The fourth-generation 2025 BMW 1 Series hatch has been revealed in Europe ahead of its expected Australian arrival by the end of this year and the big news is the new M135 xDrive flagship will be slower than the M135i xDrive it replaces.
The ‘i’ suffix that previously denoted petrol injection has been ditched and will be reserved exclusively for electric BMW models.
Four new BMW 1 Series variants have been confirmed for release in Europe in October – led by the new M135 xDrive range-topper – and all of them will come standard with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission in the interest of fuel economy.
BMW Australia’s 1 Series range has been auto-only for several years but a manual gearbox had been a no-cost option in Europe.
With more than three million 1 Series sales over the last 20 years, BMW’s smallest model again shares its front/all-wheel drive platform with the new MINI Cooper range and there will be no return to the original model’s rear-drive layout.
Now 42mm longer at 4361mm and 25mm taller at 1459mm, the 2025 BMW 1 Series will launch in with petrol and diesel powertrains (although the latter are unlikely for Australia) and, unlike its 5 Series stablemate, will avoid sharing its bodyshell with battery-electric powertrains.
The European launch line-up will include 120 and M135 petrol variants and the 118d and 120d diesels, with an unusually light starting weight (by modern BMW standards) of 1425kg for the 120.
Powertrains
Most joy will be found in the new 2025 BMW M135 xDrive (all-wheel drive), complete with 221kW of power and 400Nm of torque to motivate its 1550kg mass.
Those figures are down from 225kW/450Nm in the outgoing M135i xDrive, but peak power from the 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine is achieved over 5750-6500rpm and maximum torque is on station over 2000-4500rpm, so there should still be strength across the board.
Limited to a top speed of 250km/h, the M135i is claimed to consume 7.9L/100km (WLTP) and hit 100km/h in 4.9 seconds – 0.1sec longer than the M135i xDrive it replaces.
The other three variants are all front-drive and, in contrast, a 1.5-litre three-cylinder Miller Cycle turbo-petrol engine powers the BMW 120 to 100km/h in just 7.8 seconds, but real-world driving should be its strength with 280Nm peaking at only 1500rpm.
It delivers 125kW of power in total, with the engine’s 115kW combining with a 48-volt mild-hybrid system that adds 15kW/55Nm via a transmission-mounted electric motor.
The hybrid boost helps it to a WLTP figure of 5.3L/100km. For reference, BMW Australia’s current 118i produces 103kW/220Nm and hits 100km/h in a claimed 8.5sec.
The same mild-hybrid system is fitted to the 120d, helping it make 120kW/400Nm and accelerate to 100km/h in a claimed 7.9sec.
Its torque peak arrived at 1500rpm and its consumption is cut to just 4.3L/100km.
By contrast, the lesser 118d hangs on to a non-electrified 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel with 110kW/360Nm outputs, offering 0-100km/h acceleration in 8.3sec and fuel consumption of 4.6L/100km.
Interior and equipment
The roomier new BMW 1 Series will offer more rear legroom and wider-opening doors as well, but the big news is that BMW will not offer a single leather interior trim package as standard – at least in Europe.
Instead, the seats will be trimmed in Arktur fabric, the optional sports seats will come with a new Econeer fabric and there will also be a Veganza (vegan ‘leather’) option.
The M135 and the M Sport package options will offer a combination of Veganza and Alcantara for the trim, though the steering wheel is trimmed in leather.
While the M135 gets a thicker steering wheel rim and gearshift paddles, the latter will be optional across the rest of the range, as will steering wheel heating.
There are front, side and curtain airbags, plus a centre-front airbag to prevent head-clash between the two front occupants.
The seats are heated and include a memory function for the driver’s seat, and mostly move electronically (with the exception of seat height and head restraint height).
There are ISOFIX attachments for the outer rear seats and the rear seat can either split 60:40 or, as an option, 40:20:40.
A top-hinged tailgate reveals 380 litres of luggage space, though that shrinks to just 300L in the 120 and 120d to accommodate their mild-hybrid battery.
That increases to 1200 litres (1135L for the 48-volt operatives) with the seats folded flat.
The air-conditioning is automatic and is now operated by touch control, and as standard there’s a Parking Assistant, alarm, electrically-folding mirrors and BMW’s Live Cockpit Plus, including a cloud-based navigation system.
The step-up is Live Cockpit Professional, which brings a head-up display, and in Germany there will be a spectacular list of standard equipment and an options list that has, traditionally for BMW, been spectacularly priced as well.
Among them is an optional panoramic glass roof, which measures 83.5cm long and 84.5cm wide, and its front section opens and closes electronically.
There’s also a Harmon Kardon sound system, an optional wireless phone charger in the front of the centre console – which is now cooled – and a Premium Package delivering automatically dimming mirrors and adaptive LED headlights,
Technology
The 2025 BMW 1 Series now features a curved digital display screen like its big brothers, covering both the 10.25-inch instrument cluster ahead of the driver and a 10.7-inch multimedia display, and it supports over-the-air updates.
The downside to all of this is the subscription model, which has been a bone of contention around the car world.
At BMW, that means ConnectedDrive Upgrades, which European customers can try for free for a month, then lock them in for a specific term.
The Digital Premium offer packages all available apps into one bundle, including music or video streaming, news services and data storage.
There is also in-car gaming with the AirConsole platform, allowing drivers and passengers to play while the vehicle is stationary, using smartphones as controllers.
But BMW didn’t stop there. There’s the option of Driving Assistant Professional, which lets the car take over the steering and lane-control assist systems to turn the active cruise control into a Level 2 autonomous driving system.
It can be used at up to 210km/h and allows the driver to let the car take over most functions – provided they keep looking where they should with their hands on the wheel.
Able to overtake by itself and even leave the highway on its own, it integrates the lane-departure warning, active side collision protection, cross-traffic alert, autonomous emergency braking, road priority and wrong-way warning systems.
The new 1 Series also gives buyers the option of adopting the self-parking tech from big-boy BMWs, which combines active park distance control with front and rear sensors, a rear-view camera, reversing assistant and trailer-parking assistant systems.
Parking Assistant Professional allows drivers to store complex parking moves for up to 200 metres, then let the car perform them autonomously, with the driver either inside or outside the car.
This also includes a Drive Recorder, which loops recordings of up to 60 seconds that can be stored and played back on the multimedia display or exported via a USB interface.
It records a 360-degree view and drivers can also have a 3D live image of their car on their smartphone at any time.
Body and chassis
The 2024 BMW 1 Series rides on the same 2670mm wheelbase as the outgoing model, but it’s significantly upgraded underneath.
For starters, the M135 xDrive uses variable, mechanically-controlled and frequency-selective dampers, which have additional valves to smooth out the ride quality without compromising road bite.
The optional Adaptive M Chassis drops the vehicle by 8mm and brings a more direct steering rack for sportier front-end feel.
The standard 1 Series rides on a 17-inch alloy wheel package, while the M Sport Package lifts that to 18-inch rims and there is a forged 19-inch option, plus a track tyre option.
An M Technology Package is also coming for the 1 Series, which BMW insists will bring even more precision via a damper and anti-roll bar upgrade, plus progressive-rate springs and bonnet cross-bracing.
All variants employ steel brakes, with the M135 xDrive using four-piston fixed calipers on its 385mm front discs and single-piston callipers on the 330mm rear discs. All other models have single-piston front callipers.