BMW BLOG

MotorWeek, a publication sponsored by Cars.com, has just named the BMW 1 Series as being the “Best Convertible”. BMW debuted the latest addition to the 1 Series line-up, the 1 Series convertible (E88), on September 2007. In the U.S., BMW sells the 128i and 135i Convertible with the same powerplants as the coupe variants.

We test drove both the 135i Convertible with U.S. specs, but also the the 125i Cabrio available in Europe. Our conclusion?

Quite positive and in-line with other publications have posted, the 1 Series Convertible are fun, sporty and a threat to the other cabrios out there.

Let’s see what MotorWeek thinks about the BMW 1 Series Convertible:

“For open-air exhilaration, our choice for best convertible is the BMW 1-Series Convertible. While BMW’s smallest series, its big personality includes all the prowess, safety, and innovation BMW is known for. We welcomed its no-nonsense, power soft-top with a glass backlight, that can be raised or lowered in 22 seconds—even while moving. Wind buffeting is virtually non-existent. Power comes from the same 6-cylinder engines found in the 3-Series, while the car’s rigid platform offers a very nimble drive. It’s the perfect car for sun worshippers and driving enthusiasts alike.”

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The Automobile Magazine fellows posted one of very extensive and detailed review of a 2008 BMW 135i Coupe. The Alpine White 1er was put through a series of test drives for an entire year and after 20,000 miles, AutomobileMag decided to share their findings.

“Is 300 hp too much power for a compact, four-passenger sport coupe? Back in 1974, singer Barry White softly spoke the timeless line, “I’ve heard people say that too much of anything is not good for you, baby.”

Although White, of course, was referring to the love of a woman, nearly everyone who got behind the wheel of our Four Seasons 2008 BMW 135i coupe had similar thoughts about the twin-turbo six under its hood: was it simply too much for this little car?”

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With all this recent talk about BMW’s Performance Accessories, we think it’s interesting to give you more articles along that line. One of our long time readers and friend of course, Mohammed, decided to share with us a short video of his Montego Blue BMW 135i Coupe equipped with a BMW Performance Exhaust.

As BMW mentions on their Performance Accessories page, the exhaust system invigorates engine output by allowing engine by-products to exit the vehicle more efficiently. Performance is being slightly increased as well, up to 5 horsepower at 6,000 RPM.

But probably the most exciting thing about this BMW Performance Exhaust is the sound, that “roaring”, deep sound that makes our skin crawl. While the original exhaust already “screams of power”, the upgraded Performance system takes it a bit further.

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I bet you any money that you didn’t expect such a comparison today featured on the blog, but our friends over at InsideLine have done it again. They decided to take the BMW 128i Convertible and the MINI Cooper S Cabrio at the track and see how they stack against each other. Almost a year ago, we have performed our own comparison, but at the time, we chose the 135i Coupe and the Cooper S.

We do agree that this comparison is a bit unusual, but sometimes that’s what we need, comparing two cars from different categories can be fun. And Edmunds took this comparison to another level, putting the two vehicles through some intensive tests, straigtlines, cornering, you name it…..who came up on top?

Well, let’s watch the video!

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By now, you probably know our infatuation with the tii version of the BMW 1  Series. Since its first unveiling at the Tokyo Auto Show in 2007, the BMW 1 Series tii model has been one of our most desired BMWs to date and seeing the car at the Chicago Auto Show as well, proved us why we love this car so much.

The 1 Series Coupe tii replicas have been around for months now, but for the first time, we have the opportunity to see a tii version of the 130i hatchback as well. Sporting the same performance parts as the coupe version, the hatchback model is just as good looking.

But what makes this video so special are the video producing skills shown by the guys at Format76.net. So let’s see if you agree with us.

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We don’t believe we have seen yet any photos of a BMW 1 Series Coupe racecar, so coming across the photos below was quite a surprise to us. Initially we thought we’re looking at an official BMW Motorsport car, similar to the BMW M3 ALMS that we’ve seen in the LeMans races here on U.S. soil, but it turns out the car belongs to a private race team, Rem Power.

In our opinion, the car looks fantastic, despite the running boards being a bit odd, and the best out of all of this, it is a BMW 1 Series Coupe racecar powered by a diesel engine, more exactly, a 135d which outputs 408 horsepower and 800 Nm of torque.

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Here is  a review that hasn’t been posted by us before, it was about time we would have  some different comparisons and step out of the monotony. The Aussie fellows at TopGear decided to take the BMW 135i Coupe on a race track and put it against the 2009 Mitsubishi EVO 10. The 135i Coupe is powered by the award-winning 3.0 liter twin-turbo engine which develops 300 horsepower and 300 lb-ft of torque.

On the other hand, the Lancer EVO is powered by a 291 horsepower 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4 engine and has the same amount of torque, 300 lb-ft. Both cars weigh around 3,500 lbs, with the 135i Coupe being slightly “skinnier”.

So, the specs are fairly close to each other, but let’ see how they handle on track.

In January, BMW announced the launching of a new model within the 1 Series line: BMW 116d, the most efficient BMW vehicle. Available in both three- and five-door, the BMW 116d is powered by a 2.0 liter four-cylinder diesel engine outputting 116 horsepower and 260Nm of torque from 1,750rmp.

Despite the small engine, the 116d runs from 0-62 in 10.2 seconds.

The 116d was courageously placed by BMW underneath the World Green Car Of The Year, the BMW 118d. Since unfortunately we’re based in the U.S., we won’t have chance to drive the 116d until our next European trip in September, but the fellows at Autocar UK are here to deliver a review of this “green car”.

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A few years ago, U.S. auto market was all focused on producing bigger and more powerful cars than ever. How many of us would have imagined that the day will come when we will “crave” for a smaller BMW with a more efficient, but still powerful engine? Well, I didn’t for sure, to me it was always about the more  horsepower and cubic capacity, the “cooler” I was.

But it’s 2009 and while I’m still pretty cool, I started to develop a “fetish”, okay….obsession maybe, for some of the smaller engines found in the BMW models available only in Europe and one of my favorite  ones is the BMW 123d. Since we’re based out of Chicago, it’s a bit harder to test those cars frequently, but thanks to some of our close friends and partners, we can still bring you some unique test drives.

Just a few weeks back, Benny, our German editor at BimmerToday, shared with us his BMW 125i Convertible review. Today, our buddies over at AutoEvolution brings us an even smaller(engine wise) convertible, the BMW 120i.

VISUAL IMPACT (EXTERIOR) 7/10

They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder (or the beer holder, in case you’re a Kinky Friedman fan). Here you’ll find the kind of impact the tested model is going to have on us, visually speaking.

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There are no doubts anymore that BMW is preparing a real “tii” model based on the 1 Series. Named Supersports, the M1-like car is set to launch in 2011 and its performance will be the result of using lightweight materials, such as a Carbon Fiber Roof and bootlid , loss of certain cabin comforts , upgraded suspension and brakes , lightweight glass , all the creative and performance comforts created for the M variant, but not under full MotorSport badging.

Since the official launch in 2007, the BMW 1 Series tii has been in the center of many rumors and speculations. For a while, BMW had us believe that a tii named model will actually be built, then months later, a BMW Performance Parts catalog was released, which included many of the design elements found on the 1 Series tii concept.

Some BMW dealerships, such as Classic BMW,  went even further and modded their own tii version on a BMW 135i Coupe body style. But in the end, no official tii branding has even been placed on this cars.

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