1 series Coupe or Hatch?
Discussion
Right I'm a bit puzzled. I've run a 120D coupe as a company car for a couple of years now, I chose it for it's compact size, strong performance yet excellent economy and tax advantage. I liked the idea of a well set up RWD car and had enjoyed a test drive in a 120D hatch. The coupe was new at the time and getting a test in one without the 3.0 Petrol was seemingly beyong BMW's abilities.
Any way two years on and I have got gradually more bored with it, OK the engine is strong and constantly returns 47MPG no matter how I drive it, but the ride seems to have too much vertical movement, the wife hates it!. Handling is sound enough, mid corner balance excellent, but understeer is more present than I expected and when the back end does loosen the TC stamps it out rather rudely!. OK I could turn it off, but to be honest I don't think the throttle is responsive enough for me able to control it on the power. The steering is also in my view artificially heavy, a sort of fake 'feel'. The Gearbox seems to be baulky and I can never down change quickly, the clutch judders like hell if the air is moist.
My previuos three cars were Alfa's and I used to deliberatly take the back roads to work, just for fun, nowadays I just go the motorway route, the BMW may be technicaly better than an Alfa 156, but it's just leaving me cold and bored.
But anyway back to my question at the top of the thread, Coupe or hatch?, the thing is I have just had a 118D 5 door hatch for the weekend whilst the dealer tried to sort the clutch judder on the Coupe. What really surprised me is how much more enjoyable it was to drive, OK it was a bit shy on power, but the thing just felt far more chuckable the box let me downshift quickly, the steering felt better. It was a revelation, what's going on here, when the Coupe came out every review I read said the coupe was if anything better than a hatch, but I'm a bit disillusioned with mine I have to say.
As a comparison my Coupe is an SE with the Sports suspension and 17" wheel upgrade, the 118D was an M Sport. So I think I'm comparing apples with apples here.
PS I still hate the looks of a 1 Series Hatch, I just loved the drive!.
Any way two years on and I have got gradually more bored with it, OK the engine is strong and constantly returns 47MPG no matter how I drive it, but the ride seems to have too much vertical movement, the wife hates it!. Handling is sound enough, mid corner balance excellent, but understeer is more present than I expected and when the back end does loosen the TC stamps it out rather rudely!. OK I could turn it off, but to be honest I don't think the throttle is responsive enough for me able to control it on the power. The steering is also in my view artificially heavy, a sort of fake 'feel'. The Gearbox seems to be baulky and I can never down change quickly, the clutch judders like hell if the air is moist.
My previuos three cars were Alfa's and I used to deliberatly take the back roads to work, just for fun, nowadays I just go the motorway route, the BMW may be technicaly better than an Alfa 156, but it's just leaving me cold and bored.
But anyway back to my question at the top of the thread, Coupe or hatch?, the thing is I have just had a 118D 5 door hatch for the weekend whilst the dealer tried to sort the clutch judder on the Coupe. What really surprised me is how much more enjoyable it was to drive, OK it was a bit shy on power, but the thing just felt far more chuckable the box let me downshift quickly, the steering felt better. It was a revelation, what's going on here, when the Coupe came out every review I read said the coupe was if anything better than a hatch, but I'm a bit disillusioned with mine I have to say.
As a comparison my Coupe is an SE with the Sports suspension and 17" wheel upgrade, the 118D was an M Sport. So I think I'm comparing apples with apples here.
PS I still hate the looks of a 1 Series Hatch, I just loved the drive!.
Does sound like apples for apples but the 118 & 120d's have (if I'm not wrong) different ratio's on the gear boxes so that may make a difference. Having a hatch I'm a little biased towards them but have to say I did enjoy the long term lone coupe. If I had the option again I'd probably go down the same route as the hatch is just that little more practicle. I found both the hatch and the coupe to be very similar handling wise, when comparing m-sport with 18's.
The coupe feels more like a 3 series, which in turn feels more like a very solid, stable coupe/saloon, good compared with most but a lot more grown up. The hatch is, as the name suggests still a hatch and has a much younger and more fun, go-kart like feel to it.
I love the hatch and on my second but the 135i coupe left me really disapointed, may as well get get the 335i if going coupe imho.
I love the hatch and on my second but the 135i coupe left me really disapointed, may as well get get the 335i if going coupe imho.
It really does seem to be horses for courses. I have a 135i coupe and it replaced a much-loved 2005 Alfa 156 GTA. The 135i was the only car I could find with a similar blend of performance, character, size and fun to the GTA. No, it's not quite as characterful, but it was more characterful than anything else I tried and it's a considerably better all-rounder.
I tried the 130i hatch as well before buying and found that the 135i just felt like it handled better - lacks the vertical bounce that afflicted the 130i I tried.
And I would try an MSport 120d or 123d - I'm sure it will be different to an SE with Sport suspension.
O/T slightly - didn't like the 335i I also tried. Setting aside that it costs £9k more, that really did feel way too grown-up a driving experience - the 135i is a hooligan by comparison.
I tried the 130i hatch as well before buying and found that the 135i just felt like it handled better - lacks the vertical bounce that afflicted the 130i I tried.
And I would try an MSport 120d or 123d - I'm sure it will be different to an SE with Sport suspension.
O/T slightly - didn't like the 335i I also tried. Setting aside that it costs £9k more, that really did feel way too grown-up a driving experience - the 135i is a hooligan by comparison.
Edited by RacingTeatray on Thursday 15th April 17:29
RacingTeatray said:
I tried the 130i hatch as well before buying and found that the 135i just felt like it handled better - lacks the vertical bounce that afflicted the 130i I tried.
I've not seen this mentioned before but I referred to it as the 'BMW bob' with my 120d. Try both and compare?Sticks. said:
RacingTeatray said:
I tried the 130i hatch as well before buying and found that the 135i just felt like it handled better - lacks the vertical bounce that afflicted the 130i I tried.
I've not seen this mentioned before but I referred to it as the 'BMW bob' with my 120d. Try both and compare?Sytner let me take out a 130i 3dr hatch for a 45 minute blat around some country twisties in rural Essex and I really enjoyed it, but I could see what testers were on about when they mentioned back-end bounce. There was just a noticeable degree of vertical movement at the rear that never felt that it would compromise roadholding but was just a bit disconcerting. The 135i doesn't suffer this so far I can tell after nigh-on 12k miles in mine. The only rear-end foible I've recently noticed on the 135i is a tendency for the car to hop sideways very slightly when it encountered expansion joints on French motorway bends - all cars do this to some extent but it's more pronounced in this car than I recall from previous cars.
The real difference between the 130i and the 135i was more to do with the engine. The 130i's engine isn't nearly as quick but sings a more musical song.
The real difference between the 130i and the 135i was more to do with the engine. The 130i's engine isn't nearly as quick but sings a more musical song.
I think there is generally too much vertical bounce on the Coupe, I didn't think it was as bad on the hatch to be honest. Shortly after I got it a mate test drove it and was really disappointed with that 'bounce', it's also the main reason the Wife hates the car.... mind you she hates all my cars any way so it makes no odds!.
Mind you, I have to say even though the BMW has a 'bounce' at least the dampers stop it scraping along the ground all the time, which sadly couldn't be said of a 156GTA as Racing Teatray will no doubt testify
Mind you, I have to say even though the BMW has a 'bounce' at least the dampers stop it scraping along the ground all the time, which sadly couldn't be said of a 156GTA as Racing Teatray will no doubt testify
velocemitch said:
I think there is generally too much vertical bounce on the Coupe, I didn't think it was as bad on the hatch to be honest. Shortly after I got it a mate test drove it and was really disappointed with that 'bounce', it's also the main reason the Wife hates the car.... mind you she hates all my cars any way so it makes no odds!.
Mind you, I have to say even though the BMW has a 'bounce' at least the dampers stop it scraping along the ground all the time, which sadly couldn't be said of a 156GTA as Racing Teatray will no doubt testify
Indeed - and not just the GTA version either - I've also driven a normal 1.8 Veloce and that was equally prone to bashing its plastic undertray on even mildly bumpy country roads. Speed bumps/cushions were a right pain in the neck.Mind you, I have to say even though the BMW has a 'bounce' at least the dampers stop it scraping along the ground all the time, which sadly couldn't be said of a 156GTA as Racing Teatray will no doubt testify
B3pete said:
Sticks. said:
Yep, that's sums it up, vertical bounce over slightly uneven, but by no means exceptionally so, roads - which is most of them. Maybe I'm biased as I hated my 120d, so best try for yourself. Not driven a coupe.
Hello sticks "hated" is a strong emotion ,how come?Don't take my word for it, do what I didn't, try several cars and see what you like, and what they cost. I wisjed I'd looked at how much 3 Series or Golf I could have got for the money, or if I'd bought a 130 I might have forgiven it.
Plenty of friendly advice here http://www.babybmw.net/forum/viewforum.php?f=3
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