All-new BMW 1-series India bound

BMW has revealed its all new 1-series hatchback (codename: F20) which goes on sale in the international market in September this year.  The India launch is expected a year later in the second half of 2012. The 1-series is the smallest (and cheapest) BMW in the range which is why the company sees great potential for its all-new five-door hatchback in the Indian market. 

Encouraged by the sales of the X1, BMW feels confident that a sub-Rs 20 lakh BMW could further boost sales and it is for this reason that the company has increased capacity in its plant outside Chennai from 8,000 to 10,000 units per year. BMW hopes the 1-series will carve out a new niche for itself here as a powerful, premium rear-drive hatchback, so expect prices to be in the range of around Rs 15-18 lakh.

With its striking design — the shark-nose treatment up front, the kidney grille that leans forward, clamshell bonnet and recessed headlights — it certainly looks the part of a premium hatch. The surface treatment along the sides isn’t as conflicting as the current 1-series and to allow for a large tail-gate aperture, the tail-lamps have been pushed, VW Polo-style, to the extremities of the rear.

Based on the same platform architecture as the 3-series, it shares some major components with the ‘3’ including its front MacPherson struts and multi-link rear suspension.

It’s not as small as it looks in the pictures though. At 4.2 metres long and with a wheelbase that has been stretched by 30mm over the current 1-series, this car is more midsize saloon than small hatch. These dimensions promise a roomy, comfortable cabin. Expect cabin quality to be closer to the X3 and 3-series as well.

Helping distance the 1-series from ‘junta’ hatchbacks is a BMW’s rear-wheel-drive layout and previously unheard of power for a hatchback here. Internationally, BMW is offering a 1.6-litre petrol engine in two states of tune and a 2.0-litre diesel with three different power outputs, but Indian cars might share engines with the X1 in the interests of costs. This means a 2.0-litre, 181bhp diesel and a 150bhp, 2.0-litre petrol with a distant possibility of a hot 168bhp direct-injection petrol.

The 1-series could be an inviting proposition for someone who already owns a BMW and wants a small, yet premium hatchback, to punt around town. If BMW prices it right, the 1-series has the potential to dispel the misconception that premium cars have to be premium-sized and could propel the German carmaker’s sales to another level.