1M - missed that boat !

[seveb]

Well, the 1M now looks to be a brilliant car, but cheapest are £30k - most £35k fora 2010/11 car.

So is the M140i a comparable car ? Looks very similar on paper except auto gearbox, but perhaps more usable and possibly faster.

How does the M140i feel on the road ?

[chungasarnies]

You know the M140i was available as a manual too? In fact its the same Gertrag box as the 1M

It's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but it is a hoot. Seems massively quick at times. M2 is surely a better comparison?

[GregK2]

Not comparable at all IMO. Better comparison would be a 135i coupe (N54) or as stated, an M2. Even then I think the 1M is the most special of the lot by far.

[swanny71]

M140i is probably as quick in a straight line as the 1M...and there the comparisons end I think.

Unless you must have all the “tech” crap that seems so important now - in which case the newer car wins hands down.

[Turn7]

M2 looks garbage compared with a 1M imho......

[survivalist]

Alternatives to a 1M are very budget dependent. Is it that you don’t want to spend 35k on an ‘old’ car? Or just want to spend less overall?

Having test driven M2 and M135/140 as well as the 1M (years ago) and E92 M3s is say you’d need suspension upgrades and a LSD on the M-Lites to get anywhere close to the handling of an M car.

I also wasn’t a fan of the electric steering in the newer BMWs, but it’s your main / only car I recon you’d get used to it.

[ChrisBuer]

I've had / have both.

Had a 1M from new and it as a hoot. Great fun car and I regret selling it. That said, I have an M140i now and it's superb. Not as focused as the 1M but a much better road car. It's quicker as well with the auto box and the suspension doesn't rattle your teeth out.

On the road, I'd have the M140i every day. On track, give me the 1M