Overview & Reviews

The 1 Series is BMW's all-new entry-level car available in coupe and convertible body styles.

• Options cause the price to skyrocket, iDrive makes navigation a no-go option.

User Reviews:

Showing 11 through 20 of 74.00

• 

  Amazing Performance - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By rp401k - July 11 - 10:03 pm

  Relentless acceleration, great engine sound, and fantastic handling. Regular mode for automatic is like an economy mode in normal driving. Sport mode feels like a manual in that it holds a gear and quickly downshifts. Do not really use paddle shifters very much.There is plenty of room in front and the rear is acceptable if average size. Rear is difficult to access. Top mounted seat position adjusters are very handy for this. Careful driving results in excellent gas mileage. Ride is acceptable, and would be much better without run flats. Great visibility and very nice interior. At first sport seats seemed confining, but now they feel very comfortable. I enjoy each chance I have to drive it.

• 

  What Fun?! - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By HWDX347 - February 24 - 3:09 pm

  I sold my Audi A4 3.2 to my son and drove to Roadshow BMW, Memphis, TN to look at a Mini Cooper S. Drove out with a BMW 135i! They were great to deal with. I test drove one in Little Rock last summer and didnt realize how fast it is. I now understand what BMW mean by Ultimate Driving Machine! The A4 is a great car but the 135i is even better. The car is much quicker, the handling is better, road feel is better and its quieter.

• 

  BMW 128i - 6 months ownership - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By mitiko - January 24 - 12:39 pm

  6 months and zero issues at all (never had this experience with prev. german cars purchased). Everything works well, surprised at how well it drives in snow (took it to Killington VT). If you drive carefully, easy to get 30/31 mpg on the highway (auto trans), but the moment you put some gusto in your driving and you hit 22 mpg very fast.

• 

  Fun to drive. - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By Danny - January 2 - 10:28 pm

  My 128i coupe is the only one left in this country with red leather & black ext. It is equipped with Premium, Sport, and Cold packages. It is very stable, you cant feel driving over 70 mph. Handling and corning are smooth. Overall of this vehicle is fun to drive with, but too expensive to own it. MBenz C300 sport is worth of buying, theyre nearly the same price.

• 

  Great motor, awful car. - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By EODguy - September 6 - 11:03 pm

  Just got done driving 4000 miles across country. All I can say is that Im very disappointed. Engine is fantastic, and the suspension is good, if not a touch soft. Fuel economy is decent, and pretty much what I expected. The seats are pretty comfortable and supportive on long trips, though not the best Ive been in. What I didnt expect is the car surrounding this great motor to be such a piece of junk. It rattles over every pebble, the passenger side window no longer works, and the "premium" speakers are defective and emit nothing but static when playing high notes. Overall, not worth $40,000. And the last BMW I ever buy.

• 

  Fun but problemmatic - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By josko - September 2 - 1:58 pm

  Ive owned a 135i for 4 months now. Its fun to drive, but suffers from multiple problems/issues: Throttle response is poor for a car advertised as having no turbo lag. My wife drives a Saab 9.5 which has a better throttle response, especially at low RPM. Dealer tells me performance is within spec. I cant see the radio with polarized glasses on. Radio seems to shut down intermittently, usually right after power-up. Dealer diagnosed a faulty fuel pump, and Im on a waiting list for a replacement. Apparently theyre on backorder??? Run-flat tires are a disappointment. Overall, the car handles and accelerates well, but is a disappointment compared to the E36 M3 I drove before the 135

• 

  Nice but Can Use a Few Improvements - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By Max - August 26 - 3:59 pm

  Its fun to drive and has a good amount of power for the size of the car. Overall its a decent car. A few initial complaints would be the passenger seat is a little uncomfortable when the cupholder is installed (although it is removable), the standard stereo is mediocre (speakers rattle at times and changing stations is not intuitive), the second cupholder can only be used when the armrest is in the up position (unless you use it for a really short cup), and the iDrive needs improvement. If these complaints seem trivial, its because they are. Overall the car is a great little car that most people would enjoy.

• 

  The Bomb - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By Buba - July 15 - 2:35 am

  I test drove it on the Autobahn and it is the bomb! Really fast. There is a slight lag in the throttle response during highway (Autobahn) overtaking, but I can live with that. Probably from the turbos. Using the sequential manual transmission is a blast. However, the gas mileage is really poor in that mode. I drove a total of 29 miles all in the SMT mode and used a quarter of a tank. Assuming a full tank is 16 gallons, I used 4-gallons, or about 7-miles to the gallon. Too bad. If you really like sporty driving then get a manual transmission. That said from a performance perspective, it is almost a perfect car.

• 

  Fun, but no Honda - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By Hector Rivera - July 3 - 5:10 am

  A very fun car with great power when the new software doesnt make the turbos lag. Not as much low end torque as the first 135i I test drove in March 08. Now needing a fuel pump makes me wish I bought an Acura or Infiniti. Lots of fun when its not in the shop. Run flat tires ride like bricks. The suspension is a little soft. I wish the cruise control was on the steering wheel. Getting into 2nd gear is slow and temperamental. Cant read the radio with sunglasses on. Headlights look like a crazy cat. Overall its a blast to drive, but the magazines must have tested one without the new 29.2 software that causes turbo lag. Would I buy it again? Not sure???

• 

  Superb Performance, Stumbles a Bit - 2008 BMW 1-Series
  By Maximus - May 18 - 10:52 am

  This car rates as high as one can on the performance and fun-to-drive categories. The power is everything the reviews say as well as the handling. Where the car fails is in the details. For the money I would expect better standard features or cheaper upgrades.