Conflicted - BMW M140i or Hyundai i20N

Mart2912

Mart2912

Mart2912

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Bit of a random one. I'm getting a bit of a car itch and the M140i and i20N are the two I'm trying to decide between.

BMW Pros
- Nice sounding engine
- The auto would make rush hour commute more bearable
- Quick
- Better quality interior (Although this doesn't really bother me)
- Even though I like the looks of the i20N, I quite like the thought of 300+ bhp in something that looks pretty basic.
- I feel this overall will be the better daily?

Cons
- Higher cost (Fuel, insurance, servicing etc)
- Rear wheel drive. Ok, this isn't really a con, but I am concerned it will be a bit of a handful?
- Not quite as capable on small twisty roads?


Hyundai Pros
- It's a proper hot hatch with all the fun gimmicks
- LSD
- Lots of driver customisation
- I think this will be more of a driver's car and will be more fun to drive on twisty roads with it being lighter
- Better equipped as standard
- More predictable when pushing it
- Pretty cheap to run

Hyundai Cons
- I'm concerned the ride might be too harsh as a daily? Especially with the state the roads are in
- No auto, so won't change the daily commute much


At the moment I have a manual Mini F56 JCW. It's a great wee car, not without its flaws though, something which I feel the i20N would resolve. I've never owned a 300+ bhp car and never had a RWD, so you see why I'm a bit hesitant towards the M140i. My daily commute is a 40 mile round trip. 22 miles is motorway, the rest is city driving.

The logical part of me says go with the BMW for now as they are no longer in production and can always swap in a couple of years if I'm still interested in the i20N? But I do love hot hatches and being able to chuck them into corners!

Can anyone give me their thoughts on the above? I've seen plenty of car reviews for both, but it hasn't helped!

Cheers.
 
They're different segments is my first thought - why is it the i20N you're looking at and not the i30N, which would be the more obvious competitor to the BMW?
 
Kenai said:
They're different segments is my first thought - why is it the i20N you're looking at and not the i30N, which would be the more obvious competitor to the BMW?
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Purley because it's a smaller/lighter car. If the BMW had a standard 2L I wouldn't bother, but a 3L 6 cylinder engine in a hatchback is pretty much the last of its kind and most probably won't be seen again.
 
Mart2912 said:
Purley because it's a smaller/lighter car. If the BMW had a standard 2L I wouldn't bother, but a 3L 6 cylinder engine in a hatchback is pretty much the last of its kind and most probably won't be seen again.
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So which kind of car do you want?

A little lightweight city car with a pokey engine or a (relatively speaking) hefty premium hatchback with a big 6 in it?

It's a difficult choice because they're different enough cars that they're not really comparable like for like - from my perspective it would be the M140i all day long because I would have no use for or interest in a car as small as the i20N.
 
Kenai said:
So which kind of car do you want?

A little lightweight city car with a pokey engine or a (relatively speaking) hefty premium hatchback with a big 6 in it?

It's a difficult choice because they're different enough cars that they're not really comparable like for like - from my perspective it would be the M140i all day long because I would have no use for or interest in a car as small as the i20N.
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I guess that's ultimately the dilemma. I don't need a larger car, but the BMW makes better vroom vroom noises. :D I guess it's partly knowing we are headed into an all electric future so want a chance to experience these while they still have decent milage.
 
Vote for the i20N here.
Nice lightweight hot hatch.
My only reservation would be possible longevity but that is probably unfounded concern.
 
Diddums said:
BMW obvs, add a nice pops and bangs map, you'll make all the Asda birds moist.
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My 140i pops and bangs on sports mode without any maps needed :p
Mart2912 said:
Bit of a random one. I'm getting a bit of a car itch and the M140i and i20N are the two I'm trying to decide between.

BMW Pros
- Nice sounding engine
- The auto would make rush hour commute more bearable
- Quick
- Better quality interior (Although this doesn't really bother me)
- Even though I like the looks of the i20N, I quite like the thought of 300+ bhp in something that looks pretty basic.
- I feel this overall will be the better daily?

Cons
- Higher cost (Fuel, insurance, servicing etc)
- Rear wheel drive. Ok, this isn't really a con, but I am concerned it will be a bit of a handful?
- Not quite as capable on small twisty roads?
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My 140i isn't too bad on fuel at all, especially on long runs. Easily over 30mpg
RWD also concerned me before getting a m140i too, I've only ever had FWD or AWD before. In reality it's fine as long as you don't drive like an idiot. The only time I've had real traction issues is during freezing temperatures until the tyres get up to temp. You just need to be more gentle on the throttle in this scenario.

It sounds amazing too, I have a pre OPF model so it already sounded nice but I also have a dual resonator delete which got it exactly how I wanted! Still nice and quiet in comfort mode, almost the exact same as stock, and in sports mode it's a little louder with the odd pop and burble particularly on lift off
I'm still absolutely loving my M140i and am planning to keep it for a long time tbh
 
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I had an M140i and it was awesome and not bad on fuel or insurance. You can get an LSD after market to help settle the back end but then do you want that cost when it already comes with the Hyundai (never driven one).
 
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XeNoN89 said:
My 140i pops and bangs on sports mode without any maps needed :p

My 140i isn't too bad on fuel at all, especially on long runs. Easily over 30mpg
RWD also concerned me before getting a m140i too, I've only ever had FWD or AWD before. In reality it's fine as long as you don't drive like an idiot. The only time I've had real traction issues is during freezing temperatures until the tyres get up to temp. You just need to be more gentle on the throttle in this scenario.

It sounds amazing too, I have a pre OPF model so it already sounded nice but I also have a dual resonator delete which got it exactly how I wanted! Still nice and quiet in comfort mode, almost the exact same as stock, and in sports mode it's a little louder with the odd pop and burble particularly on lift off
I'm still absolutely loving my M140i and am planning to keep it for a long time tbh
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What do you do for things like servicing and warranty? I'm wondering if it's worth taking out used car warranty for it.
 
On the RWD thing - don't even think about it. Long gone are the days where RWD's are widow makers. Just accept that, like a lot of other people, when it snows heavily every 5 years you won't be able to get about for a couple of days until it melts. Apart from that, modern day traction control won't allow you to get anywhere near to killing yourself unless you decide to go into a 20mph bend at 120mph or something. If you turn off traction control because you believe you're an undiscovered Formula 1 driver, then it's your funeral :p
 
Had a light blue i20N park close by to me in a car park.

I came back and my car had thrown up at the sight of it.

Weird looking thing that I'd expect granny to drive whilst wearing a backwards baseball cap. That rear :(

Get the M140i.
 
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What a strange question lmao

These two cars couldn't be more different

The m140i is a beast and the i20n shouldn't be in the same sentence
 
Bmw traction control and dsc is superb even trying to drive like a tool it nanny’s the life out of you and won’t let you do anything too stupid. Only a button press from turning it off though :).
 
Thanks for all the input, it is appreciated. It is reassuring to know the back end won't decide to go off on a journey on its own easily. :p

Does anyone use 3rd party warranty companies that you would recommend? Had a quick look at some and they are quoting anywhere from £60 per month to £100 per month. Think I would probably take the BMW service plan.
 
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