BMW 1 Series 2011 review

A new 1 Series gives BMW a club to take to the Volkswagen Golf - and anyone else looking to muscle in on the bottom end of the prestige market. The base BMW 116i is a $36,900 buy before on-road costs, or $7500 more than the Golf 118 Comfortline - and a bunch of Asian rivals. Question is, is the extra cash worth the cache, or is the VW a better buy?

VALUE

This is the cheapest BMW to hit the market - and it's perfectly priced to bait buyers into at least considering the propeller badge. BMW says the base price has been cut by 5 per cent and the car now has many more features. They include a 6.5-inch display, Bluetooth, MP3-compatible stereo, cruise-control with auto brake function, stop-start fuel saving and keyless start.

The Beemer comes with a six-speed manual; the eight-speed auto - a first for this segment - is a $2700 option on the base model. The Golf 118 Comfortline packs eight speakers to the 1 Series' six but misses out on the 6.5-inch display and hi-tech cruise control. Step up to the $42,800 BMW 118i (125kW/240Nm) or $43,500 118d (105kW/320Nm) and rear parking sensors, dual zone climate-control airconditioning, 17-inch alloys, rain-sensing headlights and fog lights are standard.

TECHNOLOGY

The BMW wins this fight. The new car has been wired up with a bunch of clever gear, from the auto-braking cruise control to the eight-speed auto overhauled twin-scroll turbocharged engine. The base engine's outputs are 100kW and 220Nm but the peak torque comes in from 1350-4400 revs. That gives the 116i reasonably steady acceleration - its 0-100km/h time of 8.5 seconds beats the Audi by a second but is half a second off the Golf. There's also a new switch on the centre console. The "Driving Experience Control" system lets drivers choose between four modes - Eco Pro, Comfort, Sport and Sport +. Eco Pro, as the name suggests, optimises fuel use by adjusting the engine fuel mapping and also tries to minimise the time accessories such as the airconditioner are in use.

DESIGN

This is the pug dog of the BMW family: the 1 Series looks like it's been kicked in the nose. The kidney grille/headlamp combo just doesn't match the proportions of the rest of the family and has the new 1 looking like a Chinese knock-off at a motor show. The side profile is much better, with the shoulder line extending into the rear lights. But those lights aren't the traditional red BMW bands and that's a bad thing. The 1 Series should be an aspirational car that reinforces the brand; not a vehicle that doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the line-up. Interior quality is a marked improvement on the last 1 Series and BMW has managed to give a prestige feel at a discount price. It has grown in width and length over the old model to give rear seat passengers marginally more leg and shoulder room.

SAFETY

Engineers at BMW would throw themselves in front of the car to ensure it had a five-star rating. It's a point of pride for the Europeans and the usual gadgets -- six airbags and electronic stability and traction control -- should give the BMW a five-star rating at match the outgoing model. There's also an electronic diff lock on the rear to tame things if you turn the stability control off. The 1 Series is also the only car in its class with rear-wheel drive and that gives an extra element to play with while you're fighting physics to keep the car on the road.

DRIVING

The BMW is the best handling car in the class outside of a Golf GTI or similar sports model. It was already good but the widened track gives it a better balance through turns. The 118i is the pick - the extra 25kW and 30Nm over the 116i makes it a more responsive car across the rev range. But 1 Series target buyers - young, upwardly mobile professionals - want to be seen to be helping the planet.

It is here the "ultimate driving machine" earns an electronic hobble. BMW calls it the Eco Pro program; I call it a software virus. It basically neuters the car's extraordinary eight-speed auto and dulls the engine and throttle response. This environmentally friendly setting is one of the reasons the 118i uses just 5.9 litres/100km of fuel in official testing. In the real world it is tolerable - until you try any of the other settings. The Comfort, Sport and Sport + modes progressively return the Beemer to battle action.

Road noise on rough surfaces is louder than expected in a BMW but is about right in terms of the rest of the class. The electric steering is precise without quite having the feedback or weight of the 3 Series models. The stop-start system is smooth but not best in class - Mazda3's i-stop system is quicker to refire. Rear room has grown and a couple of adults could now spend an hour or so in the back.

VERDICT

This is serious competition in the small car class. BMW has set the price to tempt top-end Asian buyers and thrown down the gauntlet to its Euro rivals as it chases a bigger slice of the biggest pie in town.