BMW’S hot new hatch
Forget the fact that BMW claims the X2 M35i is an SUV and embrace it for what it truly is – a hot hatch, writes Damien O’carroll. At a glance
The X2 may be BMW’S baby SUV, but it uses the same platform as the Mini. Which means the John Cooper Works Mini as well, so we know it is a pretty decent handler that can take quite a bit of power. Surely a hot version makes sense then?
Wait, do you mean to say that the baby performance SUV is a thing now?
Didn’t you notice the Mercedes-amg GLA45 a while back? Although, to be fair, the GLA is barely more than a slightly raised A-class, so that is forgivable.
But the M35i is more Suv-ish than the GLA will ever be (although it still only pays the barest of lip service to the strict definition that the pedants stick to). It is also less of a monster than the AMG, as it is an M Performance car, as opposed to a full-on M car.
All of which actually makes the M35i something of an accidental hot hatch.
No, stop laughing, on paper it looks very much like one of the hottest hatches, the VW Golf R.
All-wheel drive? Check. A stupidly powerful (225kw in the X2’s case, 228kw in the Golf R’s) fourcylinder turbo engine? Check. A compact hatchback shape? Well, yeah, that’s here too.
So essentially the M35i is to the Mini JCW what the Golf R is to the Golf GTI – the hot hatch turned up to 11, with added AWD simply to keep things driveable.
And to drive, the M35i feels far more like that than the SUV it claims to be – which, of course, is a very good thing.
So it feels like a faster AWD Mini JCW then?
Around town it feels like a fast BMW, with very little hint as to which wheels are doing the driving. Off the line there is a slight lag, but then the prodigious power simply pours on and the M35i belts away with no hint of FWD histrionics, regardless of what direction the wheels are pointing.
Out on the open road, however, things tend to become somewhat more Fwd-ish – and Mini-like – particularly in the wet where even the excellent AWD system sometimes struggles to keep the brilliantly smooth but blatantly powerful turbo four in check.
It is still weirdly disconcerting sitting in a BMW interior feeling torque steer in the wet, but it is no doubt something we will have to get used to – after all, the next 1 and 2 Series’ are also going FWD for their next incarnations.
Still, despite this, the M35i still feels very much like a BMW in pretty much every other regard. It has a planted, confident feel on the road and the steering is sharp and direct, if a little remote.
The ride is on the firm side of comfortable, which may put off SUV $89,900.
2.0-litre turbo-petrol inline four, 225kw/450nm, 8-speed automatic, AWD, Combined economy 7.4 litres per 100km.
BMW X2 M35i Base price: Powertrain and performance:
Vital statistics:
4360mm long, 1526mm high, 2670mm wheelbase, luggage capacity 470 litres, 20-inch alloy wheels with 225/40 tyres.
Excellent engine. Seriously fun in the dry. Quirky looks.
Lag off the line. Gets a bit torque-steery in the wet. Quirky looks.
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