2 Series Tourer

[hedges88]

I'm used to proper BMW's, owned an E39 touring for a good while and got to drive a couple other models of that era. So today my dad offers me a drive in his new 218i tourer which I immediately dislike for being a mini underneath, for being the first front wheel drive BMW and for having half the cylinders that it should.

I was impressed by the interior quality though the steering wheel was way too small and thick. It's also not actually that rooomy inside either. The digital instruments were so attractive and elegant.

I could not have been more surprised by any car in my life on driving it though. The 3 pot that I expected to be dull and diesel like revved out freely to 7k and seemed to love it. It had low down shove that would have embarrassed my 6 pot E39 and uses half the fuel. The lack of sound was disappointing but with the windows open the turbo whisle is fun. Eco pro made it unbearable for me though.

So then the handling I expected to be disappointed by, but was amazed that as I approached the corner and downshift it rev matched automatically for a perfect gearshift. It had great steering weight and feel and the chassis actually felt like it could be a friend to have fun with. The manual box had perfect ratios and was so precise and felt perfect. Reverse is a bit of a faff but that's just being picky.

It felt like a luxury and premium product, sure it wasn't as solid feeling as an E39 and my god is it narrow but overall it felt it was worth every penny. The centre console screams luxury car and I was impressed with the standard kit especially colission avoidance and the rev matching.

Would totally consider one for my next car, it didn't feel like it didn't deserve to wear the BMW badge like I expected. It felt like a baby beemer , It totally won me over within an hour. I will always covet a traditional BMW but I can see it for the dinosaur it is and how wasteful it was and the fact I only ever enjoyed the rear wheel drive 1% of the time

Ready for the hate messages from BMW purists but I just wanted to share my honest opinion after driving a new 218 tourer.

[themightychimp]

You probably will get a few dissenting voices on here, I’ve seen a few dismissive comments wrt the 2 series active & grand tourer already - it is pistonheads after all. But not from me! I am a traditionalist & personally want my BMW with rear wheel drive & a six cylinder petrol, but I’ve just helped find my mum find a 218i luxury active tourer to replace her Merc B Class. Needed a practical hatchback with a higher seating position & some luxury, without the running costs of a 4x4, & it’s been great tbh. Agree with what you’ve said, but I am disappointed with the fuel economy, the 3 pot petrol has been nowhere near as efficient as I’d have expected. I’ve got used to the electronic parking brake now, but i think it’s a gimmick, nothing wrong with a good old handle with a button on it. Am finding the remote boot opening a bit intermittent at the moment too. BMW don’t seem to do accessories for the car like others models either, had to buy an aftermarket boot liner & dog grid. But other than those, so far so good!

[scottydoesntknow]

I watched an Honest John review of the latest B-Class earlier today. He too was also very positive about the 2 Tourer in comparison. Not a huge fan of the looks personally but as a package it seems very well thought out.

https://youtu.be/lJgu9HDKta4

[Earthdweller]

My brother in law has the 7 seat one. It’s a 218d auto luxury

It’s the family bus, he has 5 kids !

I’ve been in it a few times and driven it twice .. it’s ok, totally fine

It’s not the most dynamic thing in the world but for what it is, it’s great really

Seems well built, nice interior good spec

I don’t think the auto box is the best, certainly not as good as the ZF 8 speed in other BMW’s

It compares very well to my father in laws Golf SV which is similar

But it’s a nice thing to drive to the school, shops etc

It’s clearly not an M2 competition .. but then you can’t get 5 kids and a wife in an M2

[EVR]

My dad has a 2019 one, I drove it recently.

Same as you guys, I quite like it for what it is. Interior is very nice, driving experience is more sporty and precise than what you expect, especially in Sport Mode, albeit I don't have much experiences in BMWs. And my car is an Aston Martin Vantage V8, it's not like I'm coming from a slow car.

BTW, shameless plug: if you could give my dad & me a hand with this, I will be very grateful, thank you.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[rayyan171]

As a fanboy, it is sheer sacrilege. But, I would rather have one of these over a VW Touran or Zafira any day. The Touran is plastic for years and has a duff gearbox (even today) and the Zafira is just so wheezy, despite having 'turbo' written on the back. However, we are biased, and we are also used to 300hp 7 seaters.