I will be honest with you guys: the BMW 123d still sounds like the kind of car I’d like to own, and I’m pretty sure I’m not alone on this one.
Yes, the first-generation 1 Series is a bit… Chris Bangle, but the performance is all there. The twin-turbo 2-liter engine develops 204 hp, basically more than any 2-liter diesel from any other German company. But, and this is quite a big but, it’s still quite expensive so many years after it came out and the performance doesn’t match that of a top-spec modern hot hatch. But there is a solution: chip tuning.
This next video from French chip tuning firm Digiservices shows that you can take the 123d’s output to 255 if you’re prepared to risk your motor’s longevity. That’s just stage 1, because we found another clip in which a decat exhaust system is fitted, lifting output to a monstrous 267.7 hp and almost 500 Nm of torque. That’s more than you get with some 3-liter diesels.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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