BMW 120D Review

Summary:

What we like: Handling, Performance of six-cylinder

What we don't like: Rear-seat space, Performance of four-cylinder.

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BMW 120D review in detail:

BMW's 1 Series is a great-looking five-door hatch. The sporting BMW marque has remained true to its rear-wheel-drive roots with its smallest-ever conventional car.
This gives balance and handling that could never be obtained with a big mass of front-drive machinery sitting in the nose of the car. The 1 Series is the only rear wheel drive in its class.

The 1 Series is tighter inside than many competitors because it is a rear-driver, especially in the rear seat. That's because there has to be room under the car for a driveshaft and a rear differential.

On the road all is soon forgiven; the balance offered by rear-drive gives the 1 Series a genuine sports-sedan feel no matter which model you're driving. The six-cylinder BMW 130i which arrived later than the others has been hailed as almost an 'M1' in its on-road ability. BMW 130i will go from zero to 100km/h in just 6.1 seconds and can reach an electronically limited 250km/h where conditions permit.

The 130i looks and feels the part, with its sport seats, M Double Spoke light alloy wheels, M leather steering wheel and M Sport Suspension. Turbo-diesels are also part of the 1 Series lineup and are well worth considering due to their high torque output.

Brake Energy Regeneration (iGR) makes its debut on the 1 Series. The system uses an Intelligent Alternator Control (IAC) and an Absorbent Glass Mat battery to recycle previously lost energy, in turn saving fuel. This is achieved as the IAC reduces drag on the engine by only engaging when required to charge the battery, whereas a traditional alternator is always pulling power from the engine. Additionally, the energy generated by the engine on over-run (under braking or descending a hill) was previously wasted. Now this lost energy is utilised by the IAC to charge the battery. iGR alone is responsible for a three per cent improvement in fuel economy.

When will the BMW 120D be updated next?

The BMW 120D update is expected to be around 0 2007

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