Wired.com 1M review

[djafactor]

Ran across an article on wired.com by the infamous Baja racer Bill Caswell. Check it out here

Amit

[flzrider]

"The M Coupe’s 3.2-liter engine produces a healthy 335hp...."

[marcel b]

"There is also an “M” button on the steering wheel that I entirely forgot about until a friend asked me if I liked it. Oh yeah. “Sport” mode. I pressed it and it opened up the exhaust..."

"Is the 1 Series M Coupe the best BMW ever? I think so. But picking one up new may be out of the question, since BMW made less than 1,000 of these cars and most of them have already been sold..."

[mPlasticDesign]

Originally Posted by flzrider

"The M Coupe’s 3.2-liter engine produces a healthy 335hp...."

"the M Coupe is a heavy 3,362 pounds......but I do think the latest model is a bit fat."

The lightest M car in BMW's line is fat? Hell its probably the second(only to the 128i) lightest car BMW makes for the US. I wish the car was closer to an even 3000lbs but I guess it's all relative when discussing weight.

[jkoral]

"It sits quite a bit lower than the regular 1 series..."

I did not know this. When I look at the specs on bmwusa.com, I see 56.0 in height (from bottom of tires to roof line) for the 135i and 55.9 for the 1M. To me, that's the same height.

Is it the bottom of the front bumper and rear bumper appearing closer to the ground that gives the illusion of sitting "quite a bit lower than a regular 1 series?"

Not trolling, just curious...

[Tony135]

Haha looks like they have no car knowledge whatsoever.

[richb811]

Originally Posted by Tony135

Haha looks like they have no car knowledge whatsoever.

It's wired magazine. Nothing deep and meaningful about cars will ever come from this magazine.

Good for a read if you are into Tech tho!

[Tony135]

Definitely! I love tech stuff and read wired a lot. They had a pretty good article on Tesla about a year back.

[jkoral]

Originally Posted by Rich@GTBPerformance

It's wired magazine. Nothing deep and meaningful about cars will ever come from this magazine.

Good for a read if you are into Tech tho!

The author wrote:

"I’ve been racing BMWs for over 10 years in everything from traditional wheel-to-wheel races to the national Mexican class at the World Rally Championships. I’ve raced in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (12.42 miles straight up) and I’ve even fitted a BMW with 33-inch tires and 15 inches of wheel travel to race in the Baja 1000. The only car I’ve owned that wasn’t a BMW was a Lotus Exige, and my daily driver is currently an E30 M3."

So regardless of it being Wired magazine, I would argue that is he more qualified to write a review on the 1M than most others.

[richb811]

Originally Posted by jkoral

The author wrote:

"I’ve been racing BMWs for over 10 years in everything from traditional wheel-to-wheel races to the national Mexican class at the World Rally Championships. I’ve raced in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (12.42 miles straight up) and I’ve even fitted a BMW with 33-inch tires and 15 inches of wheel travel to race in the Baja 1000. The only car I’ve owned that wasn’t a BMW was a Lotus Exige, and my daily driver is currently an E30 M3."

So regardless of it being Wired magazine, I would argue that is he more qualified to write a review on the 1M than most others.

I stand corrected.

[AM1N]

why's everyone bitching? this is a pretty fun writeup

[ozinaldo]

I found it entertaining as well. This is the second new article I've read about 1M today and in both the authors were over excited about the car. See the Sticky compilation of reviews for my post to the other article.

[Papethova]

Originally Posted by jkoral

"It sits quite a bit lower than the regular 1 series..."

I did not know this. When I look at the specs on bmwusa.com, I see 56.0 in height (from bottom of tires to roof line) for the 135i and 55.9 for the 1M. To me, that's the same height.

Is it the bottom of the front bumper and rear bumper appearing closer to the ground that gives the illusion of sitting "quite a bit lower than a regular 1 series?"

Not trolling, just curious...

My 135 sits lower than my M... even from the bottom of the bumper

[Redadair]

Good read. I enjoyed it. The guy drives an E30 M3 everyday and still thinks the 1M is the best BMW he has ever driven. My feelings as well.

[ayrton1M]

My last three cars have been Ms and I gotta tell you every time I get in my 1M, I ponder how lucky I am.

2007 Z4M Coupe;
Pros:
As fun to drive as the 1M (not as much torque but a bit lighter and that Go kart feelinng!

Cons: KILLED my back, no useful space to speak of.

2006 M5 (SMG):
Pros:
HP, HP, HP!!!! Exhilarating 'noise' coming from the engine, good handling, HUD!!!!. eaaaasy on my back. great performance, comfortable, lots of room all around.

Cons: Expired warranty, Big and heavy. Low torque, hard to launch.

2011 1M:
Pros: All of the above (not as much room as the M5 but no complaints). Great handling, TORQUE, TORQUE, TORQUE. Beautiful (very subjective). Much better on my back than the Z4MC.
Cons: . Miss the HUD? I'm sory I cannot actually come up with anything.

[MDORPHN]

Originally Posted by jkoral

The author wrote:

"I’ve been racing BMWs for over 10 years in everything from traditional wheel-to-wheel races to the national Mexican class at the World Rally Championships. I’ve raced in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (12.42 miles straight up) and I’ve even fitted a BMW with 33-inch tires and 15 inches of wheel travel to race in the Baja 1000. The only car I’ve owned that wasn’t a BMW was a Lotus Exige, and my daily driver is currently an E30 M3."

So regardless of it being Wired magazine, I would argue that is he more qualified to write a review on the 1M than most others.

In addition to being a terrific writer and story teller, he's one hell of a driver.

I ran the One Lap of America with him some years ago, and he displayed immense talent.

Neil

[T1T2GRE]

Good read. I enjoyed it. A little more down to earth and not as verbose as other reviews.

The linked Baja article is a good read as well. Is that the same Sam Smith of CCA/Roundel fame?

[v1k0d3n]

Originally Posted by AM1N

why's everyone bitching? this is a pretty fun writeup

I absolutely agree. I thought this was a great write-up.