[MUSIC PLAYING] This is the new BMW M135i. And it's a very exciting little
car because it has 320 horsepower from its turbocharged 6-cylinder engine. Behind me is the Audi RS3. You already know that
one, don't you? 335 horsepower, four-wheel
drive. Now, this is a test with a
difference, because normally when two Germans get into
a tussle in the same marketplace, they have quite
similar numbers. They cost the same. They look quite similar. They occupy the same space on
the road, and they have the same power output. But BMW has launched this car
at a fiver under 30,000 pounds, whereas the RS3 is
the thick under 40,000. Yes, you can spec this car up
to be a lot more expensive. But as things stand, you can
have one of these for 10,000 pounds less than the Audi. This is going to be
a good fight. I'm looking forward to it. Do you remember when a hot
hatchback had about 150 horsepower? I do. And do you remember the day that
the Civic Type R came out with 200 horsepower, and
we thought, where is this going to end? They can't get any more
powerful, can they? Well, Audi now sells
a hot hatchback. I know it costs a lot of money,
but they sell one with 335 horsepower. Ferrari Testarossa only
had 390 horsepower. This is an exceptionally
fast car. Now you just know the next
word's going to be "but" though, don't you? Continuing this theme, during
2012 we're discussing what makes a good Audi RS model. I just don't think that
the RS3 fits into that category, I'm sorry. I'll list some reasons why. This is a blunt instrument. It's not that much
fun to drive. There isn't much feel or
involvement coming back through any of the controls. It's immensely fast between
the corners. It has a tendency to understeer when you're in them. It's got quite a lot
of front axle grip. I'll give it that. But for some reason, if you just
push a little bit beyond it when you expect the car to
neutralize, it's the front that really goes
away from you. The engine is a masterpiece,
as is the gearbox-- 5 cylinders, fantastic noise. Anyone that loved rallying
in the '80s will get that original Quattro 5-cylinder
noise, 335 horsepower, and massive amounts of torque. So there's no doubting
at just how effective and fast it can be. As for the chassis, as I've
said, steering not great, doesn't want to noseplow, and
the ride, you're not aware of how busy this is. I'm in the softest mode
at the moment. If I pile on the Sport button,
I get some more exhaust pop, and I get the kind of ride
that is just unpleasant. Other things to note-- this cabin. After the new 1 series cabin, I
know this is the old Audi A3 model, and there's a new one
that's just replaced it. But we're not going to get a new
RS3 for years, so we have to compare it to this. This just feels old. There's some really hard,
brittle plastics. It just doesn't feel
that expensive. And when you assess the fact
that they want 40,000 for one of these, I start to wonder
what on earth they were thinking of. There's a couple of things
I do need to acknowledge, though. Being four-wheel drive, this car
does have an all-weather ability that the BMW
simply can't match. Come rain or shine, you'll stick
this thing in drive, and it will be one of the fastest
cars point to points on UK roads. That is not in doubt. The other thing is this
engine, as we're now realizing, is immensely
tunable. A lot of people who buy cars
like this want to be a bit naughty, invalidate
the warranty, and give it loads of power. This motor's running at 450
horsepower in VLN races and the TTs out there, and it
does so quite happily. It does the 24-hour race
in that respect. So this can go a lot, lot
further, this motor. And that, I'm sure, is very
appealing to a lot of people. What I find really interesting
about this car and this test is a genuine mismatch. This is an RS model. This is Audi's premium
performance brand, their very best, fastest car, and it's up
against a new BMW sub-brand of not quite M car. The M135i is not an M car. And yet, in many areas, it shows
what should be done. Yes, that's right. This isn't an exact rival for
the RS3 because it's cheaper and it's not an M car. And obviously, "M" corresponds
to "RS" in Audi speak. But you know what? This is a really, really
interesting car. From the outside it's nothing
like as exciting looking. But if ever a car cloaked
extraordinary performance in disappointingly ordinary
clothes, it's the M135i because this is a very,
very fast car. In fact, I think it might be
quicker than the Audi RS3, but we'll find out about that
later on in the video. It does so many of the
things right that the Audi does wrong. For example, the driving
position is multi-adjustable. I can get low. The steering will come
back towards me. The seat is superior
in every respect. The steering-- OK, it's electric. It doesn't have any
feel whatsoever. And in Comfort mode, you think
it's too light initially. But if you spend time in the
car, it's very, very accurate, and it's quick. It's two turns lock to lock. I found myself finding it one of
the most intuitive electric steering systems I've used. I'll talk about how you
configure the chassis and the other stuff in a minute, but
left in Comfort on a British set of roads, A, B, motorway, a
mixture like that, this is a very, very convincing
car indeed. I thought it had a double-clutch
gearbox until I checked the specification. This has the optional
1,500-pound, 8-speed Zeta automatic, but it behaves just
like a double-clutch because it's so fast when you
manually shift. And in Automatic mode,
it's fantastic. It gives a claimed performance
of north of 60 miles an hour, 62 miles an hour,
in 4.9 seconds. It's a seriously, seriously
fast car. Now, we all know this fad for
configuring your car is becoming more and
more popular. And sadly, the M135i buys
into it big time. So there's a button down here
that allows us to choose between Sport Plus mode, Sport,
Comfort, and then there's an Eco Pro
mode as well. The upshot is that, most of the
time, Comfort is the right mode to be in. If you go in to Sport, you
automatically get a sharper chassis, and you get a sharper
throttle response. But you can actually knock
either of those back. So Sport can mean sharp
throttle, soft chassis, or sharp chassis, soft throttle. So you can do that, but it's
quite complicated. You've got to mess around
in the sub-menu up here. You can turn all of the slippy
stuff off if you want to, but that brings us to perhaps this
car's most controversial point for keen drivers-- no locking differential. There's not even an option
of an LSD on this car. Partly, we suspect, that's
because they want to keep that kind of stuff for the proper
full-on M cars. But I can't help but think it's
a bit of an omission. Do you know what, though? Today it's been greasy, and
I've expected to have more problems with traction than
I've had in this car. Am I missing having a locking
diff as a road car? I'm not sure I am. There's a lovely independent
feeling across the back axle. The car's not understeering in
slow or medium speed turns, which you often get
with a tight diff. So at the moment, I'm
not missing it. However, let me go to track. That might be a different case,
but at least we can go and test it. So once you've configured the
car the way you want it, which for me means leave it in Comfort
and just live with the slightly light steering. Oh yes, sorry. Sport gives you heavier
steering as well. But to me, it's just
too heavy. It almost feels like it
doesn't want to move off-center. Once you've got it where you
want it, it's a really, really pleasant car. If you push it really, really
hard, you do find that the rear of the car is a bit
lacking in control. You can get the rear to
move a little bit. But you've got to be traveling
at about warp speed nine to reach that point. So for me, it's absolutely
fine. The interior of the car-- OK, it's complicated. It's sort of the logic of a
troubled teenager thrown around the cabin, and I still
don't think BMW's I drive works as well as the other
German systems. But it's modern. It's cool. The displays are funky. It makes the Audi RS3 feel
very old inside. So as a road device, this
is a nicer car. To me, it feels as fast, if
not a bit faster, and it's 10,000 pounds cheaper. Although, a big asterisk
at that point-- this car, as tested,
is 37,000 pounds. But I've gone through the
options list of the stuff that I would remove like fully
electric seats, and folding door mirrors, and some nonsense
to do with the special screens and all
the other stuff, the connected drive. You can strip out 4,000 or
5,000 of that stuff. And actually, the appeal of this
car is to get this level of performance for just
under 30,000 pounds. So stay light on the options
and take the performance. So all that's left really is to
go and see which is faster, and try and uncover how they
behave when you really push them about. Why does the RS3 have such a
shocking driving position? You're too high. The wheel is too far away. I suppose at least you don't
have to heel and toe anymore. And as for fuel economy, when
you're not looking to make time, the best I saw was 26 MPG,
and that fell rapidly if you pinned what is admittedly
a very, very special engine. But the BMW's motor sounds,
if anything, a little better from inside. And on a long trip using that
ingenious Eco Pro mode, which holds onto gears longer, I have
reached-- wait for this-- 38 miles to the gallon. For a car of this performance,
that is astonishing. As a road car, the BMW has the
Audi covered in every area but sort of traction and extreme
weather conditions really. And even then, the BMW's supple
rear axle and subtle electronics give it remarkable
traction. [MUSIC PLAYING] On paper, the RS3 is the hottest
of hot hatchbacks-- 335 horsepower, four-wheel
drive, 40,000 pounds before you put a few toys
on it as well. What's it like on a
really fast lap? And is it really 10,000
pounds better and faster than an M135i? Well, let's find out. In third gear, we'll go through
a couple of things, and then we'll start
a flying lap. Crikey. Understeering already. What's that all about? 7,000, shift up then is DSG
gearbox, seven speeds as opposed to the BMW's eight,
bigger breaking point. Pedals a bit sharper. Only in third here. You just have to use so much
more steering, and it's understeering everywhere. I've got the system
turned off. It almost means that I need to
move my hands on the wheel to get more lock on it. Hooks up reasonably well, but
at these higher speeds, it doesn't feel like it has that
much of a traction advantage. OK. It's strolling along now. It needs a lift here, I think. It can't go flat through here. Otherwise, I'll use all of the
circuit on the exit like that. Bloody hell. Fourth gear. Oh, it's just understeering. I know it's only got a normal
Continental tire, but even if you back off the throttle, you
can't neutralize the thing. Aargh. Oh, look at that rubbish. I'm sure it's going to be a
lovely car to live with and a lovely used purchase, but why do
these cars have to do that? Yeah, sorry. I'm Mr. Unimpressed. I don't really care if it's
faster than the BMW. It's got so much understeer
everywhere. A bit of understeer
is fine, OK? A bit of safety understeer
is fine, but not that. I mean, that's just
unpleasant. A lap of grunting full through
the circuit in an M135i, trying and carry as much
speed onto this back straight as possible. Shifting up at 7,000 RPM, how
good does this engine sound? We talk about non-M engines. Well, this sounds as good as
pretty much any M engine I've listened to in the
past 15 years. Braking hard at the
box up here. Six-point calipers at
the front of this. It's doing a reasonable
job as well. It can carry as much speed as
possible going through here. It's going wide. I've got the system to
Sport Plus, but I still want to intervene. Just a bit easier
on the throttle. Car turns nicely. That fast track is a big help. This place is quick. So we've got to sort of-- oh,
am I flat-out kinky in here. Is it flat? It is. OK, back down to
four for this. A little corner here. Watch it's pace for the exit. Great correct through these. It's what you find
in supersports. [ROARING ENGINE] So I brake the car again. It turns so nicely. I really feel like I
never point to the middle of the car. Lots of breadth. It's neutral. Bit of understeer,
and then you get that nice bit of oversteer. For a non-M car, all I can say
is, what's the M version going to be like? Because this is absolutely
stunning. Whoo! [MUSIC PLAYING] Even as a stalwart fan of
limited zip differentials on powerful rear-wheel drive
cars, I find it hard to criticize the BMW's open diff
family of electronics. It's not as natural a drift car
as the 1M, but that's as much to do with the very fast
steering as the differential. The way those four-piston front
brake calipers work, too, means this is at
last a BMW without brakes made from butter. If the 135i nails the RS3 on the
road, it kills it on the track for fun. I can't remember the last time
I drove a car with a more unpleasant chassis balance
than this Audi. Understeer, then, yep, some
more understeer, and then tragic understeer to follow. And after that, chunks
of rubber falling from the front tires. It went 0.9 of a second quicker
than the BMW, but frankly, who cares? Now, look, I'm sorry this has
been reduced to a drag race. But the people that buy these
sorts of cars tend to be quite punchy and want to know
which is quicker. So there's only one way to
decide, isn't there? Side by side, two-mile runway,
M135i versus our RS3. That's got four-wheel
drive, and launch control, and more power. It should obliterate
this thing. Let's see what happens. My able assistant Neil is
driving the other car because we couldn't afford
anyone else. Three, two, one, go. OK, he gets away at the
beginning, doesn't he? But look, I'm already
picking him. Where's the power, Mr. Audi? You know what? We're still-- we're trucking! We're trucking! And we're gaining. We are gaining. This little car absolutely
flies. 140 showing. 145. Now we're alongside. 150. Now we're going past. Yeah, baby! Yeah, baby. And that's 160 indicated. And now the limit
has called time. Hey boys, M135i is faster
than an RS3. The Audi has the advantage
off the line. It creams me to 30
miles an hour. But then this thing
just keeps going. OK, it's irrelevant. It happens over 140,
but I don't care. I think it's dead impressive. [MUSIC PLAYING] Only the Germans could take a
class of car like the hot hatchback and turn it
into something as extraordinary as these two. But there's a definite winner
here, and it's the one from the Munich corner. The M135i is a cracking
little car. And for the money, without all
those extras on it, at under 30,000 pounds, remembering
that it does north to 100 miles an hour in under
11 seconds, it is the bargain of the year. OK, it's not perfect. But it does take the RS3's
trousers down in many departments. I've been quite disappointed
by this car. Some people told me it was a
good RS model, but I don't think it is. I think it understeers. I think it's a bit harsh
on the road. And where I expected it to
blow the BMW away in a straight line, it didn't. In fact, it got beaten
ultimately. So congratulations, BMW. That is a cracking car. But, of course, there's one
proviso here, and that is the Audi showroom factor. That is an object. It's quite a machine, and I just
know that loads of people are going to buy
those instead. But they shouldn't, because if
you like driving, that's a better car. [MUSIC PLAYING]
I'm glad they kept the HP of the M135i under the 1M.
Tldr - BMW wins.
I'm on the market for a 'hot hatch' and looking very seriously at the new Golf R. I have a fair sized budget, and want something small and fun but with some utility. I'm 31 so I'm looking for something a little more 'grown up' and refined than a 'speed 3 or sti, but I'm in Canada, so this video made me sad that I do not have access to either of these cars.