Our last and final episode from our BMWBLOG 1M European Delivery saga begins with the return journey from Nurburgring to Munich and towards Garmisch.
After attending the exciting 24 hr of Nurburgring race and hanging out with the BMW team during the night, we set course back to Munich. By now our 1M was sitting in the parking garage for the past two days and we were more than eager to get behind the wheel, finalize the break-in process and finally enjoying some real speeds on the Autobahn.
On the way back to Bavaria, we chose some country roads where we could not only shoot some video, but also enjoy the curvy roads Germany has to offer. The 1M was eager to conquer the road even more and the growl coming from under the hood, let us know that it’s time to let the “baby-M” show us what’s capable of…with some direction from us.
With Shawn behind the wheel things were about to get more interesting. An enthusiastic driver and a regular at Mosport race track, BMWBLOG’s road test editor gave the car a run for its money conquering sharp corners at 100 mph and hard braking in hairpin turn. Weighing considerably less than the M3, using the chassis from its bigger brother and outputting a mad 370 lb-feet of torque, the 1M requires a bit more driver input in corners and extended driving skills.
Overall, the new BMW 1M can be classified as ///M’s return to driver-oriented experience, as well as a new beginning for the super sporty division of BMW.
As one would expect, the aggressive driving brings the MPG numbers to a fairly low level, between 16 and 17 MPG. On the highway at normal speeds, our estimation says 21 MPG, with three passengers and heavy luggage.
After a fairly long drive, we finally reached Munich and headed to the hotel as the odometer indicates nearly 800 miles.
Next morning, we slept in longer than planned and had a very late start to the beautiful Garmisch, mountain resort town in Bavaria. Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a favored holiday spot for skiing, snowboarding, and hiking, having some of the best skiing areas (Garmisch Classic and Zugspitze) in Germany. And of course, some perfect roads for an aggressive car like our 1M.
On the way, the GoPro cameras helped us capture some beautiful footage of the Alps sitting in front of us. We also couldn’t miss the opportunity to shoot the 1M in the gorgeous scenery at the bottom of the Alps.
The 1M continued to amaze us and turned more heads than any other car we have seen on the road, partly to its uniqueness in a land of BMWs and the flashy Valencia Orange. On our 300 miles round trip, only one BMW 1M was seen on the road, ours, making us feel special for a day.
After a quick lunch in Garmisch and more back roads driving, we headed back to Munich for the end of our trip and a final ride before dropping off the car at Munich Airport.
Looking back, this has been an emotional and extraordinary experience. It all began days before delivery with a ride on the classic BMW R51/3. Next, we headed to BMW Welt and spent 8 hours learning more about the European Delivery process and what goes behind the scenes (more on this in a future article and video). Shortly after we picked up our 1M through the delivery process setup by BMW and set course for Austria. Morning comes and BMWBLOG team was once again heading back to Munich for a special visit at the BMW M headquarters where M engineers talked to us about the 1M and upcoming M5. In our trip, we were accompanied by an Alpine White 1M and the almighty M3 Sedan that set the pace for our M caravan.
Next stop in our journey, Nurburgring, M3 CRT and M5 unveiling, the M Corso, M Testing Facility and 24 hour race. Another great and unique experience that is recommended to any M fan or owner.
The BMWBLOG European saga ends with the drop-off in Munich and more on that soon…
Special thanks to Manny Antunes at JMK BMW for allocation their first 1M to us.
