BMW considering 1 Series sedan for India

BMW hasn’t been very successful in the entry level luxury segment. While they had the 1 Series hatch on sale, it wasn’t really a huge volumes product for the company. Also, the company doesn’t have any entry-level sedan currently, to take on the Mercedes CLA and the Audi A3. To change that, BMW introduced the 1 Series sedan in the Chinese market.

While at that time it was only supposed to be a China specific product, there are rumours now that the same could make it to other emerging markets too, like India. The 1 Series sedan is the first front-wheel drive car from BMW, a company that has always believed in making rear wheel drive vehicles till now. The new car is 4456 mm in length and has a wheelbase of 2670 mm, which makes it longer than the A3 but shorter than the CLA. This one too has distinctive BMW styling, which includes the kidney grill, the dual Corona rings with LED DRLs and the muscular bonnet.

On the inside, you have the iDrive, which controls all the functions on the car. Like every BMW, this one too has a dash that is tilted towards the driver. Currently, the vehicle is only on sale in China where there are only petrol engines on offer. The engines range from the 120i to the 125i. While the 120i has the same 2.0 liter engine that comes on the 320i and produces 192 Bhp, the 125i produces a more healthy 231 Bhp. If the car does come to India, it will most likely get the 120i trim and a diesel too. Now whether the company decides to bring the smaller diesel from the 1 Series or put in the engine from the 320d is yet to be known, since the car hasn’t been confirmed for India yet. However, this could make for a very interesting proposition if priced around the Rs 30 lakh mark since the current 3 Series starts at Rs 36.50 lakhs ex showroom.

Source: Autocar India