BMW 1 Series

Expert Review by Maxabout

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BMW 1 Series is a 5-door hatchback coded as F20 will soon to be launched in Indian market and will be a rear wheel drive hatchback. It has many similarities with the earlier BMW 3 series as it shares the same platform and was first unveiled in 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. It was released in International market in 2011 and is now coming to Indian market in a hope of attracting the crowd here which likes a class, luxury and brand name and not hesitant to spend some extra cash for it.

The exterior of this 1 Series 5-door hatchback grabs a lot of attention and gives a sporty and yet authentic look with its kidney shaped front grille in an upright position, extended and horizontally sectioned headlights reinforced with a little eccentric Corona rings, a little rounded windscreen at its corners where it intersects with the slightly sloping roof, long dynamic bonnet with unique lines and some 3-D effects, large wheelbase of 2690mm, an option of 5-spoke 17-inch alloy wheels with aluminium ridges or V-spoke 16/17-inch alloy wheels with high-gloss white and aluminium appearance, large rear doors and compact window areas.

The interior of this beautiful 5-door hatchback gives a luxurious and spacious look with comfort rich features such as characterized and smart instrument panel which is designed according to a driver's needs, leather and fabric upholstery, decorative trim strips, an advanced flat screen control display in the middle above the central console, adjustable plush seats, powerful AC with Automatic Climate Control System, rear AC vents, electrically adjustable outside rear view mirrors, auto wipers and headlamps, adjustable driver's seat and tilt-able power steering wheel with audio and other controls makes it a very comfortable and luxurious car. It has ample space for legroom, headroom, knee room and shoulder room and good under thigh support.

It has a length of 4324mm, width of 1984mm and height of 1421mm as its dimension and a kerb weight between 1360-1590kgs for different variants. It has a fuel tank capacity of 52 litres. In international markets BMW 1-Series is available with many engine options. The TwinPower Turbo 1.6L petrol engine has a Twin Scroll turbocharger with Valvetronic, twin Vanos and High Precision Injection and is available in three variants which includes 118i having a maximum power of 170 bhp and a maximum torque of 250 Nm and giving the top speed of 225 kmph and reaches 0-100 kmph mark in 7.4 seconds with an average fuel consumption of 5.9-5.7 l/100km and has CO2 emissions value of 137-132 gm/km, 116i having a maximum power of 136 bhp and a maximum torque of 220 Nm and reaches 0-100 kmph mark in 8.5-8.7 second giving the top speed of 210 kmph and low consumption of 5.6-5.4 l/100km with low CO2 emissions value of 131-125 gm/km and 114i having a maximum power of 102 bhp and a maximum torque of 180 Nm and reaches 0-100 kmph mark in just 11.2 seconds giving the top speed of 195 kmph with an average consumption of 5.7-5.5 l/100km and has CO2 emission value of 132-127 gm/km.

An another petrol variant with 2.0L TwinPower Turbo petrol engine is available with the name of 125i having a maximum power of 218 bhp and a maximum torque of 310 Nm giving the top speed of 245kmph with an average consumption of 6.6 l/100km and reaches 0-100kmph mark in 6.4 seconds with low CO2 emission of 154 gm/km. Also, there is available six diesel engine variants with TwinPower Turbo technology combining common rail direct injection and a turbocharger with variable turbine geometry which includes 120d with a maximum power of 184 bhp and a maximum torque of 380 Nm giving the top speed of 228 kmph and a fuel consumption of 4.5-4.3 l/100km while reaching 0-100kmph mark in 7.2 seconds and maintaining CO2 emission levels of 119-114 gm/km, 125d having a maximum power of 218 bhp and a maximum torque of 45 0Nm giving the top speed of 240 kmph with a low average consumption of 4.9 l/100km and reaches 0-100kmph mark in just 6.5 second giving CO2 emissions of 128 gm/km, 116d having a maximum power of 116 bhp and a maximum torque of 260 Nm giving a top speed of 200 kmph and reaches 0-100kmph mark in 10.3 seconds and 118d having a maximum power of 143 bhp and a maximum torque of 320 Nm giving the top speed of 212 kmph and reaches 0-100 kmph mark in 8.9 seconds with astonishing consumption of 4.4-4.1 l/100km and CO2 emission values of 116-109 gm/km, 114d having a maximum power of 95 bhp and a maximum torque of 235 Nm giving the top speed of 185 kmph with average consumption of 4.3-4.1 l/100km and good CO2 emission values of 112-109 gm/km while reaching 0-100 kmph mark in 12.2 seconds and 116d Efficient Dynamics Edition having a maximum power of 116 bhp and a maximum torque of 260 Nm giving the top speed of 195kmph and reaches 0-100 kmph mark in 10.5 seconds with low consumption of 3.8 l/100km and CO2 emission values of 99 gm/km.

But for Indian market, BMW is planning to power the 1-Series with the same engines which are doing duty under the hood of BMW X1. This 1 Series 5-door hatchback has many other features which also includes some safety features such as Auto Start/Stop function, ECO PRO Mode for optimum consumption and maximum efficiency, Brake Energy Regeneration to wins back energy during braking by charging the battery instead of giving away energy, six Airbags, ABS with EBD and ESP, Traction Control, rear seat belts, a Shift Point Display to indicate the driver about the most economical gear by taking into account both driving situation and engine load, eight-speed automatic transmission along with an efficient converter clutch, high grade suspension, longitudinally mounted engine, newer Navigation System with unique user interface, sharp contrast, crystal clear presentation, 3D models and an additional 20GB hard drive for multimedia data storage, Real Time Traffic information with the help of navigation, Bluetooth, phone and BMW Assist, Apple iPod Plug In via BMW Connected Drive, an BMW Connected App for Facebook, Twitter, FM Radio, Last Mile and Vehicle Finder functions, BMW Online for breaking news, weather updates and sending e-mails integrated with BMW Route Planner, a front camera for Parking Assist, Lane Departure Warning System, High-Beam Assistant, Speed Limit Info, Collision Alert and an innovative maintenance system called CBS(Condition Based Service) to notify about service requirements on the Control Display.

In International markets, BMW 1 Series 5-door hatchback will be available in total 13 variants out of which six are petrol which are 114i, 116i, 118i, 125i, M135i and M135i xDrive and seven are diesel which are 114d, 116d, 116d EfficientDynamics Edition, 118d, 120d, 120d xDrive and 125d. Out of them, only a few will be available in Indian markets probably and they are not released yet. It is available in total of nine shades in International market which are: Metallic Black Sapphire, Metallic Deep Sea Blue, Metallic Glacier Silver, Metallic Sparkling Bronze, Metallic Midnight Blue, Metallic Mineral Grey, Alpine White, Simple Black and Crimson Red. Overall, this hatchback seems like a perfect blend of supreme luxury, comfort, space, safety, performance, eco-friendly features, speed, class and mileage and nothing beats it in price as it is expected to be in range of INR 20-25 lakhs and thus around a couple of lakhs less than X1 Crossover and will give direct competition to Mercedes A-Class in Indian market.