical BMW craziness when it comes to options, could I get either vehicle in the configuration I'd want?

But let's get real here, I'm not a potential buyer for a 50K + toy at this stage of my life!  I'm a little shocked that BMW made this vehicle so "hard core", when apparently 80% of the buyers of the previous 1-series were not...
http://www.worldcarfans.com/110032225250/80-percent-of-bmw-1-series-drivers-think-the-car-is-a-front-wheel

[Blueprint]

Great story!

I was a fan of the 1-Series' simplicity in everything but price of admission. The clean IP and steering wheel are better than what's delivered in the 3. The 128i / 135i seemed like prime trophy wife rides, so I'm just wondering what image build this will have done for the 235i.

The blonde accross the street has a 128i, and once got stuck in the middle of her flat driveway. Ice. Car would not move.

[Blueprint]

Jacob:

Come clean - we need your mileage fugures, obtained in real car guy conditions!

La Presse's blogger got 20.3l/100km this week, commuting with a Durango Citadel. Did you "beat" that? 

[JacobBlack]

Jacob:
Come clean - we need your mileage fugures, obtained in real car guy conditions!
La Presse's blogger got 20.3l/100km this week, commuting with a Durango Citadel. Did you "beat" that? 

Commuting? 12.1 with a bit of exuberant and unnecessary acceleration.
"Taking photos"? 18.   
 

[Noto]

As always, great review!! I love your writing style Jacob, funny and informative.

HEY, BACK OFF, BUDDY!  HE'S MINE! 

   Ok, I'll share.

Given that motor trend review between the CLA45, 235i, and WRX, I actually have a difficult time wanting a 235i.  All 3 are amazing vehicles (as will the S3 be once we get it), but the WRX adds practicality to the equation and is cheaper - no longer looks like a boyracertoy, so yeah, more my favour.  Still, nobody can argue with the solidity that is the interior of a BMW (unless we're referring to the electronics )

[Fobroader]

As always, great review!! I love your writing style Jacob, funny and informative.

HEY, BACK OFF, BUDDY!  HE'S MINE! 

   Ok, I'll share.

Given that motor trend review between the CLA45, 235i, and WRX, I actually have a difficult time wanting a 235i.  All 3 are amazing vehicles (as will the S3 be once we get it), but the WRX adds practicality to the equation and is cheaper - no longer looks like a boyracertoy, so yeah, more my favour.  Still, nobody can argue with the solidity that is the interior of a BMW (unless we're referring to the electronics )

Whoa...ok...he`s all yours....  Careful Jacob 

[Blueprint]

Jacob:
Come clean - we need your mileage fugures, obtained in real car guy conditions!
La Presse's blogger got 20.3l/100km this week, commuting with a Durango Citadel. Did you "beat" that? 

Commuting? 12.1 with a bit of exuberant and unnecessary acceleration.
"Taking photos"? 18.   
 

His figures are always hilarious with the same press cars Wing will blog about, but Eric is in deep traffic all the time (readers also think he has armour-plate thick steels soles on his shoes). He got 8.9 with a smart. I got 10 driving but also "taking photos".

[evil_twin]

As always, great review!! I love your writing style Jacob, funny and informative.

HEY, BACK OFF, BUDDY!  HE'S MINE! 

   Ok, I'll share.

Given that motor trend review between the CLA45, 235i, and WRX, I actually have a difficult time wanting a 235i.  All 3 are amazing vehicles (as will the S3 be once we get it), but the WRX adds practicality to the equation and is cheaper - no longer looks like a boyracertoy, so yeah, more my favour.  Still, nobody can argue with the solidity that is the interior of a BMW (unless we're referring to the electronics )

You list the pros of the WRX (practicality and cost) but neglect the trade off:  It will be a much crappier place to spend time in.  Worse materials, worse fit and finish, more rattles, etc.   And I can't imagine the engine will be as fun to spin up as that turbo 6 in the 235.

I like the WRX a lot (and own the previous gen), but it's hard to directly compare to the BMW in anything other than pure performance times.

IMO it still looks a little more boyracer than any of the FGCs.

[Noto]

oh, for sure - I don't purport to say that the WRX is a 'better' car than the Bimmer or CLA - but the practicality of the interior space, AWD, and 'more' grown-up looks makes it more attractive to my tastes.

No question that the Bimmer would be a nicer place to sit (I did mention that the interior is solid), but the price, the dealerships, and the impractical size/door count make it a difficult option for me unless it's a secondary car (and stored for the winter).

WRX is a better year-long car, and I'm inclined to say that the CLA45 would be, too (not just because of the AWD, but the doors/trunk volumes).