Been tracking the 1M a fair bit this summer since i finally put a proper seat (OMP WRC-R Racing Seat). Makes such a difference on track as I finally now feel more connected to the car. Had 3 days at Mosport with the BMW club and with Covid we instructors weren't assigned any students so it was just non-stop track time. Ended up running around 1000kms on track with my buddies & I swapping into each others cars. Some impressions...
1M has H&R springs, Performance Friction Race Pads, Hankook RS4s (245/40/18 square) & a racing seat/harnesses. Was sooooo good! The way it would hook up coming out of turn 5C before the back straight was so sick. You get on the power and it would just hunker down and rocket. A short video below with me driving the 135i and you can see my friend in the 1M just launches out like a bullet. LSD makes such a difference.
Balance is amazing with a nice sharp turn in and the car overall feels light and nimble. People always talk about them being twitchy at the limit but I find it perfect for my driving style as it's similar to my e30 M3. I like to use this characteristic for extra rotation when needed. It communicates everything perfectly and the steering has a lovely lightness to it where you can feel the connection between the tarmac and your hands. By sunday I was braking from almost 240kph going into turn 8 and barreling in at 160kph. Running consistent 1:36s with no traffic. Only complaint I have is there is brake bias issue as i'm running Hawk HP Plus Sport pads in the rear and it feels like it's over braking in the rear which creates a bit of a wiggle. Car is just sick in this environment.
135i with coilovers, tune (around 330hp), Pagid RS29 Race pads & Hankook RS4s. Suspension was just awesome, really nice damping and I could carry a ton of confidence as it would hook up quickly. Contrast to the 1M it feels heavier, from the steering, to the body control. It just didn't feel as sharp as as the 1M. The braking had better feel though as it was easier to modulate, i believe it's cause of the 6 piston calipers (not sure why the 1M didn't get these) plus the pagid pads. It was more balanced and I felt more confidence in the big braking zone. I didn't have the lap timer on when i was driving but my buddy was able to do a best 1:39.1
M2 with DCT, H&R springs, Pagid RS29 Race Pads, downpipe, tune (450hp) & Michelin Pilot Sport 4S. Holy crap what a monster with the power. As much as the 1M distanced the 135i out of turn 5 the M2 did to the 1M. Just bananas hitting around 245kph on the back straight. So surprising was how different it felt from the 1M overall. You could feel the weight and there was much less body control. The steering felt heavier and wasn't communicating from tarmac to fingers. I would put the 135i in between the 1M and M2 for weight and balance feel and say the 1M feels like an e30 and a M2 is more e46. Regardless of the extra power & DCT i could keep up in the 1M (same would happen when we swapped keys). He would drag down the straight and i would reel him in through the corners. If he had the RS4 tires he would be gone. We were running 1:36s nose to tail.
I also took my e30 Champ Car Race Car that has a stock M52, koni shocks & meaty 245/45/15 tires. This thing was a rocket and the best timed lap we got out of it was a 1:38.9. By Sunday i'm pretty sure we were down into the sub 1:38s when we realized how much grip this thing was producing. All in all great weekend.
Some vids:
Me in the 135i chasing the 1M blasting out of turn 5:
Me in the 1M chasing the M2 through traffic: