We tested the BMW 2 Series Coupé: larger and more technological, but retaining the essence that makes it a unique car without rival on the market
Published by The team in News the 30/04/2022 at 10:20
The BMW 2 Series Coupé is a car against the grain. While three-door compacts all but disappeared from the market, this model was so successful in its first generation that BMW developed a new BMW 2 Series Coupé . We tested it and we tell you the first impressions with it.
BMW knows how few put different, unique and sometimes ahead of their time cars on the market. Some work and some don't. While all manufacturers, and they too, are constantly striving to diversify the range of SUVs, there remains a very special car in the BMW range, a successful compact coupé which embodies better than any other the essence which has historically defined the brand.
The BMW 2 Series Coupé perfectly embodies and will continue to enchant the original spirit of the BMWs that we love so much: powerful engines, contained size and weight and rear-wheel drive. Well, there's also an xDrive with all-wheel drive, but it still gives preference to the rear axle.
Second or third generation
The model appears as an evolution of the Series 1 Coupé from more than ten years ago. After the current reorganization of families and numbers which reserves even numbers for coupés, the 2 Series Coupé comes to life and the 1 Series is reserved for compacts. It is accompanied by a huge success that leads it to sell 4,324 units in its first generation.
In 2013, a new generation arrived and with it the famous BMW M2 Coupé, another success story that allowed the brand's sports car division to enjoy the good health it has today and even to improve. to take a car out of the market. we'll also talk shortly about the BMW i4 M50i, which is the first electric BMW M in history.
This new BMW 2 Series Coupé is more of a car than the previous one. It wins in all its dimensions except the height (it is 4 millimeters lower). It is 94 millimeters longer, the wheelbase gains 51 millimeters and its width increases by 64 millimeters.
This happens because it uses an older car platform. Instead of using the Series 1 as in previous generations, the new Series 2 is built on the platform of the Series 3 and Series 4 , as well as the Z4 .
Its design could be considered peculiar . Although the car maintains the proportions and the traditional scheme that gave meaning to this model, the truth is that both the front and the rear have been applied a design line that we did not know until now in the brand .
Personally, I admit that when I saw it in a photo for the first time , it didn't convince me and even made me reluctant, but like good wine, over time it won over.
The front face is marked by fairly small optics, located at the ends of a wide and very flat grille. The horizontally shaped front kidneys have nothing to do with those of the iX , Series 4 , M3 and M4.
They're smaller and more conventional, except they no longer have the traditional vertical vanes and are completely enclosed by an active vane , which opens and closes as the car has them. needed to optimize aerodynamics or improve block cooling where needed.
Larger, quality interior with lower seats
As soon as we open the door of the car, we find an interior completely different from the previous 2 Series Coupé, in which a notable advance is noted in terms of technology, materials and qualities .
Sports seats and a sport leather steering wheel are standard, while an M leather steering wheel and M sport seats with integrated head restraints are optional.
Although it is compact, it incorporates the latest generation BMW ID7 operating system . As standard, the Control Display is 8.8 inches and the instrument cluster with color display is 5.1 inches as part of the BMW Live Cockpit Plus , which is standard.
As an option, the BMW Live Cockpit Professional with a fully digital 12.3-inch instrument panel and a 10.25-inch control screen represents a significant leap in this regard, especially given the enormous technological endowment that this car can integrate.
Sitting on the driver's seat, I like the fact that it allows the bench seat to be placed even lower than in the previous generation , which already stood out by allowing the rear to be carried very low, helping to increase the feeling of sportiness. .
The range with three petrol versions and one diesel
Initially, the Coupe Series 2 range will consist of a diesel version and three petrol versions , although it will most likely be completed in the months and years to come.
Only one of them has mild-hybrid technology, the 220d, and there's no talk of plug-in hybrid versions just yet.
The BMW 2 Series Coupé 220d in motion
For this first contact, I chose the version that will be the most sold in Spain and at the same time the most unpopular for those who legislate, the 220d. Oh my god, a diesel! Curiously, it is the only version that has the DGT ECO label, since it is equipped with a micro-hybrid diesel assistance system.
I start the proven engine and get ready to go on a course of about 100 kilometers . This is a first contact, there will be the opportunity to do a more complete test of other versions later.
The engine feels smooth and refined, with no significant vibration at idle or when picking up gear from the bottom. It responds with force thanks to the fact that it has a generous torque of 400 Nm available between 1,750 and 2,500 rpm and which allows it to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 6.9 seconds .
At the first intersections and roundabouts, always in an urban environment, the car responds with agility to the movements of the steering wheel. It is very direct and easily reaches the apex without requiring effort in this regard.
I was able to corroborate this agility later, on one of my usual winding roads. There, the BMW 2 Series Coupé that I drove, despite being the least powerful and the least diesel, showed me that it is still a car tuned to make driving pleasant.
It walks with a lot of balance and the front axle transmits a lot of confidence and precision. Just lay your eyes on the point where you want to pass, the car turns even in the most noticeable downforce without the slightest hint of understeer.
It must be taken into account that the wheel drops of the front axle have increased by 30' compared to the previous model, and it shows. The double-link front axle and five-link rear axle were designed to minimize weight and maximize stiffness, and that's exactly what they do.
But what is surprising once again is that this sporty cornering character is not at odds with the comfort and ride quality on wide roads.
The key is the standard height-adjustable shock absorbers , which improve both the sporty side of the new model and its ride comfort. Depending on the spring travel, these have the ability to provide additional damping which helps control body movement when going through large potholes and prevent the wheels from sinking into them, which saves movement.
Beyond all this, which brings the 2 Series Coupé closer than ever to its older brothers, the 3 Series and 4 Series in terms of driving comfort, the car is one that inspires joyful driving, taking all the party. a regular basis.
Prices for the 2 Series Coupé range
The BMW 2 Series Coupé range is already on sale in Spain and the prices are as follows:
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