Small Wonder

There’s no doubting that the M235i is a wonderful pocket rocket but it doesn’t take a huge amount of work to turn it into an M2-baiting super coupé

- Bob Harper

As I’m blasting back and forth along one of Northamptonshire’s most excellent stretches of road I can’t help but think that in some respects the 2 Series Coupé reminds me of the venerable E30 3 Series. It’s small (relatively speaking) and feels lithe and eager when attacking a favourite piece of road. Obviously things have changed dramatically during the 30 years that separates the cars, but I can still detect the essence of the E30 in the 2 Series – BMW might have rolled out the old 2002 when it was launching the M235i, but for me there are more parallels to be drawn with the second generation 3 Series.

And like the iconic E30 the new 2 Series Coupé seems to be attracting the attention of the tuning companies just like the E30 did back in the day. Virtually not a day goes by without an email dropping into the BMW Car inbox announcing the arrival of another new tuning product for the car, and there are no prizes for guessing which model is firmly in the centre of the tuner’s spotlight. Yup, the M235i is the weapon of choice and with prices for used examples now down to around the £20k mark owners can cherry pick a few tuning products and end up with a machine that’s every bit as quick and as entertaining as the new M2 but for half the price. Yes, it won’t have the attitude that the M2’s wide-arched styling brings to the party, but if you prefer to pass under the radar than be the centre of attention then that’s no bad thing.