Last week, we published an article on the BMW M135i running the famous Nurburgring Nordschleife in 8:05 minutes. Shortly after the post went live we issued a correction stating that the run was actually a BTG lap. Bridge to Gantry is a shorter lap since during tourist driving sessions the full main straight cannot be driven at speed due to the exit/entrance. These laps are usually timed “bridge to gantry”, which is only 19.1 km (11.9 mi).
But today, we have the first BMW M135i times for the “regular” Nordschleife lap. German magazine Sport Auto took the super hatch to Nurburgring and stopped the clock at 8:18 minutes, an impressive time which puts the M135i just three seconds behind the 1 Series M Coupe but seven seconds faster than the E46 M3. The car used at Green Hell was a standard M135i with rear-wheel drive configuration and a six-speed manual gearbox.
More information will be revealed in the magazine that hits the stands this month.
BMW M135i is powered by a 3-liter, straight six-cylinder engine and 235 kW/320 hp and 450 Nm of torque at 4,500 rpm. The technology package includes a TwinScroll turbocharger, direct High Precision Injection with central multi-hole injectors, VALVETRONIC variable valve control and Double VANOS variable camshaft timing.
The BMW M135i sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in just 5.1 seconds (automatic: 4.9 seconds) and reaches a top speed of 250 km/h – the top limit permitted by the vehicle’s electronic speed control system. Average fuel consumption in the EU test cycle is 8.0 liters (7.5 liters)/100 km, and the CO2 emissions level is 188 grams (175 grams) per kilometer.
