BMW 128ti looks like a good FWD hot hatch at the Nürburgring

Many fans weren’t particularly happy when BMW decided to launch a front-wheel drive platform, which underpinned a number of compact Bimmers. The Bavarian company has come under fire for trading its legacy for a better market presence. Maybe there is at least a bit of truth behind those words, but there is finally an FWD car from the brand that we love a lot.

Of course, this is the recently introduced 128ti, a car that sits between the standard third-generation 1-series and the top-of-the-line M135i xDrive. It’s a machine that probably has everything it takes to conquer the VW Golf GTI, Ford Focus ST and others – and a new video from the Nurburgring comes to prove it.

Courtesy of Automotive Mike on YouTube, the 2:57 minute clip shows an example of the 128ti stretching its legs around the famous German track. The soundtrack isn’t particularly great – there’s a lot of tire squealing and we can’t exactly hear the sound of the little Bimmer’s artificially upgraded engine. More importantly, the hot hatch looks pretty quick in the corners of Green Hell.

This is hardly surprising given the car’s standard equipment. Power comes from a turbocharged 2.0-liter engine developing 262 horsepower (195 kilowatts) and 400 Newton-meters (295 pound-feet) of torque. The only transmission available is an eight-speed automatic, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing as it helps the tailgate accelerate from a standstill to 62 miles per hour (0-100 kilometers per hour) in just 6, 1 second.

Offline sprinting isn’t what matters on the track, so it’s probably worth mentioning that the 128ti comes equipped with firmer anti-roll bars and anti-roll bar mounts and M Sport brakes.