[DaveA]

Originally Posted by un1eash

I took delivery June 10th after ordering April 15th, it was a build slot due to go into production so jumped the queue a bit.

Got his and hers now, both drive very different considering hardware underneath is pretty much the same.

The 135 does look smart in white, have to say... I was looking at another one the other day... and I think white, blue and storm bay are the three better colours on it...

How are you getting on with it...?

[un1eash]

My sister in law has ordered a M235i in Skyscraper grey which looks very nice, it's a new addition that was originally only a M3/4 colour.

We've had the Mini since December and I haven't driven it lots since getting the BMW but so far..

Engine: Mini does feel a tad quicker, it's more aggressive but I prefer the sound although fake that the BMW makes. Neither have the pops on overrun anymore.

Gearbox: As above the Mini seems more eager to go, it kicks harder in sport mode but can hold onto revs a bit too much in slow corners when in sport auto. BMW stop start seems to kick in a little to quick which can catch you out when in stop start traffic.

Suspension: Both on 18", Mini is on P Zeros and BMW on Bridgestone T005. BMW is more comfy, it soaks up the bumps better and although not crashy the Mini is harder sprung. You feel every bump in the Mini and moves around a bit more on uneven roads where as the BMW just soaks it all up.

Tech: BMW wins this easy as it's running idrive 7, has all the latest safety features which can be turned off, it reads speed limits and has a proper HUD where as the Minis is the popup screen type.

Mini definitely is the sportier of the 2 and BMW more relaxing and grown up, it still feels like a BMW even though it's now a FWD bias transverse engine setup. There's more space front and back in the BMW and it even has more space then my old F36.
I haven't had chance to really test the BMW limits to do a full comparison as there's little things the Mini does I haven't experienced yet in the BMW like under steer if your really on it mid corner and the initial feel of power shifting to the rear.
You get in the Mini and want to drive like a hooligan but you get in the BMW and can relax but know it has that dark side.

[DaveA]

Originally Posted by un1eash

My sister in law has ordered a M235i in Skyscraper grey which looks very nice, it's a new addition that was originally only a M3/4 colour.

We've had the Mini since December and I haven't driven it lots since getting the BMW but so far..

Engine: Mini does feel a tad quicker, it's more aggressive but I prefer the sound although fake that the BMW makes. Neither have the pops on overrun anymore.

Gearbox: As above the Mini seems more eager to go, it kicks harder in sport mode but can hold onto revs a bit too much in slow corners when in sport auto. BMW stop start seems to kick in a little to quick which can catch you out when in stop start traffic.

Suspension: Both on 18", Mini is on P Zeros and BMW on Bridgestone T005. BMW is more comfy, it soaks up the bumps better and although not crashy the Mini is harder sprung. You feel every bump in the Mini and moves around a bit more on uneven roads where as the BMW just soaks it all up.

Tech: BMW wins this easy as it's running idrive 7, has all the latest safety features which can be turned off, it reads speed limits and has a proper HUD where as the Minis is the popup screen type.

Mini definitely is the sportier of the 2 and BMW more relaxing and grown up, it still feels like a BMW even though it's now a FWD bias transverse engine setup. There's more space front and back in the BMW and it even has more space then my old F36.
I haven't had chance to really test the BMW limits to do a full comparison as there's little things the Mini does I haven't experienced yet in the BMW like under steer if your really on it mid corner and the initial feel of power shifting to the rear.
You get in the Mini and want to drive like a hooligan but you get in the BMW and can relax but know it has that dark side.

I am interested reading your observations...

For me, I found the Golf GTI that I had was a little too harsh for me in the 90% of situations that you were not out in it simply to have fun... There was quite a lot of road noise... It was sometimes more than a bit crashy on its 19 inch wheels with skinny tyres and normal suspension.. and there were too many rattles etc in it for my liking...

.. and so when I tested the 135 (admittedly last year) it felt immediately like it did have the extra refinement that I was seeking over and above the basic smile-o-meter fun of the GTI... Yes, maybe the BMW is not quite as noble and darty when you want it to be, but I didn't;t imagine, driving it, that it would ever let me down at the level of fun I enjoy in my cars...

The points about the iDrive being version 7 and the fact that the 135 does feel like a BMW were, again, things I noticed and felt were part of the step up I would want from the Golf..

Over on the Baby BMW forum, the T005's do get a bit of a toasting as they are a bit of an all round tyre and some of the other options the car can come on can feel a better performance tyre (the original car I ordered, that I did not take, was delivered on the Goodyear Eagle F1's)... Probably something to think about if you ever felt the BMW was a tad less sharp that you'd like...