2014 BMW M235i : Right This Way Into The BMW Club For A New Generation Of Drivers

Right off, we can tell you that there are two great things about the 2014 BMW M235i. First, when you lay into the gas pedal, it doesn’t jump straight up into the air like a bucking horse the way that the BMW 1-series M coupe used to. Second, it makes you think that you’ve taken a ride in the BMW way back machine, since this car combines the intensely personal feeling of the 1970s 2002tii with the affordability and drivability of the legendary, late-1990s E36-chassis M3.

Of course, there will also be people telling you that these are the two worst things about this high-performance version of the new BMW 2-series. But as we were rubbing off the goodness of a nice, new set of Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and feeling pretty heroic, we realized that the 2-series coupe is going to be a gateway into BMW ownership for a whole new generation of drivers. This is because it looks like a 3-series instead of the potbellied pig that the former 1-series coupe resembled, and it is a car that encourages rather than intimidates. While plenty of people will be talking about the new M4 as the ultimate expression of the BMW way, the M235i is the car that you’re going to see on the street every day, not least because the price starts at $44,025 and not in some distant fantasyland.

This is the M235i, not the M2. BMW sport trim ascends through M Sport, M Performance, and M levels. The M235i is an M Performance model, combining high performance with drivability.

That is a lot of thinking to do while trying to remember if the next turn is a right or a left, so it’s a good thing that this car goes about its business without any adolescent drama. The 2-series is really nothing more than a grown-up 1-series—longer, lower, and wider. The M235i version of the 2-series carries similar equipment to the feisty, 335-hp 1M coupe from 2011, including a 3.0-liter turbo in-line six, upgraded brakes, a more refined suspension setup with adaptive dampers, and eighteen-inch wheels.

As we were rubbing off the goodness of a nice, new set of Michelin tires at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and feeling pretty heroic, we realized that the 2-series coupe  is going to be the new gateway  into BMW ownership.

If you’re really into whipping the new speed-sensitive, variable-ratio electric-assist steering rack back and forth and generally burning up those nice Michelin tires, then you should choose the six-speed manual transmission and maybe select a couple of options from the BMW M Performance catalog, such as the mechanical limited-slip differential and the track-ready suspension with an even lower ride height and multi-adjustable dampers.

If you’re more into arriving at valet parking for a nice evening at the Mandarin Oriental hotel, you’ll be happy with the sport version of the eight-speed automatic transmission (launch control included), plus all the stuff that comes standard with every M235i, like the smooth-riding active dampers, an electronic limited slip, better-than-ever iDrive, a wide range of available active-safety stuff (automatic parallel parking and low-speed anti-collision braking among them), plus sport seats that allow your fashionably attired female companion to climb out of the car and emerge beneath the neon without causing a scandal.

The 2-series looks a lot more grown-up than the 1-series it replaces. The M Sport steering wheel is oh, so nice.

The BMW M235i does plenty of great things whether you’re driving fast or driving slow, but what it’s best at is being  a respectable BMW, not a half measure. No more waiting behind the red velvet rope for you, because you’re in the BMW club at last.