With the new 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel, the German marque is getting just a little bit cheeky.  By all rights, you’d think that the BMW 1-series line-up of baby Beemers – a collection of five-door hatchbacks – would be a little on the dinky side.  Nope!  Why make something that’s going to earn the label of a granny car when you can make a hot hatch. Same general description but a whole different attitude.

In the latest set of offerings from BMW bearing the 1-series tag, there’s (currently) only one that runs on diesel fuel: the 118d.  This is likely to appeal to the savvy driver who likes a bit of torque and/or the possibility of running a vehicle on a biodiesel blend.  We hope that in the future, more will be added to the BMW 1 Series Diesel collection because they’re nice cars with snazzy, sporty styling.

The current 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel’s engine is able to thumb its nose at its petrol-powered twin, the 118i, as it beats it hands down in all departments. Top power? The diesel’s 110 kW beats the petrol by 10 kW. Torque: no contest! At 320 Nm, the diesel pumps out 100 Nm more than the petrol.  Fuel economy?  In spite of the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel’s engine being larger (2 litres) and having more cylinders (four of them) than the petrol, it still manages 4.2 L/100 km to the petrol’s 5.2.  Nought to 100 km/h time?  Although you probably wouldn’t notice the difference if you actually experienced it, the diesel’s 8.1 seconds just pips the petrol’s 8.7.

However, the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel shares the same great styling as its 118i twin.  In other words, it’s nice and chunky with dynamic lines and angles, the way a hatchback in the late twenty-tens or whatever you call this particular decade.  It’s got the classic BMW kidney grille, of course, plus the twin round headlights, which, though traditional, blend in nicely with the assertive modern styling and work well with LED technology (this also helps to keep the power demands on the electricity front down).  The use of high-gloss black trim around the grille is probably how the stylists have blended old and new in quite a nice package.  The rear isn’t quite as exciting as the front, but LEDs have been brought into play nicely for the rear lights, and the total rear has a certain simplicity about it that’s easy on the eye, even if it isn’t completely eye-catching.  Viewed side on, the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel looks nice and clean, with subtle aerodynamic channels running along the length of the vehicle and a gently sloping roof line – all sitting pretty on top of 16-inch alloy wheels with the star spoke design that’s exclusive to the Sport Line the 118d is part of.

The 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel is certainly fun to drive. The designers have done their best to give the little BMW nearly 50–50 axle load distribution, which makes the hatchback nice and nimble (the axles in question are a double-joint spring strut at the front and a multi-arm job at the rear.)  You can pick between Sport Plus and ECO Pro driving modes (I’ll admit to preferring the economy of the ECO Pro for most of my driving about town).  The changes carried out by the 8-speed automatic (steptronic) transmission are nice and smooth.  On the open road and on the highway, cruise control, BMW’s speed limit device and speed limit information prove very useful – especially as the speed limit information system acts like an onboard Gandalf who informs you that You Shall Not Pass (i.e. that you’re in a no overtaking area).  A lot of the active safely features also give the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel that cheeky little edge when it comes to tight corners and other places that don’t involve long straights: dynamic stability control, ABS braking, cornering brake control, brake assist and dynamic traction control – a lot of things are described as “dynamic” and that’s not a bad description of the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel as a whole.

Around town, the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel has a host of other little gadgets to make life easy, especially the Driving Assistance package comprising approach control warning, lane departure warning, pedestrian warning (very nice, that!), the attentiveness assistant that makes sure that you’re not falling asleep or going into La-la Land, and the light city braking function (meaning that it brakes lightly in the city, rather than only braking in light cities).  The headlights are automatically activated, which saves you the hassle of working out whether it’s a dull enough day to switch them on yet.  A rear view camera and park distance control round out the driver aids.

BMW is set on joining the Internet of Things, and the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel is no exception, thanks to the presence of ConnectedDrive as standard in the 118d (one year’s subscription when you buy the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel new).  This helps your smart devices (smartphone or Apple watch) to talk to the car and swap information which can then be displayed on the 118d’s 6.5-inch colour display.  For example, if you get stuck in a traffic jam and you’re going to be late for a meeting, you can instantly share this information plus a recalculated arrival time – calculated by the ConnectedDrive – to whoever’s waiting for you.  And if you’re the sort of person who has a tendency to forget where you’ve parked (I’ve done this a few times in a busy mall), then the app will give you walking directions to where you left your car – and unlock the door for you remotely via the smartphone if you like.  About the only thing you can’t do is the James Bond-esque move of getting your car to drive itself to where you’re waiting (and they’re probably working on that!).

The interior of the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel is nice and roomy, with lots of in-car storage even if you don’t fold down the rear seats (60/40 split).  Touches of chrome here and there and the Sport Line red stitching complement the dark cloth upholstery and trim.  The automatic air conditioning system, the electric backrest width adjustment in the sports seats (front passenger and driver) and the 6-speaker system are also much appreciated.  About my only gripe with the interior would be that the rear seats don’t have quite as much storage or cupholders – but that’s not a biggie and certainly isn’t a deal-breaker in my books.

Current model series include:

• 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel 118d

For any more information on the 2017 BMW 1 Series Diesel, or for that matter any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181. If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quotes requests out to our national network of BMW dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours. Private Fleet – car buying made easy!