BMW Not Going To Develop 1 Series Hyper Hatch To Rival A45 and RS3

A recent report confirms that the Bavarians are not going to develop a hyper hatch 1 Series to take on the likes of the new Mercedes-AMG A45 and Audi RS3.

Instead, the new BMW M135i xDrive flagship is built to battle next-tier rivals such as the Mercedes-AMG A35, Audi S3, and the Volkswagen Golf R.

“Our competitors are the A35 and S3, they’re our target, We have the M2 Competition for more. We see no need in the hatch [for more], since the global take-up rate us around 5 percent, so it’s not the core of our group. At the moment that’s our strategy,” 1 Series chief spokesperson Florian Moser explained to CarAdvice this week.

For those wondering if there will be a M140i replacement using the hallowed 3.0-litre inline-six you are out of luck. The new 1er is no longer able to house a longitudinal drivetrain so the M135i xDrive is as hot is the 1 Series will get.