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My DMS 1M reviewed in BMW Car Mag


ChrisBuer
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Back in August I was contacted by a car photographer and reviewer to ask if I would be happy for my 1M to feature in BMW Car magazine. Of course I accepted we met up on the 28th August to carry out the shoot.

Fast forward to this morning, when I wandered into WHSmith to see the November issue of the magazine on the shelves and my little 1M on the front cover :D

I’m not going to spoil the article for anyone who wants to read it, but some stand-out quotes really made me smile:

“What’s not is doubt is the way this DMS-tuned 1M goes down the road; “fast” seems an inadequate way to describe a car that would take on a Ferrari 360 (or just about any other Noughties performance car you care to mention) in a straight line”.

“…where the performance of the standard 1M ebbs away into merely impressive, this DMS tuned car continues gathering speed unabated”.

“It’s fourth gear though that really nails this car’s performance to the board under the title “supercar” though with simply no let-up in urge..”

“It’s one of the finest 1M’s we’ve seen yet”.

Below are some photos from the shoot, which came out really well (thanks to Steve Hall the reviewer and photographer!).

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Many thanks to Steve and BMW Car magazine for the feature :)

Edited by ChrisBuer
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Nice, isn't it about time you did your x months of ownership review?

Yes I probably should :)

I’ve actually had the car for almost 12 months now (collected on October 22nd 2011) and as I’ve probably mentioned before, I bought the car to replace my Lotus Exige 260 when my wife and I had our daughter.

I needed something more practical but didn’t want to get something mundane. I’ve also tended to have cars that are quite unique or rare on the roads and I’ve always enjoyed having something that you don’t see many of. When I saw the 1M at the Geneva Motorshow, I knew it was the only new car coming out that could deliver what I needed.

So what’s it been like? Bloody fantastic and I’ve really enjoyed every mile in it! Obviously I’ve added a few bits to the car, both cosmetic and performance related, but these just enhance what already is a very solid package.

I’ve covered just over 8700 miles, which isn’t bad for a car that is effectively a weekend driver. During that time I’ve only managed to get along to one track-day (which is a shame as I would have liked to have done more) but it was pretty much faultless. I also did the track-day in February when it was cold and wet, before I had deleted the secondary mid-pipes and installed the Forge intercooler, so I was only running at around 400bhp. However it pretty much blitzed everything on the day, especially on the straights.

The tyres are holding up well and I still have about half of my tread left on them. This is both encouraging and frustrating as I do want to replace all of the tyres with the vastly superior Michelin Pilot Super-Sports. However, I’ll wait until next Easter (by which time I’d imagine the rears will be cooked) and replace them then.

Apart from that, I really cannot fault the car. I get around 300-310 miles per tank which according to the on-board computer is 24.1mpg since taking ownership. Not bad for a car with this sort of power and performance I think. The seats are very comfortable and supportive which served me well when we used it for a family weeks holiday and needed to drive for a long time. I’ve covered a few “long distance” runs (going to weddings half way across the country, etc) and I always get out feeling fresh and ache free.

The sat-nav is faultless and even when I’ve questioned if it’s taking me the most efficient way, it always wins. The heated seats are excellent, the Harman Kardon stereo is spot on for what I need (a good range of bass and mid-range which sounds superb). My wife has driven it quite a bit as well and finds it very comfortable and easy to use (the same couldn’t be said for my Exige!!). It’s the sort of car that can do the quiet motorway bimble or if you feel like it, the manic B-road blat!

….I’m actually trying to think of things that I don’t like about it and I’m honestly struggling. I guess the only thing that is a little frustrating is the over-eager traction control, but then you can switch it to MDM mode and it’s a lot better. Plus I’ve heard that swapping the tyres over to the Super-Sports cures a lot of the “orange blinking triangle” issue :)

I’ve been fortunate to have some really fun cars in the past, but I can honestly say that this little 1M surpasses them all. It’s fun to hassle down a back road, it’s fast in a straight line and in the bends to be fair, it’s very comfortable, has loads of toys to play with inside….it’s just a perfect little car if I’m honest :D

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Edited by ChrisBuer
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I think the mods should give you an award. And honouary membership of the B4stard club.

Glad it's being what you want, very surprised the tyres have held up so well. Enjoy.

:lol: Well I'm happy to be a member of the B4stard club haha!

Seriously though, it has really exceeded my expectations. I was worried that coming from a focused car such as the Exige, that a "4-seater coupe" would be a bit of a let down, but it's actually been better than that. I wouldn't go back to the Exige now!

The tyres as well have been surprisingly good. Just over 8700 miles on them and they've got plenty of life left in them. Compare that to my Exige which was ditching it's rears every 3500 miles and I'm an even happier man. In fact the Exige was getting embarrassing as I was getting a reputation of having a "rubber fetish" at work haha!

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