Interesting what 1 series owners are saying about the new GTI

[master_hayabusa]

http://www.babybmw.net/viewtopic.php?f=74&t=47774

[dirvy]

When you have a favourite, you are biased that way. As I am for gti.

1series is ugly. It is. REar wheel drive.

It is driven by .......

They also can't seem to settle on a model, ie with a boot, a hatch, etc

Probably better to go for a 3 series, or a GTI

[mark@vorny.co.uk]

Interesting but not surprising.

I moderate on two BMW forums and the moment I suggest folk should look at a Golf GTi instead of a 120d I get shot down in flames. Personally, i would have a Golf GTi every time.

I see folk compare to the 135i, a great car, but unless mapped a pretty uninteresting one in my opinion. Anything less modelwise and the GTi would eat it for breakfast in the real world.

Funnily enough, I don't own a BMW anymore.

[Gung-Ho]

Funny enough I test drove the new BMW F20 M135i a couple of months back with the view to replacing my current Mk6 Golf GTi and I have got to say, its as good as what all the reviews say it is.  It's a seriously seriously QUICK piece of kit and is in a league of its own when it's comes to performance!!!!.... And as for bang for bucks its only £2.5k more than a similar spec'd Mk7 GTi.

I'm a big BMW fan and currently also own an E60 M5 with a fabulous V10!  But I'm equally a big fan of GTi's!!! So the dilemma I had was.... do I trade in my Mk6 for the M-lite or do I play it safe and opt for the new Mk7?

Decisions decisions... In the end three things swung it for me. Firstly the 1-series didn't seem "as" practical as there was considerably less leg-room in the back and was still difficult to get in and out.  Secondly I prefer the look of a Golf to the F20.  And thirdly I just couldn't get the deal I wanted with the M-lite.

I'm sure I would have been equally happy with either, but at the end of the day the Golf won it for me!  Ok... It's gonna be nowhere as quick as the BMW, but then straight line performance isn't everything!

[ROO1]

I was offered a new 135i (standard car) for 28500 which at the time sounded a bargain. Yes it's a monster but not something I could live with on a daily basis.

[Gryzor]

I just find the 1 series generally a bit ugly, although the coupe can look OK.

[monkeyhanger]

I find the 1 series pig ugly in standard form and a little less ugly in coupe form, but still ugly for a coupe (those way out of proportion chunky sills are a big part of that on all variants). The interior uses some very cheap and brittle plastics and standard equipment levels aren't great. The UK adverts for the new one series were cringeworthy also - the "two brothers" were the epitome of the kind of tossers most people imagine BMW drivers are. Doesn't matter how good the product is, if you get labelled a tosser for owning one (reinforced by the adverts) it's still going to have to be special for you to want one, and it isn't. Performance-wise the 135 is great (had one as a courtesy car about 4 months ago for almost a week) but it is so impractical you might as well buy a 2 seater coupe instead of it, and there are plenty of 2 seater coupes i'd have over it if I didn't need my back seats. I'm still shocked on a daily basis how noisy and unrefined my colleague's 320D is at low speeds when compared to my 2.0TDI170 Roc.

[mark@vorny.co.uk]

The other thing to bear in mind is with a map the 135i becomes a very serious piece of kit. I had a 335i which mapped gave 382bhp reliably. Featured in PBMW mag at Santa Pod versus an M3 and was quicker to 100 and in gear. Dont know if the 135 is a twin scroll single, or a twin turbo. The twin turbo versions have turbos actuators made of cheese.

[Andy B]

I've been alienated by BMW's design for some time, and the latest version of the 1 series is so ugly I almost like it in the same way I couldn't help but love the fiat multipla, though I couldn't imagine buying one. I also need a practical car, and the 1 series isn't as practical a hatchback.

Mind you, I've seen a few golf mk 7s on the road now (and hired one on holiday a few weeks ago), and I'm hoping the gti looks better in the flesh than the ordinary ones do, because I can't say the new look is doing wonders for me. They somehow look less chunky and solid than the 5 series (which I've still got).

I'm also hovering around the possibility of getting an a3 sportback or s3, but some of the interesting engine/drive configurations aren't out yet, not in the UK at least. So I'll probably give it another year and see how I feel.

It's not going to stop me window shopping though!

[monkeyhanger]

@andyb: I must admit that coming from a Scirocco to a MK7 Golf I feel i'm moving to a less good looking car, but it's the paracticality (going to 5 door) and all of the standard kit that are the biggest pull for me. I don't love the MK7 externally (based on seeing a GT at the local dealership) as much as I loved the MK5, but it still looks better than a MK6 IMO, which I saw as an evolutionary step backwards with it's softer lines and the higher models don't stand out from the ordinary specs as much.

I did consider an A3, but no top end engines out yet and I think the 5 door "sportback" looks a bit ugly/bland.

The biggest shocker for me, seeing it in the flesh was how low and long the MK7 Golf looks compared to MK5/6, it's a look that I think I like.