Once again, the #savethemanuals crowd weeps. And with good reason — the BMW 2-Series, which I remember being quite wonderful to drive the last time I piloted one (it’s been a few years) — will be going automatic only.
That’s not the only change. It’s longer, lower, wider, and the styling is refreshed.
Hitting dealers first will be the rear-drive 230i and all-wheel-drive M240i xDrive. That first one is powered by a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that makes 255 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. Those are increases of 7 hp and 37 lb-ft, respectively.
The M240i xDrive gets a 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six that makes 382 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque and 369 lb-ft of torque. The sole transmission, at least for now, is an eight-speed automatic. A 230i xDrive and M240i and perhaps an M2 will follow the November launch of the first two cars, and perhaps the M2 and/or the M240i will offer three pedals.
We sure hope so, anyway.
An M Sport Package Pro adds M Sport brakes, 19-inch lightweight wheels, gloss exterior trim, unique headlights, black front spoiler lip, black M rear spoiler, black exhaust tips, black grille surround, and a Sprint mode that can temporarily shift to the lowest usable gear and call up the sportiest settings for a quick blast. An electronically locking rear differential is standard in the AWD car, which has rear-drive bias. The car’s stability control system can limit understeer by shifting power.
The front suspension is spring strut and the rear is five-link. An optional M Sport suspension firms up the dampers and springs. All-wheel-drive cars are standard with an adaptive suspension.
Available driver-assist tech includes lane-departure warning with lane-keep assist, frontal-collision warning with braking, rear cross-traffic alert, blind-spot detection, and smart cruise control.
Other available or standard features include iDrive, navigation, head-up display, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Amazon Alexa integration, satellite radio, moonroof, heated front seats, heated steering wheel, adaptive LED lighting, premium audio, drive recorder, and automatic high beams.
BMW has bestowed the car with somewhat funky styling, especially in the rear, but the grille is at least not as oversized as it is on other cars in the lineup.
If the 2 tickles you were it feels good, so to speak, the price of entry is $36,350 for a rear-drive car and $48,550 for the M240i xDrive, plus the $995 destination fee.
[Images: BMW]
I like the purple a lot.
However, I’m sure 98% of them will be white, black, or gray.
It isn’t pretty, but it isn’t as offensive as the 4-Series or their recent BEVs so I guess that is progress.
The 4-series looks good from any angle but the front. And don’t get me started on the 2 Gran-whatever-the-frick-it-is.
Next BMW with a CVT and a 1.0 liter turbo 3. Offer it for the bargain price of 40k and offer not only the usual sealed motor and trans without dipsticks but make the radiator completely sealed requiring replacement of the radiator instead of the usual coolant flush and offer air conditioning that cannot be serviced but only replaced when it needs recharging. Add some more biodegradable plastic and plant based parts to ensure that the vehicle disintegrates in a few years. If it needs servicing then it’s time to buy another new BMW. BMW has master the art of obsolescence with the goal of reducing the life span to 5 years at which time everything falls apart and the cost of repairs exceeds the value of their cars.
You kid, I think, but the next AMG c63 is going to have a four….one may expect used values for the current car to stay high.
BMW has lost the plot.
@Jeff S: You just described my dream car. Even better would be to replace the whole car when radiator leaks.
But, first they have to make sure that you can’t replace the vehicle except with another BMW.
This looks awful on the outside from all angles.
The interior is nothing amazing in terms of design, but it is not offensive.
It has all the elegance of Chinese car. Because China is their target market.
True. In China every car has that fake luxury/exclusive look.
I’d sacrifice the manual to save it from the terrible proboscis that other BMW’s are getting. It’s a sad choice to make, but hey what good does it do to enjoy the drive if you cant stomach walking up to it?
“Available driver-assist tech”?? Does this mean you get to pay extra for what is standard on cars like Honda and Toyota?
Actually, the fact that it’s not standard may be the only good thing about the car – at least if one still cares about driving. But it’s likely that few modern BMW buyers do.
If you covered up the kidney grilles and showed me a front 3/4 view, I’d have guessed Toyota.
If you covered up the badges and showed me a rear 3/4 view, I’d have guessed Subaru.
And the stick and the driving fun are both gone.
Shrug.
Something about all the flat planes and creases make me think of Playstation One era racing games with limited number of polygons. Could’ve been worse, BMW has been losing their plot with their designs for a while.
That said, no MT, no sale for me so the not so great design just made things easier.
I wonder how many stick F22 is still available for sale.
Agreed on BMW styling. I saw a 635csi a while back in traffic – it was just gorgeous. Their stuff these days is just awful.
Tim – “If the 2 tickles you were it feels good, so to speak…”. Do you mean where it feels good?
It didn’t lose the stick… It got beaten by an ugly one!
So now we got to size of an old 5-series…hell NO
Let’s not forget that US-bound 2’s will also now be built at a new plant in Mexico. New model, new (mid-2019) plant, what could go wrong? Wait for the LCI.
I just bought the outgoing M2 Competition, with its antiquated interior and “dated” styling, which looks 1000x better than this thing to my (biased) eye. Glad I pulled the trigger before it was too late.
This is definitely less offensive than a lot of the current BMW designs, especially the grilles. But still the only thing it has over a Kia K5 is that it’s RWD, and has two doors. The K5 will outlast it.
BMW: The Ultimate Lease Machine.
This is pretty bad, especially from the rear! Those tail lights and rear bumper are just hideous!
So the only fun BMW left is? None of them apparently. The only thing this announcement does is jack up M3 prices on Cars and Bids even more.
That’s how I feel. The M3/M4 is all engine and nothing else (and sounds like it’s broken from the factory) and nothing else even tries to be fun. There is no new BMW I want remotely as much as I want an E92 335is.
Inside Looking Out–That’s BMW’s goal is that when any part fails you buy another BMW “the Ultimate Money Machine” I don’t have a problem with the looks of BMWs more of that most of them are endless money pits. Breaking plastic parts that are expensive. Watch Hoovies Garage, the Car Wizard, Watch JR Go, and Scotty Kilmer. JR was driving 1 of Hoovies BMWs to a Salvage Yard in another state and each time JR stopped for gas he had to add oil to the V8 powered BMW. Sharp looking car but was a pile of junk.