BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe M235i xDrive review (2020): A disappointing niche-filler
There’s a new style of compact BMW on the market, the 2 Series Gran Coupe. It is a four-door sedan with a sloping roofline and shares its platform with the new 1 Series hatchback. I had a chance to spend some time with the flagship M235i recently.
Small performance BMWs have a history of being some of the best driving machines out there. Before the advent of the 1 Series, the 3 Series served as the smallest BMW on sale. Models such as the E30, E36 and E46 M3 have all cemented their place in petrolhead folklore since.
With the introduction of the 1 Series around sixteen years ago, we were treated to products such as the E82-based 1M and 135i coupe, both of which have become modern icons of performance. The second-generation 1 Series delivered a watered-down M Car in the form of the M135i in both F20 and F21 guise. The F22 followed in 2014 and ushered in a new BMW model, the 2 Series, a coupe version of the 1 Series, which spawned a badge that came and went, and has now returned, the M235i.
The 2 Series and indeed, the M235i itself, brought back what BMW had initially introduced as the 1 Series Coupe when it revealed the E82 model, however, the 2 Series was now a standalone model. The ingredients are still appetising to this day with the M235i featuring the N55 3.0-litre turbocharged straight-six engine, rear-wheel drive and a sleek, coupe body style.
The M235i would be replaced by the M240i later, which was almost identical, bar some cosmetic enhancements and its new B58 turbocharged 3.0-litre straight-six engine. This left the M235i badge as an apparent one-off, however, the method to BMW’s madness became apparent when a new M235i was introduced, this time riding on the brand’s front-wheel drive architecture and featuring a turbocharged four-cylinder engine. The M235i is back, in Gran Coupe guise, with the M240i badge seemingly reserved for an upcoming rear-wheel drive coupe.
Styling
The 2 Series Gran Coupe is a rather strange-looking vehicle. Despite the M235i forming part of the brand's Gran Coupe portfolio, the 2 Series look more related to the 3 and 5 Series Gran Turismo models of yesteryear. The other 2 Series, the Active Tourer, is best forgotten but is an example of how BMW appear to be more comfortable experimenting with the 2 Series badge. While the 2 Series Gran Coupe is not quite as unattractive as the Active Tourer, it most certainly features some questionable design details. Up front, it resembles the new 1 Series, which is not a bad thing, however, it is when the rear-end comes into the equation that things become, well, ungainly.
The AutoTrader team recently had the M235i go up against the Mercedes-AMG A35 sedan in a video comparison, and it was during this long day of filming that I had a chance to not only drive the pair but also analyse the designs of both vehicles. The AMG simply makes the BMW look drab in comparison, highlighting the odd proportions and details of the car that appear to have been taken from larger BMWs, where admittedly, the design cues work.
Interior and space
The interior of the Gran Coupe is almost identical to the 1 Series with which it shares so many components. The superb iDrive infotainment system with its gesture, voice, haptic and button control functionality is still my favourite infotainment system in terms of ease of use. The press car features the top-of-the-range pair of 10.25-inch screens, one for the iDrive system and the other for the digitised instrument cluster. The system features a voice-activated personal assistant that proves more annoying than helpful, all thing considered. While wireless Apple CarPlay is a welcome addition, I am still waiting for Android Auto compatibility in BMW products to reach local shores.
The general fit and finish inside the Gran Coupe is impressive, with very few areas demonstrating the use of sub-standard materials, an area where BMW seemingly have Mercedes-Benz on the ropes, for now at least. The ergonomics and layout of the interior are logical, and you get the sense that you are in a premium product while onboard, which thankfully, is where the owner will be spending most of their time. In terms of practicality, the Gran Coupe offers a respectable 430-litres of boot space while the rear occupant knee room appears acceptable. The sloping nature of the vehicle's roofline means that taller occupants will find the rear tight in terms of headroom.
Related: How much are car repayments on a new BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe?
Performance and driving impression
The M235i is not short on performance but is a different machine when compared with the previous M235i. Its 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine is from the brand's B series of modular motors. The B48 in this state of tune produces a healthy 225 kW and 450 Nm of torque. This power is sent to all four wheels via an 8-speed torque converter automatic gearbox sourced from Aisin to cater for the new transverse engine mounting required for the BMW UKL platform.
The combination of a potent engine and xDrive all-wheel drive as well as a kerb weight of 1 570kg results in brisk acceleration, with 0-100km/h coming up in a claimed 4.9 seconds while the top speed is electronically limited to 250km/h. The problem that the M235i faces is that these are by no means earth-shattering performance figures in 2020. Key rivals such as the A35 sedan and the upcoming Audi S3 are faster, on paper at least.
The 2 Series does offer up some impressive cornering ability though, with the chassis providing a good deal of adjustability while a predictable, yet safe default when the car is pushed too hard is for it to understeer, much like its 1 Series cousin. The steering, although not devoid of feel, is certainly lacking the finesse that performance car enthusiasts long for. The car's strength comes from how it is able to string a section of fast, sweeping corners together, regardless of the prevailing weather conditions.
The sound that the M235i produces is a bit too synthetic, with the piped-in audio only highlighting the loss of a six-cylinder soundtrack. Still, there are the obligatory burps produced when changing gears in Sport Plus mode, if you are into that sort of thing.
Safety
In 2019 the 2 Series Gran Coupe range was subjected to the new car assessment programme run by EuroNCAP. It scored a 5-star rating which included 94% for adult occupant safety, 87% for child occupants, 76% for pedestrian safety and 72% for its safety assist systems. The product comes with six airbags as standard and the test unit featured items such as blind-spot assist, lane keep assist and adaptive cruise control.
Fuel economy
The addition of a four-cylinder engine should make the M235i more efficient and I found this to be true, but not by much. The claimed fuel consumption figure is 7.6 L/100km and my total for the test period came to around 9.1L/100km, which is only fractionally better than what I achieved in a manual, six-cylinder, rear-wheel drive F22 M235i a few years back.
Pricing
As always, the press vehicle was heavily specified, however, an important consideration is the base price of the M235i, which at R795 864 is only marginally more than the soon-to-be-replaced Audi S3 sedan, a whopping R90 000 less than a Mercedes-AMG A35 sedan and nearly R200 000 less than a Mercedes-AMG CLA35.
Verdict
With a coupe version of the 2 Series is reportedly on the way, complete with rear-wheel drive, the Gran Coupe simply feels like an unnecessary product, something produced for the sole purpose of providing Mercedes-AMG and Audi with a competitor to their respective small sedan packages. Perhaps I would feel different if the more palatable 1 Series sedan was introduced locally instead of the Gran Coupe. I cannot adjust to the way that this car has been designed. The problem with its looks is compounded when viewing the Mercedes-AMG and Audi products with which it competes.
From a driving perspective, the M235i, like its M135i sibling has lost what has made BMW unique among its peers for decades, that tangible driver’s car appeal. The evident lack of rear-wheel drive fun and the sonorous sound of a straight-six means that the M235i simply feels like a faster version of lesser 2 Series Gran Coupe models, leaving you with an effective, but dull means of covering ground at a rapid rate. For similar money, you could move up the BMW family tree to a 3 Series, in 330i M Sport guise and have a superior car that retains the brand’s ethos.
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