BMW 1M

AS POTENTIALLY TERRIFYING AS IT WAS TERRIFIC, THIS WAS THE RAW, UNADULTERATED JUNIOR M-CAR THAT ALMOST DIDN’T MAKE IT

- DAMION SMY

THE STUNNING LOOKING 1M Coupe had the potential to scare the hell out of you, could fend off a well-driven Porsche Cayman, and, in an era of digitisation, put the seat-of-your-pants driving experience above all else. Which made its arrival in 2011 seem like a miracle – especially as it was never meant to exist in the first place.

“It’s not a junior M3. It possesses its own character and, in real-world terms, it’s probably even faster than its more expensive sibling over many roads, save perhaps an autobahn,” we said about the 1M in our June 2011 issue. The 1M was never meant to happen, let alone be able to rap an M3’s knuckles.

BMW’s then Motorsport Director Mario Theissen described the E92 M3 as ‘the pinnacle of M’, epitomising what the M Division stood for, even more so than the M5. The M3 was king, and it didn’t need an heir.

Yet this was a time of upheaval within BMW’s performance arm, with the 2008 X6M not only an SUV but also its first turbocharged model. Having weathered the Global Financial Crisis, the shackles of purist dogma were coming off; turbocharging, more SUVs and even a triple-turbo diesel would wear M badges in the coming years, with recovery and long-term survival prioritised. Passion projects weren’t high on the agenda.

It was in this climate that the 1M was proposed – and rejected – and proposed again. The 1 Series itself came as the 3 Series grew in dimensions, spec and price, presenting an opportunity for a smaller, more affordable entry-level model below.