BMW 1 Series 118d 2019 first drive

The good news is that there’s some fun to be had here, even if it doesn’t exactly feel like a BMW. Move off and the 118d initially feels very familiar. You sit low in the car and the steering is light and positive, with a natural rate of response. And even on our car’s optional adaptive dampers (you can choose between Comfort and Sport), there’s a reassuring tautness to the ride.

The 148bhp 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel is a decent performer, and in this application, it’s more refined than before, with only the occasional tingle through the controls under load at around 2000rpm and a gruffness right at the top end reminding you that it drinks from the black pump. Our test's car optional eight-speed automatic is slick and smooth and, in combination with 258lb ft of torque, it makes for swift and effortless progress.

Find a series of corners and you’re in for a surprise, because the 118d is genuinely good to drive, if not in a traditional BMW way. The front end responds instantly to the quick and accurate steering, the nose diving toward the apex with laser-guided precision, and even when pushing hard, grip is tenacious and understeer virtually non-existent. Instead, it’s the rear of the car that wants to move around, the combination of a grippy front end, well-integrated torque vectoring and trick ESP allowing the car to rotate quickly around your hips. Lift off the throttle and the 118d tightens its line further, creating a real sense of agility.

Factor in the excellent body control (even in Comfort mode) and quick, reasonably feelsome steering, and the 118d slices through corners with fluidity and deftness, the front and rear axles sharing the cornering loads equally and the whole car feeling like it's up on its very tippy toes. No, it doesn’t feel rear-wheel drive, but then it doesn’t really feel front-wheel drive, either. This is a car that tries to deliver on BMW’s passion for creating driver’s cars rather than any rear-wheel-drive dogma.

It’s not perfect, mind. For the most part, the steering is uncorrupted by its need to steer and drive, but accelerate hard in a straight line and there’s a subtle stiffening of the rack just off the straight ahead as you get just the merest hint of torque steer fight. And although the ride is good most of the time, sharp imperfections such as potholes still send a jarring thud through the car’s structure.

In all objective terms, the 118d is a better car than the model it replaces, delivering greater practicality, comfort, refinement and technology. Sure, it doesn’t drive like you expect a BMW to, but then what do you expect a front-wheel-drive BMW compact hatch to feel like?

Put the whole rear-wheel-drive thing to one side and what you have is an upmarket family hatch that’s fast enough and extremely frugal and has a chassis that knows how to show you a good time.

Slight steering corruption aside, the lower-powered 1 Series models are more involving and agile than most models in this class. We’ll have to wait until we can line it up against its rivals to deliver the definitive verdict, but the initial signs are very promising.

BMW 118d specification

Where Munich, Germany Price £26,640 On sale September Engine 4 cyls, 1995cc, diesel Power 148bhp at 2500-4000rpm Torque 258lb ft at 1750-4000rpm Gearbox 8-spd automatic Kerb weight 1430kg Top speed 134mph 0-62mph 8.4sec Fuel economy 51.4-60.1mpg CO2 108-116g/km Rivals Audi A3 Sportback 35 TDI, Mercedes-Benz A200d, Volkswagen Golf 2.0 TDI