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Series 2 coupe: when BMW wants a bomb! - Walla! vehicle

2022-10-06T21:08:53.325Z


BMW's small coupe reminds us that when this manufacturer does what it does best, there is no Series 2 coupe: when BMW wants a bomb! Among all the full-sized X-Series crossovers in the showroom, it's very easy to miss the BMW 2-Series Coupe. But this car is the closest thing to a real BMW out there Kenan Cohen 06/10/2022 Thursday, 06 October 2022, 23:32 Updated: 23:54 Share on Facebook Share on WhatsApp Share on Twitter Share by email Share in general Comments Comments A small and


Series 2 coupe: when BMW wants a bomb!

Among all the full-sized X-Series crossovers in the showroom, it's very easy to miss the BMW 2-Series Coupe.

But this car is the closest thing to a real BMW out there

Kenan Cohen

06/10/2022

Thursday, 06 October 2022, 23:32 Updated: 23:54

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A small and lively sports car (Photo: Keinan Cohen)

And we have almost forgotten what a real sports car is and what it is supposed to do.

When people judge a car solely on the basis of its 0-100 figure or the trolling of the laps around the Nürburgring take over the conversation, how much is left to talk about the small pleasures of driving?

of a car that you can't be stupid behind the wheel because you'll end up in a ditch and on the other hand that you have to be a little crazy to put a bunch of shekels on such a purpose-oriented car.



And it won't get easier from the side of the manufacturers either, right?

To justify the production of a small and unique sports car today is a story that is not easy to sell in the corridors of management.

When everyone looks at the sales charts and says "what we need is another crossover, not a small car for a small audience".

But then some Karl or Kurtz or a girl named Helga stands up and points to the blue and white BMW logo and says - do you see this symbol?

That's why we need them.

Wheels at the end of the body, inflations in the right places, an arwooch engine hood and a spacious passenger compartment (photo: Keinan Cohen)

And so, quietly, quietly, the small BMW coupe cars continue to roll towards them.

Continuing the path of the historic 2002 and packing all the goodness that BMW has into small, disposable ampoules of driving experience.

And really, the last time I had this much fun in a BMW car wasn't in the electric i4 or any of the X-series, or any of its other cars - but in the 135i coupe, a few laps on the track that still set a benchmark to the way a car should turn and drive.

Since then, 10 years have passed and the automobile industry has changed a lot, it has become one where it is already very difficult to find such toys, machines with a single purpose - fun.



When you look at the Series 2 Coupe, it's quite clear that this is the story here as well.

Wheels that kiss the corners of the chassis, a width that makes it stand low and square like a compact MMA fighter (those are the most dangerous), a long engine compartment and a chopped tail.

The details of the design of the bow do not reach the highest common denominator.

BMW started this kind of trend of a design language that is no longer attractive or nice with the 4 series on the dashboards which replaced it with a grill.

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All the equipment is nice, but the way it sticks you deep inside the car is something else (Photo: Keinan Cohen)

And if the exterior design didn't hint you enough about its direction, the cabin will.

It's tight around the driver, shoving him in front of a chunky steering wheel and a data-laden 12.3-inch digital dashboard that would have been better served by a "classic" BMW instrument display.

When will the car manufacturers realize the creative potential of these screens.

The seats wrap around the driver in a way that leaves no room for interpretation regarding this position and what is done in it.

And everything sits perfectly, perfectly, exactly the kind of cells that you know are sitting here to drive, to drive a lot and hard.

Of course there are also accessory aircraft and it's really a shame to waste time and space on that, how many accessory aircraft?

Let's put it this way - these cute Bavarians took the trouble to put air conditioning ports and USB C sockets in the back seats that are really suitable for children or compact adults for a short trip.



What is missing?

As usual, BMW has Apple CarPlay connectivity, no Android Auto, which is a shame, because the car's navigation system sounds like something Google Translated into ancient Sumerian, Armenian and back into Hebrew.

Except for a small click that came and went from the steering wheel, the quality of the assembly and the materials here are exceptional, you wouldn't guess that this BMW car is manufactured in Mexico (and just so you know, it also contains parts made by the Israeli Fomotiv company).

Technically, there are seats here, and they even invested in air conditioning outlets, so that it's comfortable when you're not comfortable (Photo: Keinan Cohen)

In her case the length of the hood is not Davin, under it is one of the best engines that BMW makes today and one of the best in the industry

And we really skipped the accessories to get to what's important - how it drives.

Remember the description of propocia and what it looks like?

It wasn't just lip service - there's a great reason for that.

Let's start with the hood, in its case this length is not Davin, under it is one of the best engines that BMW produces today, one of the best in the industry in one of the most wonderful configurations available - with six cylinders in a row, 3.0 liter turbocharged.

And this engine knows how to play, about 24 valves suck in air that mixes with fuel in direct injection into combustion chambers with a diameter of 82 mm and a stroke of 94.6 mm - sounds like unnecessary detail and engineering drudgery?

Not here - in general, the rule of thumb is that the ratio between the diameter and the stroke of the piston produce the character of the engine.

The larger the diameter at the expense of the stroke, you will get an engine that runs quickly at higher rpm, the longer the stroke, it will give more torque.



And if there is something that characterizes the six-cylinder engines in the column, it is the torque, and here these are mountains of torque of 51 kg, a constant stream and a steady stream of thrust that starts from the bottom to the top. From a dull purr to a blood-curdling racing howl. And it's there when leaving the place, it's there in the intermediate accelerations And he is there when she needs to lower every hoof of his 374 horses to the asphalt.

A lot of rubber for a lot of horses that have to go down to the road (Photo: Keinan Cohen)

The M240i is marketed in the dual drive version, which is good for producing fast times and great for allowing it to rocket out of corners even if you hit the gas too early.

It's less good for those who still want a real driving experience, of rear-wheel drive and finesse and precision.

And despite the dual drive it does not fall into the cliché of a car that is too neutral or disconnected (like the Audi RS3 was until the current generation for example).

And despite the dual drive it still preserves some of the characteristics of a classic rear drive thanks to the rear limited slip differential, which adds to all of its high capabilities the spice that allows it to be driven as a sports car should be driven - on the edge.

Gasoline, 6 cylinders in a row - a classic of propulsion (photo: Keinan Cohen)

Even the chain of backfire sounds that make the passenger compartment feel like a Friday morning in a Yemenite vineyard on the day of distributing olive bins

From the moment you switched to the sport plus mode and trained the entire system in nuclear attack mode.

It puts the entire arsenal at your disposal - the adaptive dampers, the sensitivity of the accelerator pedal, the reaction speed of the gearbox (wonderful), even the chain of backfire sounds that make the passenger compartment feel like a Friday morning in the Yemeni vineyard on the day of distributing olive bins.

Then, a light touch on the steering wheel, one that is measured in degrees, puts it right in front of her at a speed that you learn to develop as your level of confidence increases, a fierce battle is going on inside the brain when every cell of a living object shouts "Koko-shamat! Meshigna Halas, immediately reduce speed!"

But precisely then the patent is to keep your foot on the throttle, to feel its four Pirelli P Zeros digging their nails into the asphalt and managing to settle the ancient conflict between putting more power to the road and continuing to grip it.

Oh, there is also a trunk (Photo: Keinan Cohen)

Try to live with it as an everyday car and you will find that it is simply a car that hates to drive slowly

And not everything is perfect, right?

For those looking for the refined experience, its dual drive is a weight and a dampening component that could happily be dispensed with.

So the dual drive accelerates in 4.3 seconds instead of 4.7 seconds... Those who are bothered by these 0.4 seconds won't know what to do with it anyway and that's fine, it's not the car for them.



The brakes are not good enough, not good enough for BMW's level, not good enough for this car's level.

There is very little indication and feedback, it does not have the linear feeling of the intensification of the feeling from the brakes and thus it is difficult to be precise in the amount of pressing, so you always take safety factors and arrive at the turn more slowly than possible.


Try to live with it as an everyday car and you will find that it is simply a car that hates to drive slowly.

Its ride comfort while not sharpening its soul on the bends or just cruising at Autobahn speed is mediocre at best, with lots of small bumps on the asphalt.



And by the way, live with it, not that you buy a car like this with too many fuel saving considerations, if you intend to drive it properly 7.1 km per liter, that's what it got in our test.

If only it came with rear-wheel drive, we would happily compromise on performance for the sake of pleasure and precision (Photo: Keinan Cohen)

Summary

BMW M240i xDrive, is a great pleasure and not cheap.

It starts at NIS 415,000 for the "M Sport" and goes up to NIS 475,000 in the M Track Edition, while the version we tested, the Superior, is in the middle and costs NIS 440,000.



On the other hand, it is also difficult to find a direct competitor, a look to the right and left reveals a not very encouraging picture, first of all there are not many and they are not very direct either.

The Audi RS3 and Mercedes A45AMG are the hatchbacks that will offer a similar package with much more utility.

Audi TT-S, Porsche Cayman, Jaguar F-Type are weaker or more expensive than it, there is also the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 - a car that kicks the brain - but doesn't exactly sit in that 240 slot.



And so the series 2 coupe remains in this version as a representative that is probably the last of an extinct breed of cars that reset logic, practicality, fashion and logic to remind us that with all the lead we spray on BMW in recent years - when they really want to they remember where they came from,

A little car, a lot of money, lots of fun (Photo: Keinan Cohen)

On the technical side: BMW 240i xDrive

Engine, drive:

gasoline, 6 cylinders in a row, double displacement


:

2,998


power/rpm:

5,500/374


torque/rpm:

1,800/51


gearbox:

automatic, 8 gears



Dimensions:


length (cm):

455


width (cm):

184


Height (cm):

140


Wheelbase (cm):

274


Trunk (liters):

390



Performance:


Acceleration 0-100 (seconds):

4.3


Maximum speed (km/h):

250


Fuel consumption (test):

7.1 km per liter



Competitors:


Not directly: Porsche Cayman, Audi TT-S, Mercedes A45AMG, Audi RS3



Price:


NIS 440,000

  • vehicle

  • Vehicle tests

Tags

  • BMW

  • Series 2

  • Sports car

Source: walla

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