BMW 2 series details leaked

BMW is seeing a string of leaks from its official websites. Earlier this week it was the coming 4 Series Convertible that appeared on a Belgian BMW site, and now the brand's South African website has leaked the specs for three 2 Series models. Quickly grabbed and reposted by enthusiast blog Bimmerpost, the spec sheets give details for the coming BMW 220d, 220i and high-performance M235i that will arrive here early next year.

The 2 Series Coupe will replace the exiting 1 Series Coupe as part of BMW's ongoing realignment and renaming of their range. The newcomers are based on the 1 Series (but 110mm longer), and according to the spec lists will share similar -- although not identical -- figures.

The base model 220i is powered by a revised version of the 120i's 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol unit, but gets 20kW and 70Nm more at 115kW and 270Nm, shaving 1.6 seconds off the 0-100km/h time while improving fuel economy by a considerable 1.8L/100km with a manual transmission and 1.9L with the auto.

The diesel 220d delivers 135kW of power and 380Nm of torque from its 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel engine, losing 15kW and 20Nm to the outgoing 123d but gaining at the bowser with drops of 0.6L for the manual and 1.3L for the auto.

The hero M235i coupe carries over the M135i's turbo petrol 3.0-litre six-cylinder and 450Nm of torque, but gets a 5kW power lift at 240kW and beats the outgoing version to 100km/h by 0.1 seconds in both manual and auto at 5.0 and 4.8 seconds respectively. The penalty is 0.1L higher consumption for each transmission at 8.1L/100km for the manual and 7.6L for the auto.

This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott