BMW 1 Series

The BMW 1-series is a small premium Bee-Em that comes in every bodystyle; saloon, hatch, five-door and convertible. All are rear drive, but only the saloon looks any good.

Comfort

Not the most comfortable of cars because the ride can be jittery at times. Most versions are also stuck with doll's house rear seats and a Rubik's Cube-sized boot. Space in the front is fine though.

Rated 9 out of 20

Performance

Most people will be seduced by an exceptionally strong set of engines ranging from a 1.6-litre and 2.0-litre petrol, alongside four 2.0-litre turbo diesels. The 116d, 118d, 120d and 123d (all 2.0-litre) are the ones to have, but the 123d twin-turbo is the best; 204bhp, 0-62mph in just 7.0 seconds and 148mph is enough for most. Mid-50s mpg helps too.

Rated 13 out of 20

  

Cool

The saloon looks pretty darn good when optioned properly, and the convertible is clever and solid, but the 1-Series hatch always looks like you couldn't afford a decent BMW 3-Series. So not cool, actually.

Rated 9 out of 20

Quality

Solid BMW build makes this a premium thing to sit in and own. Nothing wrong here.

Rated 13 out of 20

Handling

Rear-drive makes the 1-Series one of the most satisfying small cars to thrash about in, but the lack of a limited-slip diff can be frustrating in the higher-powered cars if you really want to play. Great steering and a superbly controlled body are the key components.

Rated 13 out of 20

Practicality

The boot is tiny in the hatch at 330 litres, making it almost feel like it's from a class below. There's precious little room in the back too. Better to think of this as a small driver's car than the most practical of hatches.

Rated 7 out of 20

Running costs

Go for the diesels if you care about mpg and running costs - all get exceptional mileage and perform well. Do-able insurance (116i is group 10, the 118d group 11 - which also gets 63mpg and slips under the 119g/km limit) mean that the 1-Series is on a par with other hatches. Residuals are strong across the range - it's the BMW badge - which is why they are also expensive to buy. Rated 14 out of 20