BMW's First Small car M135i to hit Australian Showrooms by Year End
BMW’s first small car M135i hot hatchback is expected to reach Australian shores by the final quarter of 2012 which delivers performance of the size and quality of the ballistic BMW 1 M Coupe. This all-new BMW M135i forms the M Performance Range of BMW and ensures 0-100 kmph acceleration time of less than 5 seconds. The price is expected to fall above $70,000 which is still below the base price of $99,990 for BMW 1 M Coupe.
According to the Product Communications Manager of BMW Australia, Mr. Scott Croaker, the M135i in its five-door avatar would be made the flagship model of the BMW 1 series hatchback line-up. He added that the company was hopeful for the arrival of M135i well before the end of 2012. He also informed that the three-door version of the BMW M 135i will not go on sale in the Australian market.
With competitive price tag the said M135i is expected to attract Volkswagen Golf R, Audi Q3 and Mercedes Benz A-Class AMG as its arch rivals. The BMW M135i sporting the eight-speed automatic transmission has recorded the 0-100 kmph acceleration time as 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 250 kmph. The six-speed manual variant is a tad slower with 0-100 kmph acceleration time as 5.1 seconds.
Powering the BMW M 135i hot-hatch is the 3.0-liter straight 6-cylinder turbocharged engine that is capable of churning out a peak power of 235KW at 5800 RPM and a peak torque of 450 Nm at 1300-4500 RPM. In comparison to twin-turbocharged BMW 1 M Coupe these figures stand 15KW and 50Nm short for power and torque. The BMW M135i beats the 1 M Coupe in terms of fuel economy which is 7.5 liter per 100 km making it 22 percent more efficient. The figure mentioned is for the automatic version, the manual version on the other hand has a fuel economy of 8.0-liter per 100 km. The performance of the both the cars are matchable.
The M 135i hot-hatch is also entitled to receive an xDrive all-wheel drive option along with the standard rear-wheel drive option. But this option will not be intromitted in the car market of Australia since it is available only in the left-hand drive models. This neoteric car will flaunt its own Variable Sports Steering System and unique damping and suspensions systems. The braking system is advanced too with M Sport Brake package which features four piston units at the front end and two piston units at the rear end, additionally there are oversized brake discs and metallic blue calipers with M logo.
As suggested by the production model the car seems pretty rich in terms of appearance with traditional M styling and aerodynamic performance overwhelming the front apron. On the sides the car boasts specially contoured side skirts, 18-inch alloy wheels and grey mirror caps. The revised bumper, dual exhausts and metallic grey diffuser add appeal to the rear end of the car. On the inside the BMW M135i is rendered with leather-wrapped M steering wheel, cloth/alcantara upholstery with blue stitching, anthracite roof line and high-gloss black or matt blue/aluminum trim inserts.