RE: Chris Harris video: M135i vs A45 AMG

[Guffy]

WeirdNeville said:

360bhp from a 1.9 litre 4 pot engine? 4.2 to Sixty?
Mercedes have gone INSANE!

you're weird neville

[Axionknight]

WeirdNeville said:

360bhp from a 1.9 litre 4 pot engine? 4.2 to Sixty?
Mercedes have gone INSANE!

It's a 2 litre, 1991cc to be precise.

[s m]

carinaman said:

DonkeyApple said:

kingmalik786 said:

compare the m135i to a m3 e36 thats the video i wanna see

The whole suite of M3's from inception with the 135 thrown in on top would be an amazing review to see how the world evolves (considering the 125 is probably very close in size to the original M3).

That sounds like an M-Fest that CAR Magazine did in 2011 or 2012 I think, seemed like trawling the back catalogue to greet some new model.

CAR did an M car issue in October 2011, EVO did an M3 one in October 2010 and a best M car in November 2007

[cslwannabe]

Chris, have you driven an M135ixDrive (or whatever the 4wd version is called)? Be interested to hear how it compares with a rwd M135i and whether its a better 'all year round' UK car and if so, how it compares against the A45 AMG.

[bennyboysvuk]

wolfiekutner said:

I dont get why a slightly understeering car means it would be "slaughtered" - put an RS3 on a country road and it would leave the BMW and have a great fight with the A45. Furthermore, it would sound a whole lot better and (personally) look better. Sometimes there is too much of a bias towards what a roadtester looks for as opposed to what is actually important in real-life driving.

But can it put as big a smile on your face as the A45AMG and M135i can though? I think not and that's one of the most important things for me in real-life driving.

[chrisironside]

Chris, you look like a 4-year old going to nursery in that main picture!

[wolfiekutner]

bennyboysvuk said:

But can it put as big a smile on your face as the A45AMG and M135i can though? I think not and that's one of the most important things for me in real-life driving.

With a Decat milltek i certainly enjoy it.

for me the ride is too harsh but i think Harris was overly critical on the body control - initial turn-in is good, however there is admittedly too much oversteer at the apex of a corner.

For carrying 5 people, sounding good and being quick, the RS3 remains a perfect car - and although dynamically may be slightly inferior to its rivals, i deem it harsh for it to describes as "slaughtered." (although i accept that audi are out of sync when it comes to rivals currently RS3 out/S3 in....)

[UrbanSports]

Escort Si-130 said:

LOOL, think you been on too much of Ned's urban sports that has turned you loopy. The BMW is NO beauty, its down right fkin ugly. The Merc although odly shaped, looks miles better.

UrbanSports said:

The BMW is a beauty compared to that Mercedes slab sided Korean box, I like the look of most Mercedes cars but that thing is just dreadful and puts me off straight away.

What a bland looking car the A class is.

You seem to have misinterpreted what I said.

[GroundEffect]

If only the M135i looked better and had an LSD, I'd love to have one.

Maybe M235i will be more my thing.

[Schnellmann]

Of course it depends upon the spec but the M135i is around £7k more than a Golf GTi but also around £7k less than the A45. For the additional £7k over the Golf you get a car in a completely different performance category, RWD and 6 cylinders. Although the A45 is quicker than the BMW it is much closer (tenths of second difference up to 100 mph) and whilst the two share honours (in my view) as the Merc has the upper hand in some areas (point to point spee) whereas the BMW is more refined and cultured. For me it was easier to justify spending the extra £7k over the Golf than to justify spending yet another £7k to get the Merc (although even if they had been the same price I would have gone for the BMW as my wife would not have liked the Merc).

[dave_s13]

Axionknight said:

WeirdNeville said:

360bhp from a 1.9 litre 4 pot engine? 4.2 to Sixty?
Mercedes have gone INSANE!

It's a 2 litre, 1991cc to be precise.

'kin ell.

What's the service interval and service pricing like on these.

In a few years when these are a bit more affordable for us "normals" will they be hideously expensive to run?

[Uncle John]

All this talk about price bear in mind that the original hyperhatch the Focus RS when specced up was 28k in 2009 and it's ltd edition brother the RS500 was 35k in 2010 the BMW is bang on the money and the Merc just slightly higher due to the 4wd most probably.

No doubt the new 1M and RS3 will be nudging 40k plus.

Cars are just more expensive these days! C'est la vie!!

[kambites]

Uncle John said:

Cars are just more expensive these days! C'est la vie!!

I think it would probably be more accurate to say that money is worth less these days.

[DonkeyApple]

Uncle John said:

Cars are just more expensive these days! C'est la vie!!

Or rather, money is worth less these days.

[hawox]

the a45 is impressive, it reminds the old turbo 4wd hothatches juts more refined. but to me an evo looks more fun and is equally expensive to buy and maintain.
the 135M probably is the only bmw i like, very funny and reasonably well priced so the choice would be easy.

[CJP80]

s m said:

To be fair to Autocar, they do weigh them on a weighbridge at MIRA. The M coupe and 123d coupe were similar weights ( round 1500 -1520 kg ) so I can't see the hatch being substantially lighter.
Even a 197 Clio is nearly 1300kg
The new Golf Gti they weighed last week came in at 1450kg

Edited by s m on Wednesday 17th July 23:17

Just checked the German Mercedes site. The A45 weight does include driver and 90% fuel so the A45 is only 40Kg heavier than the M135i Auto bone stock; 1480 vs 1440.

Edited by CJP80 on Thursday 18th July 09:45

[Schnellmann]

I watched the video again this morning and I'm a bit confused by Chris' conclusion that he would take the A45 if he had the money because in the videao when he is driving the M135i on the road he notes that i) it has the nicer engine, ii) much nicer sound iii) better gearbox (comparing the automatic with the A45 double clutch but of course BMW give you the option of a manual), iv) nicer interior and v) gives you more dynamic options because of the RWD. The only area where the A45 seems to win (on the road) is that it is better over some really bumpy roads.

Would be interesting to hear from Chris, if he is on line, why he would then take the Merc over the BMW if they were the same price.

[scherzkeks]

carinaman said:

If Monkey says the RS3 doesn't make the grade I believe him. I remember his video of a hot Haldex equipped A3 and it mentioned 'tuning' or 'reprogramming' the Haldex? If the A45 and the transverse 4WD system used in the Alfa 159 trump Haldex then it sounds like VAG are going to have develop a better 4WD system for their transverse powered cars, especially with Audi sticking 'Quattro' badges on them.

Um, the A45 uses Haldex...

Edited by scherzkeks on Thursday 18th July 09:54

[angels95]

A45AMG for me. It looks miles better to my eyes than the ugly 1-Series, and the straight line speed is unbelievable. It sounds great as well, and the ability to ditch cars that cost twice the price both in a straight and round the bends seriously appeals to me.

No contest; I'd take the Merc. The BMW wouldn't even get a second's thought.

[CRB14]

GroundEffect said:

If only the M135i looked better and had an LSD, I'd love to have one.

Maybe M235i will be more my thing.

Just out of interest, how would you personally gain from an LSD?

I am genuinely curious as there seems a lot of obsession over the lack of one on the BMW which I just don't get. I need enlightening.