0 10s 20s 30s110mph36.3s
30mph 40mph 50mph 60mph 70mph 80mph 90mph 100mph3.3s 4.6s 6.6s 8.8s 11.7s 15.2s 19.9s 26.3s
30mph-0 50mph-0 70mph-08.4m 24.2m 47.8m
0 10m 20m 30m 40m0 10s 20s110mph28.9s
30mph 40mph 50mph 60mph 70mph 80mph 90mph 100mph3.2s 4.9s 6.5s 8.8s 11.3s 14.1s 17.4s 22.7s
30mph-0 50mph-0 70mph-08.9m 23.9m 45.7m
0 10m 20m 30m 40mTra ck n otes
ROAD TEST
8 APRIL 2 020 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 31
road. The steering doesn’t possess
the same darting response as that
of the larger 3 Series and is lighter
still, but it’s accurate and linear and
there’s some ebb and f low to the
w e i g ht i n g. I n c ombi n at ion w it h a
truly excellent driving position, the
car is pleasurable enough to f low
down a B-road.
However, problems arise when
you really want to drive the thing.
BMW’s adaptive suspension, which
is available on the M235i Gran
Coupé only, may make a better
fist of controlling the fairly tall
body, but our car’s passive set-up
isn’t supportive enough during
committed cornering and it prompts
the chassis to fall back on its nose-led
balance. Vertical control is also more
lax than expected and overall the 218i
Gran Coupé feels out of its comfort
z one at ju s t t he mome nt w he n a BM W
should rise to the occasion. In the
e nd , it ’s ju s t a bit ord i n a r y.
COMFORT AND ISOLATION
AAAAB
T he r e i s v e r y l it t le ord i n a r y a b out
the way the 218i Gran Coupé moves
w he n y ou si mpl y w a nt t o ge t f r om A
to B. The driving position is excellent,
being low slung, supportive in all
the correct places and with plenty ofadjustability in the steering column.
Even with pillarless doors and the
faintly bulbous face, the cabin is
a l s o w e l l i s ol at e d f r om w i nd noi s e
and road roar, and the engine has
only a distant presence. At idle, its
three-cylinder hum is barely audible,
w h i le at mot or w ay s p e e d s t he
2 Series Gran Coupé does a passable
impression of a 5 Series, loping along
in a bumble of its own tranquillity.
For a compact model, it’s an
unusually relaxing long-distance
c ompa n ion , w it h go o d for w a rd
visibility only improving matters.
Our test car’s 18in wheels are of
an optional style but are the smallest
size. (Any smaller would undermine
the sense of ‘sophistication’ a four-
door coupé needs.) The Bridgestone
tyres are also fairly generously
provisioned with sidewall, so the
car’s tendency to fidget on anything
less than a perfectly smooth road
i s l i k e l y t o b e dow n t o t he M Sp or tsprings. This isn’t to say the car is
irksome on the move. In general, its
rolling road manners are very good,
but the standard springs would be
likely to improve matters further,
a lb e it w it h a h a nd l i n g p e n a lt y on
B-roads. On the basis that most
people will buy the 218i for its looks,
that seems a sensible trade.
BUYING AND OWNING
AAAAC
A s f a r a s l i s t pr ic e s a r e c onc e r ne d ,
the 2 Series Gran Coupé comes out
on t op of it s Me r c e de s r i v a l. I n M
Sport guise, our 218i test car is nearly
£3000 cheaper than the equivalent
CLA 180 AMG Line, and no matter
how you look at it, that’s a fairly hefty
s u m. T he go o d ne w s c ont i nue s w he n
you examine forecasted residual
values, too, although the difference
isn’t quite as marked. Over a three-
year, 36,000-mile period, our experts
e x p e c t t he Me r c e de s t o hold on t o 51%
of it s or i g i n a l a sk i n g pr ic e , w it h t heBMW retaining 53%.
Equipment levels are strong,
with BMW’s 10.25in infotainment
suite, leather upholstery, heated
front seats and more all included
as standard. There are, of course, a
number of options packs to choose
from, but most of them are sensibly
priced. The £1500 Technology
pack – with its wi-fi hotspot, phone
charging pad and head-up display –
is particularly enticing.
Real-world fuel economy is
respectable, with our test car
averaging 42mpg. ◊
Limit handling is something the
average 218i Gran Coupé owner is
unlikely to explore too often and
perhaps that’s just as well, because
although the car didn’t disgrace itself
on the Hill Route at Millbrook, neither
did it impress or entertain as we’d
have hoped.
It’s true that this weak engine gives
the driver few options to alter the
attitude of the car, but the impression
is that even more power wouldn’t help
matters much. The suspension simplydoesn’t have the precision to respond
to subtle inputs and its softness
allows the weight distribution of the
car all too often to entirely dictate
the handling characteristics. True,
the Gran Coupé rarely descends into
terminal understeer, but it is certainly
inclined to push on whenever the
opportunity presents itself.
ACCELERATION
Vo l k swa g e n G o l f 1. 5 T S I Evo R - Li n e (2 4 d e g C , d r y)
BMW 218i Gran Coupé M Sport (11deg C, dry)
BRAKING 60-0mph: 2.75sec
Volkswagen Golf 1.5 TSI Evo R-Line (24deg C, dry)
Standing quarter mile 16.7sec at 88.2mph, standing km 30.1sec at 111.7mph, 30-70mph 8.1sec, 30-70mph in fourth 12.0sec
BMW 218i Gran Coupé M Sport (11deg C, dry)
Standing quarter mile 16.9sec at 84.1mph, standing km 30.9sec at 105.5mph, 30-70mph 8.4sec, 30-70mph in fourth 12.1sec
START
FINISH
z Gran Coupé resists
understeer reasonably
well through the tight
hairpin at T2 but it won’t
tighten its line for love
nor money.
z Engine struggles up the steepest climb of
the course in a manner that hardly befits aBMW or any car with sporting pretensions.
z Compression at the bottom of the hill
af te r T4 ex p o s e s s of t s p r i n g ra te s , a s th e
body dips deep then rebounds forcibly.
T7T4T3T6T1T5T2