[champignon]

A new 2018 Mark 7.5 (or a slightly used 2015-2017 Mark 7) Golf R would actually be a fairly reasonable car to consider if shopping a used 1-Series.

The cars are not too dissimilar when it comes to interior quality, with the VW having the advantage of newer technology. The current, new, Mk. 7.5 version has the advantage of a 6 year, 72,000 mile warranty, however the car retails for $41K and significant discounts are not going to happen. A used 1-Series can be obtained for half of that or less, but will either have no remaining warranty, or perhaps the tail end of a CPO or 3rd party warranty. Golf Rs do not depreciate as rapidly as the BMW 1-Series has, so a (used) 2016, for example, is probably going to cost a lot more than a 1-Series car.

As to other criteria, the 6MT in the BMWs is much silkier and smoother than the somewhat sloppy 6MT in the R, although you do get used to it. Both DCT and DSG get good reviews from owners, so with an auto they are probably close.

On practicality, the VW wins hands down; it's not as long but it carries more stuff, has a more usable back seat, and the 4 door/hatchback configuration is incredibly useful.

The BMW has RWD, certainly more enjoyable and sportier on dry roads, whereas the front-biased AWD system in the Golf R has its advantages in sloppy weather. The R has "square" tires that can be rotated, whereas the 1-Series has staggered tires and tends to eat the rear ones, which are not cheap to replace.

The electric steering in the Golf R leaves a lot to be desired, but is somewhat better if the "race" setting is chosen in the DCC. The 1-Series hydraulic steering is obviously more enjoyable to use. Speaking of the DCC in the R (dynamic chassis control), which was optional in 2015 and 2016, but then mandatory after that, allows you to tune the suspension, the steering, engine mapping, fake engine noise, and some other factors in the Mark 7.5. This is a real plus, better than anything the BMW has to offer short of a physical suspension upgrade.

All things considered, if someone were looking for a daily driver car that they were going to put miles on, and if they had the funds, I would advise buying a 2018 R, given the 6 year, 72,000 mile warranty. The used 1-Series car is going to be a lot cheaper, but being an out of warranty BMW, it is likely to eat up some of those savings in repair costs. One negative of the 1-Series for a less-than-well capitalized buyer is that there are some things that can break that would be fairly uneconomical to fix given the low valuation the marketplace is giving the car these days. If you bought an older 1-Series, for say, $12,000, a $3500 bill to replace a leaky A/C condenser is just the start of the sort of things that can go wrong, that may put you into a quandary about whether to fix the car when things break. Even if the car looks nearly new, it is hard to put more serious cash into a car like that, which continues to depreciate.

If on the other hand, the buyer were looking for a weekend car on which they did not depend for transportation, the 1-Series is a more fun car to drive.

As long as you know what you are getting into, I don't think you can make a bad choice with either car.