It wears an ‘M’ badge, but is the M235i a match for a full-blooded M-car? With low-mileage used E92 M3s available for the same money as BMW’s new coupe, we thought we’d better find out
by DAN PROSSER | PHOTOGRAPHY by DEAN SMITH
We’ve beaten the sunrise to the top of this peak in the Brecon Beacons, but the rain got here first. With the sun yet to breach the hills to the east and a stinking great cloud – almost black at its core, motionless in the stiff breeze – dumping its chilling contents upon us, there’s nothing to do but take shelter in our cars. From the warmth of the M235i, I have a moment to contemplate the E92 M3 that slowly manoeuvres to my left around the gravel car park, to remind myself of its flared arches, the pronounced bonnet bulge and those four stubby exhaust tips. Just there, in silver bodywork, is a dedicated performance car, a real product of the M division. In its company the humble M235i lacks both visual and actual muscle; it has neither the breeding nor the hardware to compare. Even before the sun has tipped into view, I’m beginning to wonder if we haven’t set the new car up for an ignominious fall.
Judged in isolation, the M235i Coupe is an intriguing car. It’s the ninth model in BMW’s M Performance line-up, billed as a halfway house between the marque’s mainstream cars and its M-badged road racers. Having impressed us on the international launch in the Nevadan desert earlier this year (evo 193), we know it’s a capable machine, and at a little over £34,000, it might even be the real-world hero of 2014. Splendid isolation and favourable conditions cannot last, though, and in the vicinity of a bona fide M-car, and in this chilly Welsh setting, the M235i has to prove its worth all over again. The rain eases and several litres of icy water are swept away from the bodywork just in time for Dean Smith’s camera to catch the sun bursting over the horizon.
There is, of course, reason to gather this pair beyond a simple benchmarking exercise. V8-powered M3s can now be bought for less than £17,000, while the same £34k that BMW asks for the M235i will afford a 2011 model with fewer than 20,000 miles, complete with a manufacturer warranty. How, then, does the M235i stack up against one of the great performance coupes of recent years, and is a three-year-old V8 M3 a better buy regardless?
‘In the vicinity of a bona fide M-car and in this chilly Welsh setting, the M235i has to prove its worth’
The useful asphalt only totals five or six miles in this particular corner of the Beacons, but there’s enough variety in surface type, topography and corner speed to get a full picture of the M235i’s dynamic make-up. The section that runs right over the top of the moors is smooth and flowing, mostly fourth-gear until it begins to drop down again into the valley. The M235i pours into these quick corners with strong and predictable grip across the front axle, its electrically assisted steering feeling direct and quite natural in its weighting.
Surface imperfections are few and far between over this particular stretch, but what lumps and bumps the M235i does encounter are dealt with cleanly and without deflection. The 321bhp turbocharged six-cylinder engine, meanwhile, pulls with immediacy and a brute force from low in the rev range (peak torque extends from 1300 to 4500rpm), then with a definite urgency towards the top end. The manual gearbox is slick and satisfying.
This first bit of road is undemanding and the M235i duly dismisses it without a fuss. Then we drop into the valley, clear of the blustering wind. The surface is still shiny from the downpour, the corners now tighter and slower. Through third-gear bends the M235i settles into a neutral stance, leaning equally hard on each axle until the power is fed in and the rear end over-rotates just a little so that the car exits the bend in an almost imperceptible drift. Out of the few second-gear corners that cling to the side of the valley, the M235i will either waste most of that turbocharged muscle by spinning up the inside-rear wheel (a limited-slip differential is optional on this model and absent here) or, if the driver loads up the chassis and gradually feeds in the power to get both wheels driving before releasing the torque, it’ll slide out suddenly but quite gracefully.
Prosser reckons you can easily make a case for choosing a DCT M3 over a manual
M3’s quartet of exhausts emit beautiful sound of 4-litre V8
M badge, but is it a match for a true M division product?
The most demanding length of road lies ahead. It’s faster even than the section over the top, but with an undulating surface that demands tight body control. Attack it with commitment and the M235i begins to fall a little short. That pliancy that worked so effectively earlier on has now become an unhelpful imprecision and floatiness. Where the road crests and turns at once, the driver must be patient, allowing the car to settle from one vertical motion before winding in a steering input to provoke a new lateral motion. It’s the M235i’s most significant impediment to cross-country pace and it means that, along a yumping road like this one, the car’s limits are well within those of the driver.
For the most part, though, initial impressions are very positive indeed. Until, that is, you approach the same roads in the M3. Immediately its hydraulically assisted steering has a gritty quality and the wheel wriggles and writhes in your hands where the M235i’s helm is numb. There’s a tautness to the ride quality, a little less comfort and isolation from the surface, but still a pliancy when needed. Only on the tighter sections can the M235i keep pace with the M3, for when the road opens up, the bigger car pulls out an advantage with each new gear, the 414bhp engine building to a frantic, howling crescendo over 8000rpm. The gears snap home with a pull of right-side paddle, the tug towards the horizon barely interrupted.
Paddleshift gearboxes aren’t to all tastes, but when linked to an engine as exciting as this they can add to the experience rather than detract from it. Each upshift bangs in instantly and the engine lights up in a blare of revs with each downshift. This DCT twin-clutch option could reasonably be the preference of an enthusiast driver, particularly because the shift action of manual V8 M3s can be slightly notchy.
Over the tighter, slower road and the cresting, undulating stretch, the M3 makes known its genuine M-car credentials over and above the M235i. The M differential between the rear wheels and the linear power delivery make the M3 a more manageable and predictable car under power at corner exit. It feels as though there’s a taut cable between your right foot and the rear contact patches, so sharp and faithful is the response to each application of the throttle, and that makes the M3 the quicker and more enjoyable of the pair away from the apex.
‘One word perfectly encapsulates the differences between these cars: excitement’
by DAN PROSSER | PHOTOGRAPHY by DEAN SMITH
We’ve beaten the sunrise to the top of this peak in the Brecon Beacons, but the rain got here first. With the sun yet to breach the hills to the east and a stinking great cloud – almost black at its core, motionless in the stiff breeze – dumping its chilling contents upon us, there’s nothing to do but take shelter in our cars. From the warmth of the M235i, I have a moment to contemplate the E92 M3 that slowly manoeuvres to my left around the gravel car park, to remind myself of its flared arches, the pronounced bonnet bulge and those four stubby exhaust tips. Just there, in silver bodywork, is a dedicated performance car, a real product of the M division. In its company the humble M235i lacks both visual and actual muscle; it has neither the breeding nor the hardware to compare. Even before the sun has tipped into view, I’m beginning to wonder if we haven’t set the new car up for an ignominious fall.
Judged in isolation, the M235i Coupe is an intriguing car. It’s the ninth model in BMW’s M Performance line-up, billed as a halfway house between the marque’s mainstream cars and its M-badged road racers. Having impressed us on the international launch in the Nevadan desert earlier this year (evo 193), we know it’s a capable machine, and at a little over £34,000, it might even be the real-world hero of 2014. Splendid isolation and favourable conditions cannot last, though, and in the vicinity of a bona fide M-car, and in this chilly Welsh setting, the M235i has to prove its worth all over again. The rain eases and several litres of icy water are swept away from the bodywork just in time for Dean Smith’s camera to catch the sun bursting over the horizon.
There is, of course, reason to gather this pair beyond a simple benchmarking exercise. V8-powered M3s can now be bought for less than £17,000, while the same £34k that BMW asks for the M235i will afford a 2011 model with fewer than 20,000 miles, complete with a manufacturer warranty. How, then, does the M235i stack up against one of the great performance coupes of recent years, and is a three-year-old V8 M3 a better buy regardless?
‘In the vicinity of a bona fide M-car and in this chilly Welsh setting, the M235i has to prove its worth’
The useful asphalt only totals five or six miles in this particular corner of the Beacons, but there’s enough variety in surface type, topography and corner speed to get a full picture of the M235i’s dynamic make-up. The section that runs right over the top of the moors is smooth and flowing, mostly fourth-gear until it begins to drop down again into the valley. The M235i pours into these quick corners with strong and predictable grip across the front axle, its electrically assisted steering feeling direct and quite natural in its weighting.
Surface imperfections are few and far between over this particular stretch, but what lumps and bumps the M235i does encounter are dealt with cleanly and without deflection. The 321bhp turbocharged six-cylinder engine, meanwhile, pulls with immediacy and a brute force from low in the rev range (peak torque extends from 1300 to 4500rpm), then with a definite urgency towards the top end. The manual gearbox is slick and satisfying.
This first bit of road is undemanding and the M235i duly dismisses it without a fuss. Then we drop into the valley, clear of the blustering wind. The surface is still shiny from the downpour, the corners now tighter and slower. Through third-gear bends the M235i settles into a neutral stance, leaning equally hard on each axle until the power is fed in and the rear end over-rotates just a little so that the car exits the bend in an almost imperceptible drift. Out of the few second-gear corners that cling to the side of the valley, the M235i will either waste most of that turbocharged muscle by spinning up the inside-rear wheel (a limited-slip differential is optional on this model and absent here) or, if the driver loads up the chassis and gradually feeds in the power to get both wheels driving before releasing the torque, it’ll slide out suddenly but quite gracefully.
Prosser reckons you can easily make a case for choosing a DCT M3 over a manual
M3’s quartet of exhausts emit beautiful sound of 4-litre V8
M badge, but is it a match for a true M division product?
The most demanding length of road lies ahead. It’s faster even than the section over the top, but with an undulating surface that demands tight body control. Attack it with commitment and the M235i begins to fall a little short. That pliancy that worked so effectively earlier on has now become an unhelpful imprecision and floatiness. Where the road crests and turns at once, the driver must be patient, allowing the car to settle from one vertical motion before winding in a steering input to provoke a new lateral motion. It’s the M235i’s most significant impediment to cross-country pace and it means that, along a yumping road like this one, the car’s limits are well within those of the driver.
For the most part, though, initial impressions are very positive indeed. Until, that is, you approach the same roads in the M3. Immediately its hydraulically assisted steering has a gritty quality and the wheel wriggles and writhes in your hands where the M235i’s helm is numb. There’s a tautness to the ride quality, a little less comfort and isolation from the surface, but still a pliancy when needed. Only on the tighter sections can the M235i keep pace with the M3, for when the road opens up, the bigger car pulls out an advantage with each new gear, the 414bhp engine building to a frantic, howling crescendo over 8000rpm. The gears snap home with a pull of right-side paddle, the tug towards the horizon barely interrupted.
Paddleshift gearboxes aren’t to all tastes, but when linked to an engine as exciting as this they can add to the experience rather than detract from it. Each upshift bangs in instantly and the engine lights up in a blare of revs with each downshift. This DCT twin-clutch option could reasonably be the preference of an enthusiast driver, particularly because the shift action of manual V8 M3s can be slightly notchy.
Over the tighter, slower road and the cresting, undulating stretch, the M3 makes known its genuine M-car credentials over and above the M235i. The M differential between the rear wheels and the linear power delivery make the M3 a more manageable and predictable car under power at corner exit. It feels as though there’s a taut cable between your right foot and the rear contact patches, so sharp and faithful is the response to each application of the throttle, and that makes the M3 the quicker and more enjoyable of the pair away from the apex.
‘One word perfectly encapsulates the differences between these cars: excitement’
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