2008 BMW 135i: An Audrina Patridge of Automobiles

Getting a bit lazy about the pictures aren't we...

http://blogs.edmunds.com/roadtests/2008/07/2008-bmw-135i-do-you-really-want-the-bigger-6.html

The 1er is an interesting car to me, I've never disliked or blown away by its styling from the beginning but so far it has neither grown or faded on me... Just another fair looking but great driving BMW in my opinion.

I actually think it's a nice looking car. The taillights are much better than the awkwardly shaped 3 series sedan's.

The only true mis-step is the sagging rocker. It looks like they were trying to visually connect the headlight swoopy cut line to the rocker. FAIL.

If you're going to compare to starlets, pick one mirroring the 1series:
*standout talent
*superstar qualities
*mixed review on looks
*muffintop

maybe Charlize Theron in Devil's Advocate (when she was a little chubby)

My first reaction to the 1 was of, it doesn't look right, bordering on ugly. But as I see more of them in pictures and in person, it's actually grown on me.

Those sagging lines do bug me a lot, but views from the rear really makes up for it, it just looks so stout and planted.

Yeah, you tell him Jriz!

The car, much like some of the accompanying photos, says one thing to me: it's got all the right moves to be a good time, even if it doesn't meet every aesthetic criteria.

I never realized the day would come where a car with all the incredible pieces that this car has, and it's performance, at this price, would be criticized so ardently about it's looks...

Joe

The car looks better irl. For some reason, it doesn't entirely translate in photos.

The 1 series looks better then the current generation of 3's.

I might be in the minority here, but I think that girl is fairly cute, but the hip bones sticking out above her jeans in one of the photos is a little gross, like the rockers on the 1 Series.

Plus, I always say sleeping with a skinny chick is like being rolled in a barrel full of TinkerToys and Pick-up-stix.

Sorry, it's a brilliant driver's car but it is UGLY and, imho, even uglier in real life. BMW need to get rid of Chris Bangle and hire someone from one of the Italian carmakers...Please!!!

You guys can afford to heap praise on a fun-driving but not-so-pretty car because you don't have to shell out the cash for it.

Would you be quite so enthusiastic if you were buying it as your personal car? Indeed, with all the performance-oriented choices out there, would it even be in the running?

Form AND function, baby!

Yes, this is the car I would buy (or more likely lease) today if I needed a car. 100 percent, without a doubt. This is the car I buy/lease.

"Would you be quite so enthusiastic if you were buying it as your personal car? Indeed, with all the performance-oriented choices out there, would it even be in the running?"

Yes.
-mike

I'm considering leasing a 128i 6-speed with no options. Why? Because what else offers ~14.5-14.6 second quarter mile speeds, great balanced handling, 28-30mpg mixed, rear wheel drive, a sweet engine/6-speed combo, and a 2-year worry free experience in all aspects (Hell, I could burn out the clutch and it's covered).

For about the same or at most +80 a month payment as my 06 Civic SI (which, at 50k miles, needs front brakes but is otherwise going strong), why not?

Plus, if I lease an 09 for 2 years I'll get much closer to the time in which I can buy what I really want....

:)

Joe

The ugly BMW that Magrath really wants is the old M coupe.

Actually, I kind of want that car too, because it doesn't have forehead-slappingly ugly features like the 1's butterpanels. The entire back half of the car is just weird-looking, which I find endearing. Powerful stance, too, especially from the rear.

Joe, for the love of lateral support and seat cushion tilt-ability, at least get the sport package with your 128.

-Sadlier

Excellent call Joe, but Sadlier's right, you need to get a 128i with the Sport Package and its manual sports seats. It's a must buy.

Someone bet you that you couldn't do a blog post and work in Audrina Patridge, didn't they. Admit it.

"Excellent call Joe, but Sadlier's right, you need to get a 128i with the Sport Package and its manual sports seats. It's a must buy."

My power sport seats with their 4-way adjustable lumbar and memory will kick your clickity-clack manual sport seats' a$$es any day of the week, Riswick.

"Yes, this is the car I would buy (or more likely lease) today if I needed a car. 100 percent, without a doubt. This is the car I buy/lease."

Are you sure? Your post still leaves some doubt in my mind. :-)

Looks fine to me (much better than my Cooper or my e90 BMW). Doesn't matter in the long run. If it's fun to drive, I'm interested. Funny thing, my wife finally gets that... she understands that some people respect cars for what the cars can do, looks be damned. Plenty of cars are attractive and not very impressive performers (Audi, your TT can bow now).

"My power sport seats with their 4-way adjustable lumbar and memory will kick your clickity-clack manual sport seats' a$$es any day of the week, Riswick."

Noooooooo. The power seats in this car are terrible. They're flat, short, stiff, and don't offer enough adjustment. The manual seats fix all of these problems.
-mike

ps: yes, the ugly bmw I want is the last-gen M-coupe. Or, should I win the lottery, a Z8 too.

You're saying that girl is a butterface? Whaa???!!! And then you mention the Rolls coupe as one of the best looking cars on the road??!! What is this, bizarro world? Make it stop.

Back on topic, that car is looking better every time you post a picture of it. By next week I may even like it. Yes!! I love it when a car becomes good-looking to me.

Let's break this down:

Joe <-- My name is Joe

From <--- My origination

PA <---- An abbreviation for Pennsylvania, in the snow belt

Sport seats come with the sport package, which comes with damnit-all-to-hell Summer tires.

And I refuse to buy snow tires for a 2-year lease.

So I would suffer the terrible loss of good seats so that I could save several hundreds of dollars.

Joe

"And I refuse to buy snow tires for a 2-year lease.

So I would suffer the terrible loss of good seats so that I could save several hundreds of dollars."

I wouldn't. Being from MA I'm all too familiar with driving in snow. Snow tires are worth their weight in gold when compared with all season tires when going gets slick. If I move back to a region with weather again, I'll go back to my plan of buying snow tires and summer tires and being happy all year instead of feeling compromised all year.
-mike

Good point on the summer tires, didn't think of that in regards to a short-term lease. Therefore, your original plan sounds excellent.

You guys can afford to heap praise on a fun-driving but not-so-pretty car because you don't have to shell out the cash for it.

Would you be quite so enthusiastic if you were buying it as your personal car? Indeed, with all the performance-oriented choices out there, would it even be in the running?

Why not? I own a car now that's not even close to good looking (2007 Cooper S) and my last BMW was Buick-boring to look at (2006 330i).

Really, why buy a car based on looks? You're in the driver's seat! And no i will never trade looks for performance. Ever. If it's great looking and a great drive, that's a bonus (and highly unlikely under 50k).

Both Audrina and the 135 look like they have a lazy eye.

"I own a car now that's not even close to good looking (2007 Cooper S) "

You think the Cooper is ugly? lol you don't often hear a MINI owner say that.

doug, it looks like a VW bug to me. or a bulldog. either way it's not a very eye-pleasing shape. The cheapo black plastic around the wheels and lower body remind me of a 1980s Civic DX. From behind the car's odd haunches make it look like it has on a full diaper, while the tires look rail thin thus exacerbating the full-diaper look by making the car's body seem dumpy and wide.

"Hell, I could burn out the clutch and it's covered."

Not so fast, Joe. BMWNA would not cover a burnt clutch that was the result of abnormal use/abuse through its 4-year/50,000-mile maintenance plan.

"those sagging rockers"

Odd, I didn't notice any sagging rockers on Audrina Patridge. I'll look closer.

Meanwhile, the 1 series' looks still strikes me as frumpy. If it was a blind date, you'd say it had a great personality.

The S5 should definitely have been on the 10 best looking cars in the world; that car is absoloutely stunning.
And by the way, there is a 128i convertible in cashmere silver that i see around town, and it is ugly. I'm not saying the 1 is ugly in general, but the way that car looks is just awful.

"Noooooooo. The power seats in this car are terrible. They're flat, short, stiff, and don't offer enough adjustment. The manual seats fix all of these problems."

It sounds like you're talking about the non-sport power seats, which are kind of lame. The power sport seats (with the premium pack) are the same except they're, well, power and have lumbar. No clacking around needed. I hate manual seats because for some reason the rake detents never fit me right with manual-transmission cars.

^^ You have to get both the Premium and Sport packages to get the full-bore awesomeness of the power sport seats.

Normally we'd be in agreement, but please trust us when we say the 1er's manual seats are of a different breed. They offer more adjustability than the power ones and the detents are small or non-existant for some movement (fore and aft height adjustment).

After seeing a red one in a showroom, I finally got a chance to take a test drive in a black one with red leather seats. I'm not so keen on the design either but it's not that bad in person, it looks nicer in black and most importantly the car is such a blast that once you're behind the wheel the last thing on your mind is the car's look. Can't think of any other car I drove recently that comes that close to a near perfect mix of luxury and hooliganism, I love it.