Now I doubt my opinion matters, but here goes.
I honestly believe that the M version of the 1 series is going to be a huge waste of money. BMW isnt going to let the 1 series ///M be better than their beloved M3. The M3 is BMW's pride and joy, we all know that. The gap between the performance figures of the 135i and the M3 is not that big. Yes, the M3 has a lot more horsepower, but it also has a lot more weight to lug around. 0-60 times are not that far off, same electronically limited top speed. So, why buy the M verision of the 1 series? You will be buying the badge, some suspension bits and a little extra HP, all of which you will be able to get cheaper thru the aftermarket. If BMW tries to shoehorn the 1-series M in between the M3 and the 135i, then it will be a huge waste of money. Sorry if you don't like how I see this, frankly I dont care if you dont.
I think for the 1-series M car to make sense financially, it needs to be better than the M3. BMW won't do that, because it'll take away from M3 sales. The performance figures are too close between the 135i and the M3 for them to fit a $50k car (just a guess on price) in between them. BMW shot themselves in the foot by making the original 135i too good. They didnt leave enough room in between the 135i and the M3 for them to fit an M version of the car in there.
Unless BMW is going to make the 1 series M their new pride and joy (and I'll open a snow shovel store in Hell
), then I don't see this new "M car" being all that practical.