This car is...

[hybris4u]

sick! Did get my new 1M in January. In the middle of the Swedish winter. Nokian Hakka 7 spikes on the car. Snow and ice... Did feel that there is a beast sleeping during the winter... Two weeks ago I did put the original rubber on the car. The car has done its 200 miles service. So now I have been able to truly test the car. My comment? My god this car is good! Its just crazy! Accelerates like nothing else and the brakes! Mmmmmm! In MDM mode its a perfect balance. Yes turn everything off do create a superbeast but its also a beast that I feel is wild and will bite you sooner or later... You need to learn step by step... ;-)

I did own an Alpina B3 3.3 that was actually faster than the M3 E46 at the time (understated). But the 1M is way much better car. I can't stop smiling when driving it. There is one issue though... Its very hard not to accelerate with this car. I do chose the right situations but still this car is built for track use and I think you just must go for that or you will not be able to keep your driving license with this beast. Yes Im close to 40 and way more mature today. But still the car just whispers "accelerate... you now how good it feels...". My brain screams be quiet stupid car...

Anyone selling their 1M must be plain crazy! If you can get one! Don't think go for it!

Just needed to write this as I truly love this car more and more every day I drive it. Damn BMW this is the way to build a car! Respect!

[Fundahl]

Lol! Nice review and I agree.

[schatzi]

so true on every level!

[Artemis]

Originally Posted by hybris4u

Damn BMW this is the way to build a car! Respect!

The Top Gear Magazine Yearbook 2011 features a raving review about the Cayman R ...but in cauda venenum: final lines of the report (free translation from Dutch):

"In our view the Cayman R only has one problem, and that's the BMW 1M. That one's is equally small and cuddly, equally fast and screaming, but even with a loaded standard equipment about €20K less. And then you even get the backseats too. No, the Cayman R ain't no alternative for the fantastic/unprecedented 1M. If you really absolutely want a Porsche and you've set your mind on a 911, then have a drive in this one. He really ain't inferior."(*)

(*)"Wat ons betreft heeft de Cayman R maar één probleem, en dat is de BMW 1M. Die is even klein en knuffelig, even snel en schreeuwering, maar zelfs met een bijzonder rijke standarduitrusting zo'n twintig mille goedkoper. Dan krijg je er nog een achterbank bij ook. Nee, voor de weergaloze 1M is de Cayman R niet echt een alternatief. Wil je echt per se een Porsche en heb je je zinnen gezet op een 911, ga hier dan maar eens in rijden. Hij doet er echt niet voor onder."

Verdict:

• Cayman R (page- 171): 16/20
• BMW 1M (pages 48-51): 18/20 (highest mark of the whole Top Gear Year Book 2011)
  ("Top Gear Verdict: BMW has not unlearned. What a sensational lovely Big Bang of a car. [...] Advice: buy, drive and never look back")

Hush-hush, if you listen carefully, you might hear some folks cursing somewhere in Zuffenhausen.

[M3 Adjuster]

Originally Posted by hybris4u

sick!

<snipped> There is one issue though... Its very hard not to accelerate with this car. I do chose the right situations but still this car is built for track use and I think you just must go for that or you will not be able to keep your driving license with this beast. Yes Im close to 40 and way more mature today. But still the car just whispers "accelerate... you now how good it feels...". My brain screams be quiet stupid car...

I commuted for less than a week in my car and got a ticket for 80mph in a 60mph zone. So.. yep... I agree... it begs to be driven fast! Mine is a weekend car.. less chance of getting more tickets on the way to work! Congratulations and glad to hear you love it!

[ozinaldo]

Originally Posted by Artemis

The Top Gear Magazine Yearbook 2011 features a raving review about the Cayman R ...but in cauda venenum: final lines of the report (free translation from Dutch):

"In our view the Cayman R only has one problem, and that's the BMW 1M. That one's is equally small and cuddly, equally fast and screaming, but even with a loaded standard equipment about €20K less. And then you even get the backseats too. No, the Cayman R ain't no alternative for the fantastic/unprecedented 1M. If you really absolutely want a Porsche and you've set your mind on a 911, then have a drive in this one. He really ain't inferior."(*)

(*)"Wat ons betreft heeft de Cayman R maar één probleem, en dat is de BMW 1M. Die is even klein en knuffelig, even snel en schreeuwering, maar zelfs met een bijzonder rijke standarduitrusting zo'n twintig mille goedkoper. Dan krijg je er nog een achterbank bij ook. Nee, voor de weergaloze 1M is de Cayman R niet echt een alternatief. Wil je echt per se een Porsche en heb je je zinnen gezet op een 911, ga hier dan maar eens in rijden. Hij doet er echt niet voor onder."

Verdict:

• Cayman R (page- 171): 16/20
• BMW 1M (pages 48-51): 18/20 (highest mark of the whole Top Gear Year Book 2011)
  ("Top Gear Verdict: BMW has not unlearned. What a sensational lovely Big Bang of a car. [...] Advice: buy, drive and never look back")

Hush-hush, if you listen carefully, you might hear some folks cursing somewhere in Zuffenhausen.

Very nice. That's such a way to compliment a car. 1M deserving these lines and with the competition of a Porsche perfect Cayman R should leave no doubts on anyone's mind. For me, this car is so good and intoxicating, it doesn't even need to be perfect. Perfect can be cold, 1M is alive.

[Vrumpkin]

Good post. I think the 1M is just so easy to drive fast that it makes it hard simply not to. When you put your foot down in 2nd or 3rd and hit boost its too much fun, the car gets up to speed and slows down very quickly, great performer but easily causes trouble when a regular "cruise" becomes a mini track event!

... not a bad problem to have at all. Its like a GF who's boobs are too big, fun for you yet every other guy is staring!

[Redadair]

I couldn't agree more with your assessments of the 1M!

We all owe a big shout out to Dr Key Segler, the father of our 1M's and all the Engineers at the M group who came in early and worked after hours to help prove to the BMW Board of Directors that there was a market for an M car that was smaller lighter and overall more nimble than the M3.

The 1M was truly a Labor of Love from the M group, an expression of what the M group envisioned in a modern version of the original M3, a car they were as proud to develop as we are to own.

Best Damn BMW I have ever driven, owned. Even better than my 1972 2002tii.

[Artemis]

Originally Posted by Redadair

I couldn't agree more with your assessments of the 1M!
We all owe a big shout out to Dr Kay Segler, the father of our 1M's and all the Engineers at the M group who came in early and worked after hours to help prove to the BMW Board of Directors that there was a market for an M car that was smaller lighter and overall more nimble than the M3.
The 1M was truly a Labor of Love from the M group, an expression of what the M group envisioned in a modern version of the original M3, a car they were as proud to develop as we are to own.
Best Damn BMW I have ever driven, owned. Even better than my 1972 2002tii.

Indeed kudoes to Dr. Kay Segler. Kay was the key: without him, no 1M as we know. We all should be very grateful for the achievement accomplished by him and his team.
http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showp...79&postcount=1

"The time window for this car [was] extremely tight and originally enthusiasm was not apparent until Dr. Kay Segler came to the M Division.
We had initially toyed with the idea of a 1M when we were conceiving the Coupe and did work with evaluation models then using the engine from the E46 and the upgraded E46 CSL engine but it proved to be too heavy for the car.
Originally in the early days of marketing the standard 135i was originally meant to be an M model.
The 1M that stands before you now has had possibly the most progressive stage from thought-production turnaround for a BMW. There had to be a lot of arm-twisting in the BMW Board because of the tight window between generation 1 and generation 2 of the Coupe. The proposal was greenlit when BMW decided to use the Coupe model for the BMW eDrive evaluation. Therefore slightly extending its life cycle.
When I first saw the car it was in a design studio as a full scale clay-model but since then some designers ideas have to make way for aerodynamics and engineering. The initial engine proposal was the N55 but they were having issues that cannot be solved within the time window. BMW greenlit this car in July 2009, now over a year later we see it as it intended, although testing still commences until the launch. Valvetronic was the main cause of the time delay but BMW have spent some time on this and are using the N55 as a basis for the next M3.
The best way to describe the engine of the 1M is a "Hybrid" but in the original form of Hybrid, nothing to do with "alternatives", but it is not a straightforward transplant.
There is a lot of this car that will carry over for the next generation 1M in which that car will switch to four cylinders to which the M Division engineers are already working on the basics without time constraints or restrictions. 1M (E82) is showing what is possible in a small time-frame 1M (F22) will show what is possible once you do not have restrictions."

Also an interesting read from hindsight: http://www.bmwblog.com/2011/01/21/bm...-need-to-know/

"]Development of the engine.
The development time of the engine was very short – engineers took only about a year to build it if not less, beginning in October 2009. In December 2009 the decision was made to build the 1M. Dr. Segler championed the project and made all major decisions. Took around 1 year to develop and test the car. M cars utilize the Nurburgring circuit for extensive testing. All the testing needed to be completed in Spring and Summer [2010] before bad weather starts. He said the engineers and designers worked very, very hard to complete the project. Dr. Segler was emotional and had a few tears the first time he saw the car in completed form. In a broken voice, he said, «we need to build this car».
The 1M is powered by the N[5]4 twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter I-6 engine. For the 1M, the turbocharger, exhaust system, and ECU have been revised to produce 335 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque, though up to 369 pound-feet are available temporarily in overboost mode. Redline is found at 7000 rpm."

"Why Valencia Orange?
Ironically, the 1M was first presented to Dr. Segler in Valencia Orange and it was so good that the color made it to the production model. As a fun fact, we observed Dr. Segler was wearing a new Rolex Milgauss which had a black dial with orange second hand and dash marks. True love for the color scheme…"

During the 2011 NA International Auto Show Dr. Segler disclosed that VO is his favorite 1M color ("It's on offer in three colors, but definitely this is the color you'll have to order: it's Valencia Orange") (see: video below 0:30-0:36):

[Powerbeast]

Nice review man glad your enjoying it as much as all of us.

[Ky1M]

Totally awesome review but be careful it might make you move to better climate!!

[hybris4u]

Originally Posted by Ky1M

Totally awesome review but be careful it might make you move to better climate!!

He he he! Yes it would be nice to live in a country with something like the autobahn and the ring close by... Wait that is our neighbor Germany. Maybe I should start looking for a job down there... ;-)

To be honest Sweden has a quite good climate. The snow was gone in early march and spring is coming really quickly now. Many think that we have snow bears in the streets and live in igloos. We don't. I would say Stockholm is a lot like the northern cities in the US. The summers are lovely but maybe a bit to short. ;-)

[///BYU]

hybris4u - Great review. I still have my winter tires on, which I've had since the day I picked up my 1M at the Performance Center in December in preparation for the drive to the frigid north. I'm so excited to get the summer tires back on!! We've had a super mild winter and most days have seen temperatures well above average. I thought about putting the summer tires back on a few weeks early but figured that act alone would actually extend winter by several weeks (superstitious!). Now I wish I would have done it...

Since Redadair and Artemis mentioned Dr. Kay Segler, I'll share this little story. We got to meet Dr. Segler during our European Delivery experience. We were so impressed he took time out of his schedule to talk to us for a few minutes about the 1M, take a picture with me and autograph our car. To use his own word in describing the 1M, the experience of meeting him was "outstanding" (he even said that a couple of times during our conversation ). What a great guy!

[HERR FSTIR]

Our snow is just starting to melt, and I am getting excited to put the summer tires on and see what the little bulldog can do.

I also think Kay Segler deserves a lot of credit for bringing this car to market. It's a shame his tenure at M was so brief. I never understood why he went back to Mini. Did his departure have anything to do with developing the 1M?

[Redadair]

Originally Posted by ///BYU

hybris4u - Great review. I still have my winter tires on, which I've had since the day I picked up my 1M at the Performance Center in December in preparation for the drive to the frigid north. I'm so excited to get the summer tires back on!! We've had a super mild winter and most days have seen temperatures well above average. I thought about putting the summer tires back on a few weeks early but figured that act alone would actually extend winter by several weeks (superstitious!). Now I wish I would have done it...

Since Redadair and Artemis mentioned Dr. Kay Segler, I'll share this little story. We got to meet Dr. Segler during our European Delivery experience. We were so impressed he took time out of his schedule to talk to us for a few minutes about the 1M, take a picture with me and autograph our car. To use his own word in describing the 1M, the experience of meeting him was "outstanding" (he even said that a couple of times during our conversation ). What a great guy!

What a great opportunity to talk to Kay and get him to sign you car. Nice!

[hybris4u]

Cool! I also want a signed 1M! ;-)

[Mahlzeit]

Originally Posted by Redadair

We all owe a big shout out to Dr Key Segler, the father of our 1M's and all the Engineers at the M group who came in early and worked after hours to help prove to the BMW Board of Directors that there was a market for an M car that was smaller lighter and overall more nimble than the M3.

The 1M was truly a Labor of Love from the M group, an expression of what the M group envisioned in a modern version of the original M3, a car they were as proud to develop as we are to own.
.

Absolutely, positively agree. Dr. Kay - the father of the 1M.

[eeghie]

Originally Posted by ///BYU

... Since Redadair and Artemis mentioned Dr. Kay Segler, I'll share this little story. We got to meet Dr. Segler during our European Delivery experience. We were so impressed he took time out of his schedule to talk to us for a few minutes about the 1M, take a picture with me and autograph our car. To use his own word in describing the 1M, the experience of meeting him was "outstanding" (he even said that a couple of times during our conversation ). What a great guy!

This also what I noticed when visiting ///M: they care about their cars even more then their customers. That autograph makes your 1M even more special :thumbsup