Review: BMW M235i xDrive

But this chunky, muscular little four-door coupe looks and feels like a car that a lot of people might want. It is a design move away from the new 1 Series, sharing the same architecture and engines, and BMW says its customers will be 30-40-years-old, urban, part of a couple, successful and after recognition. They’ll be extroverts with “a high affinity with digital touchpoints”. They like their gadgets, then. BMW also says they’ll be overtly male, which I’d question – the combination of status symbol the badge affords, plus the wide stance of the car which gives it presence and makes it feel safer, its sporty slanted headlights, small footprint but room for four passengers and luggage plus high-high-tech interior screams women to me.

We tested the 220d diesel engine and M235 xDrive sporty petrol version on launch in Portugal, although the best seller in the UK will be the 1.5-litre, three-cylinder, 218i petrol which sadly wasn’t there.

The 220d reminds you how well BMW does diesel – it was the first of the German luxury brands to create a smooth, quiet, powerful four-cylinder diesel engine and its new Euro 6 units are also among the cleanest, which makes the backlash against the entire notion of diesel ridiculous. For many drivers, particularly those doing regular motorway trips, this version will still make the most sense, and is certainly the best blend of economy and power – BMW reckons 55mpg is possible in real-world conditions. We booted it round Portugal’s rural roads, so the economy fell somewhat, but the sense of urgency in the power delivery (190 horsepower and 400Nm of torque), especially when you put the driving mode into Sport and use the flappy paddles, still surprises and delights.

Still, no one will buy it in the UK, tragically, so let’s move on. The M235i swaps the front-wheel-drive of the 220d and 218i for BMW’s four-wheel-drive xDrive system. If you want to play around a bit, you can switch the traction control to its minimum setting, boot it in a corner (that artificial engine note remains a question of personal taste, but you do get an M Sport exhaust system on this flagship version…) and the chassis will happily wriggle about like a dog having its tummy scratched, tyres scrubbing the tarmac.

This engine, the most powerful four-cylinder one BMW has ever produced, has some serious performance credentials, with 306 horses and 450Nm of torque. It propels itself to 62mph in 4.9 seconds, a bat squeak under the all-important five-second rule for sports cars. The eight-speed automatic transmission is smartly suited to the engine’s character, the power hurtling through the drivetrain regardless, with changes happening in microseconds. There’s launch control, if you can find enough space, and a limited-slip differential, plus a new bit of tech aims to radically reduce power understeer by braking on the inside of the bend before the talent envelope excels itself…

Inside, you get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is coming, with the ability to show the latter’s display in the head-up graphics. You get BMW’s Intelligent Assistant on M Sport trims levels, which includes gesture and voice control, both of which we would happily leave behind – gesture control responds when you’re simply gesturing at the passenger, and voice control doesn’t agree with half the stuff you want it to do. As my colleague in the car said, “The first thing I say to the voice control system is: Hey BMW! Turn off voice control.”

Lovely touches include illuminated inserts that stretch around the dash onto the door – you can choose from a rainbow of colours to suit your mood, although Mercedes does it in a prettier way.

There’s also BMW’s latest 7-inch display, and the digital cockpit behind the steering wheel shows everything, including BMW’s class-leading satnav system as part of iDrive. You can fill the car with optional packs for comfort and tech, until it’s full to the brim with every conceivable safety and technology aid. But mostly, this is a car which offers proper BMW performance but has plenty of leg room for four adults, ditto head room unless the rear occupants are 6ft, at which point that coupe roof line impedes the space. There’s a shallow but deep boot, so you could whisk your mates away for the mother of all spa breaks at the drop of a hat. Which is surely the acid test.

BMW M235i xDrive Specifications

• Price: £37,255
• Powertrain: 2.0-litre twin-turbo four-cylinder petrol
• Power/torque: 306PS (302bhp) @ 5,000-6,250rpm/450Nm (332lb ft) @ 1,750-4,500rpm
• Transmission: Eight-speed automatic, all-wheel-drive
• 0-62mph: 4.9 seconds
• Top speed: 155mph
• Combined economy: 39.8-42.2mpg
• Kerb weight: 1,645kg