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BMW M Series M135i 3.0 5-Door

BMW M Series M135i 3.0 5-Door

chitchatboy

Entry posted by chitchatboy ·

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blogentry-133713-0-03002300-1444808558_thumb.jpgWhile there are plenty of hot hatches in the market, not many have more than 300bhp. And out of the few that do, only one is rear-wheel driven among the all-wheel drives and front-wheel drives ones. If you are a petrolhead, you would probably have guessed that I am talking about the BMW M135i.

 

blogentry-133713-0-49362800-1444809095_thumb.jpgRecently facelifted , the much prettier looking five door hatch is no longer hampered by its looks. You can take it that I am no fan of the drool-eyed-face of its predecessor.

 

blogentry-133713-0-75252000-1444809120_thumb.jpgInside, not much has changed but then again, there isn't any wrong from the beginning. Wished the car had more differences inside between the base 1-series and this hotter M135i variant though.

 

blogentry-133713-0-27553600-1444809770_thumb.jpgBoot space is adqueate for a hatch. A quick fold of the rear seats increases it by more than three times.

 

blogentry-133713-0-40326900-1444816154_thumb.jpgSport seats provide decent support during hard cornering while still maintaining some degree of comfort.

 

blogentry-133713-0-96528500-1444816307_thumb.jpgAgain, like the interior, the dials could have been a little bit more funky since this is a hot hatch.

 

blogentry-133713-0-22082200-1444816661_thumb.jpgReadout shows 400hp and 480Nm of torque but engine only puts out 326bhp and 450Nm. Still cool to see the gauges at work even though most BMWs now have this Sports Display.

 

blogentry-133713-0-20542400-1444816864_thumb.jpgOn the topic of power, this in-line six is a work of art. With almost no turbo lag unlike some of the 2.0-litre turbocharged units found in its rivals, this powerplant pulls strongly all way from idle till the redline with no sign of breathlessness. If BMW aimed to make this unit feel like a large non-turbocharged unit, I think they succeeded.

 

blogentry-133713-0-78581700-1444816683_thumb.jpgWhile the engine is the standout feature of the car for me, the gearbox is in no way inferior. Shifts are fast and snappy in manual mode and when the fun stops, you can leave it in D and it will shift as smoothly as you ever wanted.

 

blogentry-133713-0-01388000-1444816671_thumb.jpgHandling wise, there is no perceivable change from the pre-facelift model. The ride is still as taut as before and in the turns, the car still inspires confidence when driven briskly. Steering weight feels good for me but I reckon some others might find it a tad too heavy.

 

blogentry-133713-0-49673800-1444816694_thumb.jpgNo complaints on the brakes. It is easy to modulate and feels powerful enough for track use.

 

blogentry-133713-0-15815500-1444818830_thumb.jpgOne area that I feel needs some sorting out is the noise level. BMW needs to let more sound out from exhaust!


12 Comments

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Ake109

What does that horsepower gauge show if you chip/tune it? Error code?

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1fast1
What does that horsepower gauge show if you chip/tune it? Error code?

 

On my pre facelift M135i, after racechip ultimate installation, the power and torque went up on the gauges, but of course only to the max limit of measurement. Before tune, the needle never went to the max.

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Ake109

On my pre facelift M135i, after racechip ultimate installation, the power and torque went up on the gauges, but of course only to the max limit of measurement. Before tune, the needle never went to the max.

Interesting, wonder what the gauge reads off. Boost pressure, airflow and fuelling I hazard.

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1fast1
Interesting, wonder what the gauge reads off. Boost pressure, airflow and fuelling I hazard.

 

Good question. Probably airflow and boost.

 

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1fast1

What is the car's price.?I wanted the 3 doors,should be 235i.?

 

Want me to refer you to my SE at Munich? PM me.

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Sdf4786k

I supposed its a very different animal as compared to M4 .. still, the m4 GTS with water injection should be the engine to look out for ..

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chitchatboy

I supposed its a very different animal as compared to M4 .. still, the m4 GTS with water injection should be the engine to look out for ..

 

It is a whole world of difference. The M4 is a much more driver focused car. I am looking forward to the GTS too! 

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1fast1

I supposed its a very different animal as compared to M4 .. still, the m4 GTS with water injection should be the engine to look out for ..

 

There's no sense in comparing with an M4 (let alone the M4 GTS). The car that might make a little sense to compare against is the upcoming M2, which shares the same engine.

 

But both the M2 and M4 are true M cars, and the M135i (and M235i, etc.) are just M performance cars. They will always come up short, even if not in straight line speed, when it comes to cornering balance, braking, etc.

 

In the time I owned the M135i (before I switched to the F10 M5, which I currently drive), I found it to be a very nice performer, able to easily keep up (and outmatch with just a chip) the old E92 M3 (naturally aspirated 4.0 V8). However, the new turbo-ed M3 and M4 can spank the M135i with a wide margin, and of course, pitting it against my M5 would be just humiliation. Still a very nice hot hatch, though, no regrets.

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Sdf4786k

There's no sense in comparing with an M4 (let alone the M4 GTS). The car that might make a little sense to compare against is the upcoming M2, which shares the same engine.

 

But both the M2 and M4 are true M cars, and the M135i (and M235i, etc.) are just M performance cars. They will always come up short, even if not in straight line speed, when it comes to cornering balance, braking, etc.

 

In the time I owned the M135i (before I switched to the F10 M5, which I currently drive), I found it to be a very nice performer, able to easily keep up (and outmatch with just a chip) the old E92 M3 (naturally aspirated 4.0 V8). However, the new turbo-ed M3 and M4 can spank the M135i with a wide margin, and of course, pitting it against my M5 would be just humiliation. Still a very nice hot hatch, though, no regrets.

 

are you using Juice box for the chip ? heard good things about it.

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1fast1

are you using Juice box for the chip ? heard good things about it.

 

Racechip Ultimate. I've done a review on it here.

 

I think it's more conservative than JB, but less problem-prone. Certainly, no CELs or major issues for me (I know a few people with JBs with issues like that).

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