Test drive BMW 1 E87 2004 - 2007 hatchback

The youngest

A long hood, shifted back. Promising appearance! After all, we have not had time to forget another BMW with similar proportions. But is all ambitions capable of satisfying BMW 116i?
 
Pick up a prospect or BMW catalog. Under a round blue emblem motto: with pleasure driving. The English version is more meaningful: Sheer Driving pleasure is not just a pleasure, but the most complete. But, of course, everything is about the same: BMW - cars for those who are capable of and want to receive this pleasure. For the corresponding fee, of course.
 
We will not deny, we will be proud of something, even if you exclude the compartment and the relatives and accidentally forget about the letter M. Although the current sedans are no longer as swift as the previous ones, and it will even seem heavy ... It’s not a matter of appearance!
 
Nevertheless, among the general -consuming BMW, the first episode stands out noticeably: its appearance to the person will say a lot. He’s a hatchback, of course, a hatchback, but no one will just push the salon to the stop back. Open the hood and make sure that the engine is almost behind the front axle, it drove into the salon, leaving the passengers and baggage not so much from the huge (for class) wheelbase. The proportion characteristic of classic sports cars is the desire to provide perfect weightweight. Yes, and under the hood here, if you think about it, an in -line Bavarian six will easily enter the working volume of a liter of three. In general, the view is promising. Associations with Z3 Coupe and other racing fantasies climb into my head.
 
And, of course, you can’t doubt that we have just BMW. No, it's not about the emblems, and not even the famous nostrils. You can relate to the work of the team of Chris Banlla in different ways, but it should be recognized that he had achieved certain goals from his program. Now you certainly can’t say that BMW models look like the same sausage, cut into pieces of different lengths. Now this is rather a designer of characteristic elements used in different combinations. In this sense, the unit is closer to Z4 and X3: kinship is noticeable not only in appearance, but also in the interior. Although in the form of ventilation deflectors, the owners of the pre-reform, Dobanglovsky BMW will find something familiar to themselves.
 
By the way, about the panel and about X3. There is a slightly different texture of shagwrin of soft plastic, and the panel looks much more noble - no associations with kirsis boots. And the textures of the finishing panels correspond to each other more, although one hundred and sixteenth is almost half the cheaper. And it is more convenient to control the microclimate. Two -zone! It is clear that the steering wheel is simpler, but pretty, pleasant to the touch, non -elabox and very comfortable. A 12-volt outlet on the tunnel asks to connect a mobile phone.
 
Low landing continues a sports topic. The engine start button is only a stroke, but also brings mood. The seats are perfectly satisfied, the adjustment range is huge. Everything here is for the driver, and these trends of the sports spirit are felt well in the back seat: there are nowhere to put their legs and adolescents, and adults will shed only if someone is very low ahead. And it is better to sit at the back together: it is not so wide here, and in the middle there is a high tunnel on the floor.
 
The trunk is also sports: albeit acceptable in size, but the opening is difficult to call wide, and the high rear wall does not contribute to the unloading of layers. But the trunk door closes behind the inner handle without the slightest unnecessary effort, which can be considered a manifestation of branded refinement, along with the quality of materials, an ideal adjustment of the panels and a solid sound of the door closing.
 
The clutch pedal is a real simulator: not only is there a long -term, but also an effort on it, as if under a hood not 1.6 liters, but two times more. And you can use the clutch only by tearing the heel from the floor. So feel like an athlete and work out the skill, because it is completely impossible to understand by the effort what and at what moment is happening there.
 
As you get used to the awareness of the dynamics. And if for you BMW is a synonym for a powerful jerk, then it is better to think about the 120i model. No, a 1.6-liter motor, no doubt, is good. He has a flat, without pronounced peaks, characteristic, he pulls well in a wide range of revolutions, starting with the smallest. But the need arise to sharply accelerate or the desire to prove something to others, the motor will have to be twisted to the very top in each gear and switch at an intense pace. And if you have already adapted to the peculiarities of the clutch, then the process itself will surely give pleasure: the selection of gears is accurate and a couple, the motor spins up to 6500 min -1, and its thoroughbred sound at high speeds is music for a real fan.
 
But for a true connoisseur, the pleasure of driving is not so much in hurricane dynamics as in the exquisite handling, which the branded motto is hinting. Sharp steering wheel, excellent feedback, minimum rolls, ideal accuracy of following a given arc in a bend, excellent stability - a list of noble manners, traditional for the Bavarian brand, which the first series is ready to demonstrate. On an even asphalt. But on the ruts, cut by spikes in the covers of the highways, it reacts significantly, and on uneven asphalt, alternating loads begin to come to the steering wheel. Whether they mean nervousness or the possible emergence of screening, we could not find out to the end: the snow that fell off leveled the irregularities, slippery porridge worsened feedback and did not allow to develop high speeds.
 
But the excellent conditions for sliding, in which the car devoid of overhang is controlled literally at an intuitive level. Moreover, his stabilization system is an excellent set of tools in experienced hands. In the included state, it allows you to fervent tail in a bend fervently, but then quickly catches the car, not allowing you to develop drift. In DTC mode (dynamic traction control), control over stability weakens, and the anti -boom automation practically stops choosing the motor, working in the mode of simulating the differential lock. The driver is given the possibility of intensive acceleration, but subject to the appropriate control skills: wearing a car can decently. And, of course, according to the tradition of BMW, the system can be turned off completely. Then you get a primitive, but well -controlled rear -wheel drive car - it would be enough to not lose its qualifications.
 
In theory, then the passage should follow that sports control implies the rigidity of a short -moving suspension, especially since on an uneven asphalt, a unit can deliver a lot of unpleasant sensations to your stomach.
 
But there will be no passage. Indeed, the car carefully copies the profile of the road, transmitting detailed information about bumps to the driver and passengers, up to thin ice sags and prophales. And, of course, broken asphalt is not his element. But irregularities are overcome easily, without severe trembling on separate potholes. The rigidity of the suspension in this case is the rigidity of not a wooden stool, but rather a strongly pumped ball. And it is perceived as part of the image, and not as a forced property. After all, modern pendants quite allow you to combine excellent handling with good smoothness, and many BMW models are an example. There would be a desire of the creators. Moreover, the base of the one is not at all small, and there are no special contraindications for good smoothness.
 
Alas, in winter on our roads this base is not always good. Especially in combination with a road clearance of 145 mm, as in the first series with a European suspension. The scenario is standard: snowfall, the road workers scooped snow to the edge of the roadway, forgetting about departures from courtyards and entrances for gas stations. It's okay, while the snow is fresh, and the formed scallops are soft. But, hearing the rustling along the bottom, you understand: if the thaw, and then frost, and the shhhh will turn into grrrr. With unknown consequences. Involuntarily, you will think about the Russian package!
 
Well, from the point of view of acoustic comfort, this car is a real BMW, perhaps with a minimum correction for the dimensional class. The voice of the motor dominates only during acceleration, but it is black, and it is difficult to call it unpleasant. The audio system is not the most expensive for the brand, but with a traditionally pleasant sound. Only one sound is noticeably knocked out of the overall picture - a whistle that appears at the front doors at a speed of about 120 km/h. It seems from the mirrors.
 
Like any BMW, 1-Series is not cheap. Even taking into account the fact that special Russian configurations are noticeably smaller than similar machines ordered on the branded price list and then custom-made. Tested by us, in fact, the basic BMW 116i with a manual gearbox will cost a Russian buyer 2,2900 euros. In principle, taking into account the image of the brand, the presence of a stabilization system, 8 airbags, climate control and a decent audio system, the price does not look sky-high. Even with the minimum of the rest of the salon and stamped steel wheels. And yet, taking into account the current euro course, the amount is significant. But, as you know, when buying cars of the Bavarian brand, financial considerations rarely prevail. After all, we are talking about pleasure, for which it is not sorry to pay. If there is an opportunity not to save.
 
Technical characteristics BMW 116i
 
Body - 5 -door, hatchback
The number of places - 5
Equipped mass, kg - 1205
Complete mass, kg - 1705
Dimensions (length/width/height), mm - 4227/1751/1430
Base, mm - 2660
Trunk volume, l - 330/1150
Maximum speed, km/h - 200
Acceleration time to 100 km/h, s - 10.8
Control consumption of fuel, l/100 km:
- City cycle - 10.5
- Zagorod - 5.9
- mixed - 7.5
Fuel tank capacity, L - 50
Engine:
- Type- Benz., Run, 4-cyl., 16-valve., with amm. phases of gas distribution.
- working volume, cm3 - 1596
- Power, L.S. at min -1 - 115/6000
- torque, NM at min -1 - 150/4300
Transmission - fur., 5 -t., Rear -wheel drive
Tire size - 195/55 R16 (205/55 R16)*
Wheel suspension - with a reptile stability stabilizer, independent, spring;
- Front - Mcphereson
- rear - multi -link
Brakes:
- front - disk, ventilated
- rear - disk
* - In brackets, data for a test car.
 
Text: Dmitry Filonov
 

Source: Magazine 5 wheel [02/2005]