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This is the 2-series Active Tourer, BMW’s new Golf-rivalling front-drive hatch. But going conventional hasn’t worked in every way, says Hilton Holloway

PHOTOGRAPHY STAN PAPIOR

SO GOOD Interior design and finish Well packaged for its overall size Wide range of engines NO GOOD Four-pot diesel not overly refined Six-speed manual shift action Handling could be more fluid More than 20 years after BMW built a series of experimental front-wheel-drive 3-series models, the German premium brand has finally entered the automotive mainstream with the new front-drive 2-series Active Tourer. It is, of course, firmly positioned as a premium product, but the 2-series is also firmly planted in the biggest market sector in Europe: that of the C-segment hatchback. BMW’s strongly held self-image as the maker of perfectly balanced rear-wheel-drive cars has finally fallen to market forces, some 17 years after rival Mercedes-Benz launched the first (front-drive) A-class. These forces include the dual trend of downsizing and…

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Autocar (Digital) - 1 Issue, 23/07/2014

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