Everyone was focused on the new M235i and its M brothers the M3 and M4 when the BMW stand was opened to the press yesterday at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show. However, the regular 2 Series was also celebrating its debut a couple of hours ago and I didn’t forget about it.
The US will get only 2 variants of the 2 Series this year, one of them being the M Performance model. The other one is the 228i, a car that will, most likely, be the top seller on the North American continent,showcased in our live photos in the gallery below, in Sport Line guise with a Mineral Grey exterior and Coral Red interior combo.
The 228i will have the same 2-liter turbocharged engine used on the 3 Series (codename N20B20) that makes 245 HP and 350 Nm (258 lb-ft) of torque that was ranked amongst the top 10 engines by Wards Auto in 2012.
With that power plant beating under the front bonnet, the 2er will go from 0 to 60 in just 5.5 seconds using the automatic 8-speed gearbox from ZF. Unfortunately, even though there is a manual option available for all models (actually making the weight distribution of the 228i a perfect 50/50), it won’t be compatible with the xDrive all-wheel-drive system for reasons unknown to us for now.
The new 2 Series will arrive in dealerships near you starting March this year, whilst the xDrive M235i production will start in July.
The 228i will have the same 2-liter turbocharged engine used on the 3 Series (codename N20B20) that makes 245 HP and 350 Nm (258 lb-ft) of torque that was ranked amongst the top 10 engines by Wards Auto in 2012.
With that power plant beating under the front bonnet, the 2er will go from 0 to 60 in just 5.5 seconds using the automatic 8-speed gearbox from ZF. Unfortunately, even though there is a manual option available for all models (actually making the weight distribution of the 228i a perfect 50/50), it won’t be compatible with the xDrive all-wheel-drive system for reasons unknown to us for now.
The new 2 Series will arrive in dealerships near you starting March this year, whilst the xDrive M235i production will start in July.