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My Baby BMW's...

4K views 16 replies 15 participants last post by  Mike_N55 
#1 ·
So I thought as over the last 20 months I've gone through an auto M135i (3 door, 2014) an auto M140 (3 door) and now the last 2 months and 4,000 miles in my M2 DCT I'd do a bit of an owners review and share my experiences with the cars.

Firstly M135i pre LCI. Bought it as a 2nd hand buy 12,000 miles on the clock adaptive dampers and not much else... what a great car...



after advice on here upgraded to eibach pro springs and they really improved the handling stability and look of the car. Eibachs worked great with the adaptive dampers and only a £390 fitting and alignment included. Highly recommend this combination if anyone looking at the pre LCI M135's as that was it's only real weakness in how it drove in my opinion (aside from its "unique" front lights) I did end up having fan issues that BMW tried to pass off on many occasions and never accepted responsibility for [emoji57]

Here it is wth the pro kit springs



Moved onto the M140i as there were and still are so many great deals on PCP and I wanted the better looks and B58 engine, that and I'm massively impulsive with my cars [emoji3]

Loved the M140i pretty much fully loaded pro media, H&K, heated seats etc (first option you have to go for on these is pro media I reckon). Here it is stock before I started to play around with it...



Didn't spec adaptive dampers as I'd planned to improve the setup immediately with the Bilstein B12 pro kit, again after some great advice from many on here [emoji106]

With B12 kit fitted and aligned by the brilliant Demon Tweeks (highly recommend these guys, knowledgeable, friendly and there are some truly great driving roads not far from Wrexham to test your new modifications out! Then finished of the upgrades with super pro camber bushes, 5mm spacers all round and the rear sub frame brace. Also cosmetically went for the kidney grills and side blades in black for the stealth look [emoji41]


The brace along with the B12 kit/any other good spring and damper or coilover kits are the best upgrades you can make to these I reckon. Transformed the grip, ride and handling to make it softer but with much better control, loads more traction and a more neutral handling balance and killed off any understeer or outer edge wear the MPSS suffer from on these Mlites when pushed.

The M140i with those tweaks and upgrades was just a brilliant car, B58 engine is incredible and I still think feels faster than the N55 in my M2 now. That said it's a different feel and engine entirely almost like a big performance diesel engine the mid range torque is addictive and so useable day to day driving also with the bonus of being very efficient 29mpg for that performance can't be knocked when you do 20,000 miles a year!

Then work went well and my craving for more performance and an M car lead me to my M2 now...


What can I say other than I just love this car, no mods or upgrades as I honestly haven't had any need or want to do anything to it. Love it's looks, the noise and it's ability to just make me smile on a commute to work or a blast round some back roads!

So post run in complete at 1500 miles (£250 at Cotswold BMW) and now I'm at 4,000 miles and with MIchelin Pilot Sport 4S on all round now love it even more [emoji3]

With more miles on the clock suspension and ride has really come into its own now, a lot of the road tests and reviews pick up as one of its few weaknesses as the slightly harsh ride or overly stiff spring setup but most tested on cars under 2,000 miles on the clock. With a few thousand miles on it really settles well and combined with the MPS4S it soaks up A and B roads brilliantly. The thing I love the most is the fantastic feel of balance and the chassis always lets you know when you're on the edge and when it's going to slide, it's so controllable and fun at almost any speed. I use it as my daily and my Mrs says it's more comfortable and less bouncy than my previous Mlites. There is a really nice firmness, not harshness to the ride which gives it such a solid feeling and makes driving it fast so easy. Engine doesn't live up to the B58 in many regards but it's got a lot more at the top end so it's great to rev out to 7,000 and so much more noise and drama to it.

So if you haven't drifted off yet... I've loved owning all these and any Mlite from the m135 to the m240 is a great car and all fantastic value for the speed and enjoyment you can have.

Almost 2 years, 3 great cars and all a little different....
M135 - good sound, surely the best value Mlite out there now with 2nd hand cars up for 15k
M140 - amazing B58 engine, so much torque it feels a lot faster than official figures and a great fast stealth car that's practical
M2 - looks, sound, feel, handling. Best car I've owned and most fun I've had driving, even over my old JCW Mini and Cayman S

I'm off to get some milk or something...

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#2 ·
Great review Damian, it's good to hear your thoughts about the different baby BMWs. Also nice to see someone with an M car who's recent car purchase hasn't "suddenly" spoilt the Mlite ownership experience. :)
 
#5 ·
Thanks guys... yeah BMW certainly onto a winner with these cars. They've nailed it because there is a car for each price point and it really helps having such a good forum on here to get advice on upgrades or problems etc. Now BMW just need to work on their aftercare!

Never get the whole battle of M car vs Mlite or 1 series vs 2 series great for starting arguments [emoji23]but it's really just what suits you best and how you modify them to what you want

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#11 ·
Enjoyed reading your review of each car. Would love to go for a ride in an M2 some time.

Have to ask though, why do you change so often? Isn't every change quite a hit financially?
 
#15 ·
Great write up enjoyed reading about the 3 cars ...Really enjoyed that video as well.. I have the m140 and my boss at work has the M2 after he had a 235 and he summed up our conversations about the 2 cars perfectly.. if I didn't have to ferry my kids around I would have gone M2 but I'm not upset I didn't get one... still want one though especially now he's had the MPE installed !

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