The BMW M235i has been retired a while back to make room for a newer, more powerful model in the shape of the M240i. The differences are deeper than the sheet metal and a nameplate change going down straight to the engine under the hood. While the original M235i used the N55 engine, its successor, the M240i is using the newer and improved B58 3-liter straight six engine with more power and torque. Nevertheless, the M235i remains a crowd favorite as the guys from Smoking Tire find out in the video below.
The car in the footage is no longer stock but instead has been tuned to deliver even better performance and bring more balance to the mix. The owner decided to add a full exhaust, new intercooler, an ECU tune, coilovers from KW and new tires along with an EDC delete. That last bit surely would get some eyebrows raised as it’s not an usual ‘upgrade’ in the tuning world. However, according to the owner, it was necessary as the on-board computer kept throwing up errors.
All things considered, the car is now putting out some 380 HP at the wheels which is pretty good for the N55 engine which is known to be running a bit hot and be less tuning-prone compared to the N54. As for how the car drives, Zack provides some useful insight into how it handles the curvy roads around a canyon in the Los Angeles area. He does point out that the steering offers more feedback through the wheel somehow, even though nothing’s been done to it specifically to achieve this.
The M235i remains a best buy in the segment even today, especially on the pre-owned market. It’s a neat, high-performance Coupe with 2+2 seating and it handles great. The fact that you can actually use the rear seats makes it quite practical as well. Chip in the tuning potential and for a road car you get quite a lot of bang for the buck.
