2025 BMW 1 Series Review

The third-generation BMW 1 Series tore up the Munich brand's rulebook when it came out back in 2019 – and not in a good way if you're a driving enthusiast. The 1 Series' switch from a rear-wheel-drive driving machine to a more practical front-wheel-drive hatchback left some keen drivers left wanting more.

But making the engine power the front wheels instead of the back ones didn't dent the car's popularity, and it's remained a huge seller. Now BMW has updated it for 2025 with a host of interior and exterior changes.

New swoopier headlights and a redesigned grille have given the 1 Series a less aggressive stance, while a modernised interior has brought it in line with other modern BMWs – at the cost of the rotary iDrive control knob and physical climate controls. The engine choice has been simplified as well, with no diesel, hybrid, plug-in hybrid or EV options available. Even the manual gearbox has been chucked out.

Thankfully the 1 Series still impresses out on the road, with a marginally quicker steering response than the pre-facelifted car, and an improved ride courtesy of new suspension dampers. Refinement is still good at motorway speeds, and it never feels like the baby of the BMW range.

That said, the 1 Series isn’t the only compact option in the BMW lineup, with the X1 and X2 SUVs providing tempting alternatives for family buyers. Like those cars, the 1 Series also shares parts with the 2 Series Gran Coupe if you want something a little sportier, or the 2 Series Active Tourer and seven-seat 2 Series Gran Tourer if you need even more practicality.

The facelifted 1 Series gets a huge overhaul in the cabin. Out is the old 10.25-inch infotainment system and recessed digital dashboard, and in is a twin 10-inch screen setup running the company's iDrive operating system. You'll need to prod the central touchscreen to use the system because BMW has ditched the physical iDrive controller, which feels like a real loss.

As a result, your eyes are taken away from the road while you navigate BMW's lists of tiny app icons. In fact, a similar system came dead last in our distracted driving infotainment test. Add to this the removal of physical climate controls and you're left with a slightly annoying touchscreen-heavy experience. We'd genuinely recommend picking a used pre-facelift 1 Series for a better user experience.

Thankfully, cabin quality is still top-notch, with softer materials than you'll find in BMW's also recently updated – and considerably pricier – X3. We don't love the obscene thickness of the steering wheel, but the large and improved shift paddles have a satisfying tactility that's usually reserved for the ones in fast M models.

Despite being billed as a new generation of 1 Series, the 2025 model is really just a cosmetic update, and as such the interior space is exactly the same as before. That means back-seat space is merely average for the class, and passengers over six feet tall will struggle for legroom when sitting behind an equally tall driver. The rear seat space is a touch wider than in a Mercedes A-Class, but you'd only notice when comparing them back to back. Go for an X1 if you want a small BMW with more rear seat space.

Boot space is another area that's worsened in the 2025 update of the 1 Series. The 120 – which gets a 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine – and the 2.0-litre, four-cylinder 123 xDrive both have mild hybrid technology to boost off-the-line acceleration and overall fuel economy. All well and good, but it uses a battery under the boot floor, which reduces boot space to just 300 litres – down from 380 litres in the entry-level 118i that you could get in the pre-facelift car.

The only way to get the full 380 litres back in the 2025 1 Series is to buy the range-topping M135 – which is more expensive, less economical and a lot faster than the 120 and 123. So buyers on a budget beware if you want a decent boot.

There are only three engines in the 2025-onwards 1 Series, and BMW has removed the 'i' badges from the ends of all of them – presumably to save money. 

The entry-level 120 has 170hp and gets from 0-62mph in 7.8 seconds, while returning about 48mpg. It's well suited to the 1 Series and still has enough pep in its step to feel sporty, helped by the fact it gives a satisfying three-cylinder growl when you accelerate hard. It does come with that smaller boot, though.

Next up is the 123 xDrive, a four-wheel drive 2.0-litre petrol with 218hp. It does 0-62mph in 6.3 seconds.

Finally you get the M135 xDrive, another four-wheel-drive 2.0-litre petrol, here tuned to 300hp and 400Nm of torque, with a rapid 0-62mph time of 4.9 seconds. It'll give you about 35mpg, but it's worth noting it's a few horsepower and 50Nm of torque down on the M135i of the pre-facelift car. 

Whichever engine you choose, you'll get BMW's seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox instead of the eight-speed conventional automatic used in the pre-facelift car. However, the new dual-clutch 'box doesn't give the 1 Series whip-crack upshifts, and downshifts are still quite slow if you choose to take manual control using the steering-wheel-mounted paddles.

Drive a BMW 1 Series back-to-back with a Mercedes A-Class or Audi A3 and you'll immediately notice the 1 Series feels sharper, with a more immediate response to its steering and chassis. It doesn't roll in corners as much as its rivals, and it just feels far more at home on a fast, twisting road than its rivals.

It used to be the case that the 1 Series didn't smother bumps as well as the other two cars, but the 2025 update introduced new frequency selective dampers – suspension components that automatically alter their stiffness based on the road surface. It's a simple system that works well, and it gives the 1 Series far greater comfort around town.

Refinement is still very good at high speeds, with little wind or tyre noise ruining the peace and quiet on motorway drives.