InsideLine confirms what we already have known: the M135i Hatchback is not coming to United States. But that’s the news for today.
According to the U.S. magazine, BMW of North America had planned to introduce the super sporty hatchback to U.S. customers, after an initial refusal, but the decision came a bit too late. “The car has not been engineered for the U.S. and to modify it now would be too expensive and take too long,” said a BMW spokesman to InsideLine.
The company has yet to officially conform the plans to bring a coupe variant of the M135i, but BMWBLOG has learned earlier this year in a conversation with M CEO Friedrich Nitschke that the performance division has specifically built the M135i for the U.S. market and customers. Reading between the lines: an M135i Coupe model will make it on this side of the pond.
In current configuration, the BMW M135i is powered by a 3-litre, 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.
M135i runs from standstill to 62 mph (100 km/h) in just 4.9 seconds.
The M135i model belongs to the new M Performance Automobiles family which aims to bridge the gap between standard bimmers with M Sport packages and a fully M-developed vehicle.
If it arrives to the U.S., we believe the model designation will be M235i, following the naming convention of the 2 Series line-up.
