Hot Wheels EXCLUSIVE BMW SERIES SET OF 8 RED BMW M1, WHITE '92 BMW M3, ORANGE BMW E36 M3 RACE, GREEN BMW 2002, BLUE BMW M3 GT2,SILVER BMW M3, GRAY BMW Z4 M, AND BLACK/SILVER BMW K1300 R

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Three contenders that are also worth a look are the Volkswagen Golf, the Mazda 3 and the SEAT Leon. The Golf is a semi-premium hatch that does everything so well, it's easy to recommend it against all sorts of rivals, whatever badge they wear. The Golf is good to drive, has a superb interior and it's eminently practical too. The Leon is related to the Golf, which is why it's also dynamically accomplished. It also has a user-friendly dashboard and interior, which just like the Golf is roomy and well made. The Mazda 3 might not seem like an obvious rival, but it has excellent build quality, sharp looks and is great fun to drive. The running costs are also low, but it suffers from cramped rear seats and a boot that's not as spacious as some rivals. What to look for

The new 1 Series is a pleasure to drive around town, the steering is light and the expansive windscreen and front side windows make placing the car into tight spaces no problem at all. Boot space is up from 360 litres to a Volkswagen Golf-rivalling 380 litres, too, and can extend to 1200 litres with the second row folded down. There is a small lip to navigate but a handy removable false boot floor too, so loading and unloading items is a painless undertaking. Under the real boot floor, meanwhile, you’ll find a bit more storage space as well as a puncture repair and first aid kit. Fuel economy isn’t an issue in any 1 Series. The 116d gets an impressive official average of 61.4mpg, while the 118i can boast 47.1mpg. Even the M135i achieves a decent 35.3mpg.

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The powertrain is a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4 that delivers a peak 301 hp. The engine is mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission and powers all four wheels. Simulated engine sounds are played via the car's audio system to provide further excitement for occupants, and BMW said it revised the sounds to more accurately reflect the natural sound of the engine. All the 1 Series models are strong performers and – given their outputs – the engines are paragons of efficiency too. Even the lowliest diesel manages 0-62mph in just over 10 seconds, while we’ve seen the high-performance M135i return over 32mpg. The least powerful was the 116d, with a 115bhp 1.5-litre three-cylinder engine, above which sat the 148bhp 118d and the 187bhp 120d, both of which were fitted with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine. At first the 120d came only with an xDrive four-wheel drive transmission, but in March 2020 a front-wheel drive version was introduced. Sitting below the M135i xDrive and aimed directly at the VW Golf GTI, the front-wheel drive 128ti was introduced in November 2020, with a 261bhp twin-turbo 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine. Which one should I buy?

The BMW 1 Series is available in 4 main trim levels: The entry-level SE , the Sport , the M Sport , and the range-topping M135i. BMW has always been a step ahead of the competitions in terms of tech offerings. The features in the BMW 1 series, even on standard trims, shows that this is still a priority for the German automakers. Using sophisticated methods and some human assistance, TopGear.com can confirm that an actual family of Golden Retrievers fits perfectly well in the boot of a BMW 128ti: son (left), mum (centre) and daughter (right). Judging by the picture below, TopGear.com now regrets not attempting to fit in a fourth Golden Retriever from the same family into the boot where a space clearly exists.BMW has issued just one recall for the third-generation 1 Series so far. It was announced in July 2020 and it affected just 39 cars made in February 2020, which could suffer from components working loose within the engine. Also affected by the same recall were some 2 Series Active Tourers and some 2 Series Gran Tourers. In some instances the parts could simply be tightened up, but the worst-case scenario was a new cylinder head being required. Driver Power owner satisfaction In a BMW factory. Actually, two BMW factories, one in Leipzig – where the very first ‘F40’ generation 1 Series rolled off the line – and the company’s Regensburg plant. Both of these are in Germany. What’s the difference between the BMW 128ti and the BMW M135i? Optional extras range include enhanced Bluetooth with wireless charging, a 750-watt Harman Kardon sound system and the always-useful parking assistant. The active guard plus driver assistance system comes as standard, but for a more comprehensive active safety system you will need the optional Driving Assistant. It includes blind spot detection, a city brake function and rear collision prevention.

The good news is that whichever BMW 1 Series you buy, it remains comfortable over lumps and bumps in town. That even goes for M Sport models with stiffer, lower sports suspension, and while adaptive suspension is available as an option, it isn’t really necessary. The 1 Series also has light, precise steering and decent forward visibility for easy urban manoeuvres. Rearwards it isn’t so good, but then, front and rear parking sensors are standard on all cars. Interestingly but perhaps not surprisingly, our tape measure also recorded a 30mm reduction in rear head room – from 940mm to 910mm. But while you do feel as though you’re perched to an even greater extent in the rear pews than you do in the front, there’s still enough head room here to ensure adults of average height can sit in comfort. Deploying its many horses through that diff and into the front tyres, the 128ti records a 0-62mph time of 6.1s and tops out at 155mph. Not Slow, then. What is the BHP of the BMW 128ti? BMW ditched its historical preference for rear-wheel drive to make the 1 Series more practical, upsetting BMW fans despite most people who buy the car not caring either way. It's a bit like when McDonald's changed the way it fried its French fries – people complained for a while but they continued being popular.

There’s plenty of performance on offer, for starters, even in base 118i form, as tested: it has a 1.5-litre turbo triple petrol with 138bhp. Diesel cars begin with the 113bhp 116d and work through from there to the 2.0-litre 118d with 148bhp and the 187bhp 120d, which has four-wheel drive. It worked flawlessly throughout. Indeed, when TopGear.com asked the 128ti if we could be friends, it replied "I think the two of us make a great team".