For the better part of the decade that started in 2003, Audi had the premium hot hatch market all for itself with the S3.
At the time, BMW and Mercedes-Benz did not seem interested to enter the segment, but their attitude changed dramatically during the past few years. To fight Audi’s S3 and RS3, Mercedes-AMG now has the A35 and A45 hot hatches. BMW’s answer to the S3 hatch is the M135i, with the M235i Gran Coupe targeting the S3 Sedan.
It’s worth nothing that for the latest generation 1 Series and the related 2 Series Gran Coupe, BMW has switched to a FWD-based platform that levels the playing field with its rivals. In doing so, it deliberately gave up the USP of the previous-generation 1 Series, which was the only RWD-based proposition in its segment.
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While sales will show whether that was a good decision or not, BMW purists are not on board with the 1 Series and 2 Series going front-wheel drive. Throttle House’s Thomas is one of them and the idea of driving an M235i in a comparison review with the Audi S3 Sedan and Mercedes-AMG CLA 35 did not thrill him.
He believes the M badge has nothing to do on the car, which he says is almost not worthy of the BMW badge either. Is he too harsh on the M235i Gran Coupe? You’ll need to watch the video to decide for yourself.
As for the other cars in this review, the S3 Sedan is much older than the BMW and Mercedes, as the latest-generation model will only launch for the 2021 model year. Still, it remains a capable tool, not to mention it’s less expensive than the other two. On the other hand, the CLA 35 is a great car, but it costs almost $60,000.