BMW is sending off the outgoing M140i in style with the 鈥楩inale鈥?Package. It鈥檚 already available to order Down Under, where it will arrive in showrooms from March, and adds a few visual mods and extra gear to the current hot hatch, which will be replaced by a new generation soon. These add up to the extensive list of standard equipment which includes items such as the adaptive LED headlights with Selective Beam, Adaptive M suspension and M Sport Brakes with Blue calipers. Front and rear parking sensors, 8.8-inch infotainment system with navigation, BMW ConnectedDrive, Dakota Leather upholstery, Comfort Access System and Harman/Kardon audio round up the package. The M140i is powered by a 3.0-liter straight-six with TwinPower Turbo technology that鈥檚 rated at 335 hp and 500 Nm of torque. The output is directed to the rear wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission, for a 0-100 km/h sprint in 4.6 seconds. As for the all-new M140i, it will move upmarket in terms of power and is believed to get close to the 400-horsepower mark. The upcoming 1-Series will, however, for the first-time ever ride on a FWD-biased platform, although M models should benefit from all-wheel drive.
The seven-inch touchscreen display is poor (see Infotainment, Page 44), so the Honda鈥檚 cabin is a weak point in this test. However, the Civic鈥檚 bright red sports seats go some way to make up for that. The driving position is close to perfect, while the bolsters provide loads of support and they add a sense of occasion to the cabin that鈥檚 somewhat missing from its rivals鈥? The Type R GT version has plenty of standard kit, including sat-nav, climate control, parking sensors and wireless smartphone charging. Also fitted is Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality, plus blind spot monitoring. Adaptive dampers and a limited-slip differential are standard, too, the former being optional on both rivals. R mode is best saved for the track and is a little too firm for everyday use. Sport mode is still taut, but only the worst potholes will cause serious discomfort. Comfort will allow plenty of fun, too, although it softens the dampers for everyday driving and offers a surprising level of compliance. The Honda鈥檚 composure is combined with a superb limited-slip differential, which improves traction as you come out of corners.
It鈥檚 so effective at eliminating understeer that the car feels the most alert of this trio. Better still, the Civic Type R鈥檚 steering is more communicative than its rivals鈥? with the whole driving experience much more involving. That鈥檚 helped by the near-perfect manual gearshift, good brake feel and the ferocious 2.0-litre engine. It has more of an appetite for revs than its opponents in this test, but does without the pops and bangs of the German cars. Some people will find these contrived; others will feel they add character. However, even though the engine is the most powerful here and the Civic is the lightest car, it trailed its rivals in our acceleration tests. It was severely limited for off-the-line traction with only two powered wheels and no launch control. It would get closer to its competitors in the dry. But it鈥檚 more fun to engage with the Type R and maximise its performance.
As with the A 35 and Golf, you simply keep your foot to the floor and the electronics do all the work for you. Of course, it doesn鈥檛 have the four-wheel-drive security of its rivals, but the Honda feels more alive as a result. Even with its pumped-up looks, the Civic Type R is still very practical. It has the biggest boot of the three cars with the rear seats in place, at 420 litres, and there鈥檚 plenty of leg and headroom in the back. Storage space around the gearlever is limited, but there鈥檚 a deep central bin with a single cup-holder. It鈥檚 just a pity this makes changing gear tricky if your bottle or cup is tall. This is partly due to the strange dash design. For example, the USB charging points are tucked away out of sight. The Civic comes with autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and traffic sign recognition as standard. Honda鈥檚 third-place finish in our Driver Power 2018 survey was strong, and shaded VW鈥檚 fifth spot.
It was a little different for the brands鈥?garage networks in our latest Driver Power dealer poll, with Honda retailers ranking second, while Volkswagen came 18th and Mercedes was in between, in 13th place out of 28 manufacturers. Our depreciation experts predict that you鈥檒l lose 拢16,930 on the Civic over three years, because it holds on to 49.5 per cent of its original list price and is the cheapest car of the three in this test. The Golf鈥檚 expected 47.1 per cent residual value means a loss of 拢18,467 over the same period, while the A 35 still sheds 拢18,288 with its anticipated 48.6 per cent figure. Thanks to its long list of standard equipment, the Type R is by far the best-value model of our trio. It鈥檚 also the cheapest to insure: our example driver will pay an annual premium of 拢420 to cover the Civic, whereas it鈥檚 拢725 and 拢695 for the A 35 and Golf R respectively.
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