The German tuners at AC Schnitzer have found a way to breathe new life into the
outgoing BMW 1 Series. The aftermarket specialist started off with the
range-topping M140i in the rear-wheel-drive guise and then slapped on a custom
body kit encompassing a spoiler for the front bumper and another one on the
roof at the back.
Like many of current BMW tuning projects, the hot
hatchback from Bavaria also ditched the standard exhaust system for an upgraded
Akrapovic set with carbon fiber finishers to enhance the sporty vibe. The last
visible tweak is represented by the shiny new 19-inch alloy wheels featuring a
five double-spoke design and a bi-color finish that suits the M140i quite nicely.
There are more changes than meets the eye as AC
Schnitzer has also worked on the turbocharged 3.0-liter engine. When it leaves
the factory gates, the straight-six mill is good for 335 hp and 500 Nm of torque. Give it to the tuners and they’ll
find a way to extract a meaty 394 hp and a torquetastic 600
Nm. Doing the math, that’s a significant improvement of 59 hp and 100 Nm.
The bump in output must have had a positive impact
on performance over the regular M140i equipped with the eight-speed automatic
transmission, which needs 4.6 seconds to reach 100 km/h from a
standstill in the rear-wheel-drive guise. Go for the xDrive-equipped model and
the beefiest 1 Series can complete the task in 4.4 seconds.
You’d better act fast if you want a RWD 1 Series as
the hatchback’s next generation will switch to the UKL platform and that means
it will be based on a FWD arhitecture. A successor for the M140i is likely on
the agenda, but it’s expected to come exclusively in an xDrive flavor and could
be called M130iX.
